Golden Ratio Grid
Enter your frame or canvas dimensions to get a rule-of-phi gridline overlay and a matching golden-rectangle crop suggestion.
Rule-of-phi gridlines
Why 38.2% and 61.8%?
Those two figures are 1/φ² and 1/φ, and they share a tidy property: 1/φ² + 1/φ = 1. That means the two gridlines this tool draws automatically divide the frame into three bands whose widths are themselves in golden-ratio-related proportion to each other, rather than the plain even split the rule of thirds uses. Placing a subject or horizon near one of these lines is the golden-ratio equivalent of the thirds technique many photographers already know.
The same math extends directly into a crop suggestion: trimming a frame down to a true golden rectangle (φ:1) is just one more application of the same 1/φ division, applied to whichever dimension is “too long” relative to the other.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is this different from the rule of thirds?
The rule of thirds splits a frame into even thirds (lines at 1/3 and 2/3 of the width and height). This tool places lines at 1/φ² (≈38.2%) and 1/φ (≈61.8%) instead — the golden-ratio split, sometimes called the 'phi grid' or 'rule of phi.' The two methods put their guide lines in similar places but not identical ones, and photographers and designers who prefer phi generally do so because 1/φ and 1/φ² relate to each other and to the whole frame in a way even thirds don't.
Why two lines instead of one, on each axis?
A single golden-ratio split only gives you one line. Placing a second line at the mirrored position (measuring the same 1/φ and 1/φ² proportions from the opposite edge) gives a symmetric four-line grid, similar in spirit to the classic 3×3 rule-of-thirds grid but built from the golden ratio instead of even thirds.
What does the suggested crop do?
It finds the largest golden rectangle (long side ÷ short side = φ) that fits inside your entered frame — trimming the width if your frame is wider than a golden rectangle, or the height if it's taller. It's a starting point for a crop, not a rule about what looks best.
Does using this grid guarantee a better photo or layout?
No compositional grid — thirds, phi, or otherwise — guarantees a good result on its own. These tools are aids for placing a horizon, a subject's eyes, or a focal element somewhere more deliberate than dead-center; the content, lighting, and subject still do most of the work.
Educational composition aid for photography, design, and layout. It is a proportion guide, not a guarantee of a better result.