Are you considering starting a photo challenge to work on your photography? In this post, we’ll discuss 8 reasons you should do a photo challenge.
Do you love photography but find yourself going weeks or maybe even months without picking up your camera and pressing the shutter button? A photo challenge could be just what you need to help yourself use your camera more.
Over a year ago, I decided to do a 365-day photo challenge. You can read what I learned 200 days in here. Long story short, I was tired of wanting to work on my photography and not doing it. So I did something about it. Maybe you’re feeling that way too. And you know that if you want to work on your photography, you’ll need to do something about it.
It’s probably no surprise to you that committing to any kind of challenge can help you get better in that area. Whether that’s a fitness challenge, reading challenge, or photography challenge. In 2021, I completed the 75 hard challenge for the first time and it was life-changing. I think it’s what inspired me to do a photo challenge a year later. And I am so happy I did.
Ultimately, where focus goes, energy flows. So if you want to get better with your photography you will need to focus on your photography. Below you’ll find common reasons you should do a photo challenge. If you decide to do a photo challenge, you may discover even more reasons along your photo challenge journey!
8 reasons you should do a photo challenge
1. It will help you prioritize your photography
A photo challenge can help you stop wishing and start doing. We all have busy lives and things we want to do but sometimes can’t find the time. But if you don’t make time now, when will you? A photo challenge can help you stop daydreaming about practicing your photography and finally prioritize it.
2. It will help you stop making excuses
Like I said above, you’re busy and I know the thought of adding one more thing to your to-do list might feel overwhelming. But there are a lot of simple photo challenges out there. Daily or weekly challenges. Short or long-term challenges. You can even create your own photo challenge.
I guarantee that you can find a photo challenge out there that can work for you. And when you do, you’ll have no excuses to not work on your photography.
3. It will help you flex your creativity muscles
Have you ever looked at other photographers’ pages and wondered how the heck they come up with all so many creative ideas? Well, they work on using their “creativity muscles” and the more you work on it, the easier it becomes. Though I will admit, you might meet some resistance at first but if you push through there will be light on the other side of the tunnel.
4. It will help you reflect on your photography
A photo challenge can help you reflect on the types of photographs you’ve been taking and the ones you’ve taken in the past. Once you get going, you’ll likely start looking at your photos a little more closely and asking yourself what you could do differently.
For example, a few years ago when we moved to Europe, we started traveling A LOT. We practically traveled full-time and crammed in a lot of stuff with hardly any downtime on our trips. I knew I would likely never see these places again, so I took pictures of everything. I found myself constantly balancing wanting to experience everything with wanting to document EVERYTHING. This led to me taking a lot of crappy, aimless pictures of random things. And I didn’t realize I was doing this until it came time to start sharing my pictures for my 365-day photo challenge.
My photo challenge made me reflect on my photography. Reflecting helped me to become more mindful when I pressed the shutter and repeatedly helped me push myself in new directions in my photography.
5. You will further develop your skills
Naturally, when you start practicing more and start reflecting on the photos you’re taking, you’ll likely further develop your skills. Practicing more might help you take sharper or better-exposed photos. It might help you better frame your photos or give you the nudge to shoot in full manual. Or maybe it will help you improve your editing in Lightroom or streamline your workflow.
6. It will encourage you to learn more
While practicing, you might find you have holes in your photography knowledge and if you enjoy improving, you might find yourself seeking out the answer and learning stuff along the way.
You might find small things you want to learn like how to get sharper photos or how to get an intentional motion blur in photos. You might find big things you want to try learning like how to do a double-exposure photograph or how to merge two photos in Lightroom or Photoshop. And if you’re curious about how to do something new, you can probably find the answer to your question on Google or YouTube pretty easily!
7. It will help you become a better photographer
If it’s not obvious reading the above points, a photo challenge can help you become a better photographer.
Committing to a long-term photo challenge was the single best thing I ever did for my photography. I’ve been practicing photography off and on for over two decades and nothing helped me get better as quickly as committing to a photo challenge did. It made me more consistent with my camera than I have ever been before. And honestly, more confident too.
By focusing on your photography, practicing more frequently, reflecting on the pictures you’re taking, and developing your skills, your photography and photography skills will inevitably get better.
8. It can improve your mindset
Last but not least, you might find through all this you start feeling lighter and more fulfilled.
Like you’ve finally checked off a box in your mind and it’s freeing up some space in your head.
You might start feeling happier because you’re finally working on your photography, proud of yourself for sticking to your word, and excited that you’re making progress. That’s not to say that you won’t hit roadblocks along the journey or have days when you’re frustrated but pushing through that and creating can ultimately make you feel accomplished and proud of yourself in the end!
Summary:
I hope this post helped persuade you to start a photo challenge. As you can see, you have so much to gain from making a small commitment like this.
A photo challenge can help you:
- prioritize working on your photography
- stop making excuses
- flex your creativity muscles
- reflect on your photography
- further develop your photography skills
- encourage learning new photography techniques
- become a better photographer
- improve your mindset
You can check out my photo challenge journey, I shared my whole 365-day photo challenge on Instagram. The good, the bad, the over-edited, and everything in between. You can check out my first post through my 365th post there.
If you love travel and photography, let’s be friends on Instagram!
