Rule of thirds? negative space? HELP please

[tmjjk]

This guy was so afraid of the water. When his mom finally talked him into getting his feet wet, I told him to show me his muscles. I think this is a sweet image of this boy
Unfortunately I am unsure of the crop??? Any C&C is greatly welcomed.

 

[Trever1t]

Well, as far as the rules go it looks ok but for some reason I think it'd look better if he was on the left side of the frame Usually I like portraits shot in portrait orientation but this one the landscape frame allows me to see his surroundings more, adding to the story.

 

[pgriz]

Ok, compositionally this image does not work well to support the storyline. Without your explanation, it would not be obvious why the boy was holding his hands and had the expression he had. So, what if... you put the camera in portrait mode, put him in the upper right power point, (or upper left, to keep Trever happy) and showed the expanse of water in front of him that was causing his anxiety? By making the water a much larger part of the image, it would give us a clue that this was an important element. By putting the boy on the power point, there would be the natural shift of view of the viewer between the water and the boy, and back again.

 

[Tuffythepug]

While the rule of thirds is a good general guideline it isn't always the best for every picture. For example I prefer a vertical crop like this one. making the boy a little larger in the picture lets you focus on his face a little bit more. The water element is still there; but the face tells the story in my opinion. But it's a good shot either way. I just prefer this crop myself

 

[tmjjk]

Thank you for the great feedback!!