The Joy of Photography: Thoughts for a New Year

Do you remember why you first picked up a camera?

Did you want to use it to travel and capture iconic locations?

Did you want to use it to document your daily life and that of your family and friends?

Did you intend to use it to share your images on social media?

Did you intend it to be your daily companion, to capture whatever caught your eye?

Did you pick up a camera to learn a new skill and express yourself in new ways?

Or did you first pick up a camera to give yourself a creative pastime, something to help you de-stress, enjoy the outdoors and escape from the busyness of daily living?

Maybe your purpose in picking up a camera for the first time was a combination of these reasons. Yet many people lose sight of their original intention and find themselves under pressure to take photographs for others, to produce images that will do well on social media, match the work of photographers on YouTube or meet the standards of those whose work we see online. Many have given up photography for these reasons. If that has happened to you, I challenge you, at the start of a new year, to re-claim the joy of photography.

How do you do this?

The joy of photography comes from:

Photographing for yourself. It comes from making the images you want to make, expressing your own unique voice through your photography. If something looks ugly and you are drawn to take that photograph, take the photograph. If it's just something ordinary and you like the way the light is shining on it, take the photograph.

The joy of photography comes from:

Not comparing your work to the best work of others you see online. Those who post online often take bad photos and mediocre photos but they don't post them. Even professional photographers take hundreds of less than perfect photographs but these don't make it onto their portfolio, their online gallery or into their photography books.

Your photos may not be perfect, but they are yours. Be proud of them.

The joy of photography comes from:

Resisting the temptation to think that a new camera will make you a better photographer. Take out the camera you have and give it some love. Learn something new about your camera, something you didn't realise before. Use different lenses, different focal lengths, different picture profiles. Experiment. Try some close-up photography. Try true macro. Use your phone camera if you don't have a close-up or macro lens. Just try something different and don't expect perfection. Enjoy the fun and challenge of doing things differently.

Try something close-up, or abstract, or both.

 If you usually shoot in colour, try black and white occasionally,.

Finally, the joy of photography comes from:

Slowing down and seeing photography as a mindful, enjoyable pursuit, that makes no demands, has no expectations, and can bring much pleasure and joy.

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If you have lost the joy of photography, for whatever reason, I hope you will re-discover it this year.