How to Make In Camera Composition Guidelines

by Bob Harris
(Wetumpka, AL )

In Camera Composition Guideline

Most DSLR and Mirrorless cameras have a menu to allow the user to select various composition guidelines. The rule of thirds being the most common.

I can purchase a plastic clip that fits inside my camera which shows through the viewfinder a composition guideline for photographing students for a school yearbook and individual photos. It's similar to the guidelines for passport photos - top of head and chin line and outline of the face.

It costs a couple of hundred dollars for the plastic template to fit in the camera. As cameras age and specs change, the plastic template becomes obsolete. A long term solution is to have the ability to make a similar guideline that becomes a menu selection in my camera.

How do I make one? How do I import it into my cameras? At this time, we primarily use Canon but may switch to mirrorless soon.

Hi Bob, thanks for your question about fitting your Canon with a composition guide for shooting school photos.

Unfortunately, I have no experience with this type of fix. With the preschools, high school seniors, and sports teams that I photograph with my Canon, I shoot a variety of compositions and do custom cropping post capture.

You can try calling Canon directly or I'd see if you can talk to a NON-competitor in the same market as you are in.

Good luck,
Bruce