When first looking at Andre Kertesz’s Rue des Ursins (1931) I couldn’t see any direct use of the Rule of Thirds, the Golden Ratio or any of the other rules that I was looking for after reading the articles. I’m not really sure what it is about this picture that caught my attention. Some of the other photos that were part of Kertesz’s gallery were far more interesting and pleasing to look at but I guess what made me stop after seeing “Rue Des Ursins” was its simplicity. In my eyes this was just a plain photo that anyone who was in that particular time and place could’ve taken.
When I tried to apply the rule of thirds, I picked out the two probably most typical possible subjects, the woman with the cat and the doorway of this building. These two things seemed to be close enough to the lines but not enough to really draw my attention. Then I realized that I was ignoring the vocal point of the photograph, the sign. After I realized that the sign was on the upper right intersection of the horizontal and vertical lines that make up the Rule of Thirds I realized some other parts of the rule that the photographer knowingly or even accidentally incorporated.
If you look at the picture the doorway takes up the right portion of the frame, most of the alleyway takes up the left portion of the frame and that the place where the bottom of the building meets the sidewalk is also the bottom horizontal line. If you turned the photo you could also see how the Golden Ratio is expressed with the sign, also the title of the photo, being the beginning of the spiral, then moving on to the lettering at the top of the building, to the doorway and then ending with the woman next to the cat.
I personally think its an art how the photographer was able to use these rules and take a photo that followed them without it being outwardly apparent that this was his objective. I’ve always considered photography as an art form and while I consider myself a very creative person, I never understood how to be creative with this medium. Without directly modifying and editing a photo it seemed impossible to express anything, which I think art should do, by simply taking a picture of something that already existed. Reading about these techniques has changed that and while preparing my shot for Snapshot day my goal will be to try to recreate what is already right before my eyes in a way that is unique to me.
-Yasmin
