This lesson started out as something rather specific: a description of a well-known compositional rule of thumb. I wasn't quite satisfied with the way it was originally written, though, and decided to try to get it more in line with the stated aims of this course: to learn to think compositionally. So, it turned into something rather different -- an essay on the fundamental elements of composition: figure, ground, and space.

The objective of this lesson is to introduce three fundamental elements in compositional thinking: division of space, figure, and ground, learn to use them to think and talk about pictures, and learn a simple method with which to apply them in your own photography.

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