Is Good Compostition still relevant?

Great care and thought seems to go into photographing landscapes, seascapes, trees, cars, sports, insects and wildlife, but  alot of contemporary photogaphy would suggest that by putting a human in front of the lens and all the conventions of composition seem to fly out the window.

The result, even when using the most accomplished and beautiful of models, is a round blob of a face, or a rigidly lifeless figure standing in the midst of an expanse of blandly lit studio, or a vast desert of sand and sky: DEAD CENTRE of the photo.

The centre of a picture has been called ¨dead¨ for centuries for a reason.

Even the occassional telegraph pole growing out of the top of the head,  or ear piercing, or neck slicing horizon would make the composition more interesting to look at.

Or possibly the use of that seemingly one and only, all encompassing rule of composition beloved and belaboured by ¨internet experts¨ the world over : The Rule of Thirds...even the name is an anathema to anyone with even a semblance of understanding of artisitc composition.

Maybe, improvement could also be made by a little less reliance on the current amateur jargon of photography where every shutter button push is ¨imaging¨ or a ¨capture¨, creating the impression that all a photogapher has to do is wait until something vaguely interesting passes in front of his lens, and then unthinkingly press the button.

Remember: people ¨take¨ a snapshot, but an artist has to ¨make¨ a picture.