An apparatus and automated method are disclosed for alignment of objects in a document which allows saliency within one or both objects to be a factor in the alignment. The method includes, for an input electronic document, identifying first and second objects to be aligned on a page of the document. A one dimensional guideline profile is generated for at least the first object based on a detection of saliency for the first object. The first and second objects are aligned based on the guideline profile to form a modified document and the modified document is output.