Pig,
I learned it as the golden 'something' (can't quite remember) in photography. Simplified it's the usually 5 to 8. Say you have a photograph of an ocean scene. If the final photo is 8 inches high, then a balanced, comfortable final will have the horizon 5 inches from the top or bottom. (Like Pig said, look at a bunch of picture post cards you'll see it: horizons just above or below center.)
You can play with that, too. The more centered the horizon the more stable - or stale - the results will appear. The closer to the edge the more tension it creates.
I once thought of creating a knife that was 100% 5:8 ratios. Blade vs. handle, pin spacing, bolster size, blade width.... Never got around to it. However, I should probably draw one.
In any case that would make for a balanced appearing knife. If you want some kind of wild knife, then make the ratios more like 2:8. Picture a knife with a 6" thin handle and a 2" blade. Would look out of balance, but extreme too.
Steve
I learned it as the golden 'something' (can't quite remember) in photography. Simplified it's the usually 5 to 8. Say you have a photograph of an ocean scene. If the final photo is 8 inches high, then a balanced, comfortable final will have the horizon 5 inches from the top or bottom. (Like Pig said, look at a bunch of picture post cards you'll see it: horizons just above or below center.)
You can play with that, too. The more centered the horizon the more stable - or stale - the results will appear. The closer to the edge the more tension it creates.
I once thought of creating a knife that was 100% 5:8 ratios. Blade vs. handle, pin spacing, bolster size, blade width.... Never got around to it. However, I should probably draw one.
In any case that would make for a balanced appearing knife. If you want some kind of wild knife, then make the ratios more like 2:8. Picture a knife with a 6" thin handle and a 2" blade. Would look out of balance, but extreme too.
Steve