Spiritual Photo Tip 3: Rule of Thirds

The Rule of Thirds is by far the most popular when I teach my Composition & Elements of Photography workshops.

May it not only help you take better pictures but also open new ways of seeing your life and those in it. For this blog series is about so much more than photography!

The Rule of Thirds is about where to place your subject in your picture. Most amateurs automatically place it dead centre. There are times when this is great, but often it isn’t.

Instead, place your subject on the 1/3 line to the left or right or to the top or bottom. 

And if it’s small enough, place it on one of the 4 sweet spots – the intersection of those grid lines.

Most cameras, even phone cameras, give you the option to show these grid lines.

My Grid is permanently on in both my SLR camera and my iPhone. Whenever I take a picture, the grid is visible, guiding my choices.

Go to Settings, Camera and look for “grid”. Then turn it on.

In order to live a life that’s in alignment with your Highest Good, it’s important for you to to know yourself – your True Self.

Often, we live our lives the way we were taught – by our parents, society, the school system, etc. We feel obligated to live dead centre, with the “norm”.

Eating 3 meals a day at set hours is automatic. Going to school, graduating, buying a house, getting married and having 2 kids is the standard many strive for. Working 9 to 5 is normal.

Maybe you’ve grown up simply accepting what’s normal or expected in your culture. Maybe that’s a fit for you.

But what if your sweet spots are off-centre?

What if  your life (or those of your loved ones) would be better if they deviated from your culture’s definition of normal?

What if you thrived on 5 smaller meals a day at strange hours?

What if your most productive hours are from 3-11pm or 5 am-2pm (like mine)?

What if working 6 months of the year at one job and the other half on your hobbies is your ideal scenario?

What if not owning a house or a car fits better in your definition of freedom?

What if ….. (you fill in the blank)?

Getting to know and live in accordance to your Sweet Spots in all areas of your life is key to health and happiness. This is as true for your career, recreation, finances, personal & spiritual growth, relationships, environment, community involvement and health.

Luckily, we live in a day & age when taking leadership of our own lives is more encouraged.

Your intuition will guide you. If you ask your Team of Divine Helpers to help you with this, they’ll give you clues. (Check out my free 75-minute Intuition into Action tutorial).

If you ignore those taps on the shoulder for too long, you may be hit by a 2 x 4, some drastic life event that you can’t ignore. You may get sick and have to leave the  job you felt imprisoned by or change your way of eating. Your relationships may break down.

Trying to fit in someone else’s perfect picture for your life can have serious consequences.

Living in alignment with your True Self means getting to know who you are and honouring those Sweet Spots. Often, they’re not dead centre with what society has termed normal.

Take a selfie through the eyes of your soul. How can you lovingly apply the Rule of Thirds to your life?

Understanding that your children’s, your partner’s, your friends’ Sweet Spots may not be the same as yours or of the societal norm is key to building strong relationships. 

If you truly want their happiness without expecting anything in return (a definition of unconditional love), then helping them to recognize this truth and live with the Rule of Thirds would be such a blessing.

Health & happiness are not about surviving in a cookie-cutter life but thriving by co-creating the conditions that allow our true nature & gifts to shine. 

I invite you to think of a loved right now.

Have you judged their off-centre preferences, habits, characteristics negatively?  Are you looking at these through the eyes of love or fear?

Do you want them to be dead centre in your or society’s frame of reference or can you move your heart to both see & accept their version of the Rule of Thirds?

Let’s be clear. I’m not talking about their destructive or reactionary behaviour that results from not living authentically for too long. I’m talking about what would naturally evolve if they followed their bliss.

The best way to learn is to share & teach others.

I encourage you to post a few pictures & reflections on social media to inspire others to reflect on how the Rule of Thirds can help create both better pictures and a happier, healthier life.