Become the Best Photographer With This 52 Week Photography Challenge
“Become a Best Photographer” has been on my New Year’s permit list every year for probably ten years. I think this is more of a goal than a solution. I took big steps towards this dream, but I never really started the year with a “plan” of how to make it happen. Now I have it.
Dale Foche of Dogwood Photography ran a 52-week photography assignment to help new and old photographers improve their skills. Every week, a competition (for the fourth year!) Encourages photographers to complete a new challenge. These are not photography lessons, but more projects to help you immerse yourself in the world and reflect on what you are photographing.
Challenges fall into three categories: storytelling, composition perspective, and inspiration.
Each week you are given a new challenge that fits into one of these buckets. You take a photo and then share it with a Facebook group where other people doing the same task can view and comment on them (and maybe offer some tips on how to improve them).
For example, this week’s challenge is to take a picture that tells us who you are without showing your face. “
The idea is that over the course of the year, you will push your boundaries, think differently about photography, and perhaps learn a little in the process.
You also don’t need to start this week (although that might make things easier). The Facebook group, participating in the trial, has more than 8,000 participants, notes that you can start the first week whenever you want: “Each of us is on our own path, and you are only competing with yourself.”
If you’d like to try it for yourself, you can see the full list of this year’s tips here . Here’s a quick preview of the first 10 weeks to get a feel for what you’re getting into: