For those of you that don't want to commit to a specific set of words for a month, are intimidated by the thought of being pushed by another 365'er, don't want to be constrained to a specific mundane object, aren't feeling the week's theme, feel you don't have the creativity, time or tools for album and wwyd challenges but still want to face down and conquer a challenge, I have just the challenge for YOU!
(Also, if you enjoy facing all the above challenges and can't get enough of challenges and want to add another challenge to your arsenal, this is for YOU as well!)
Here's the lowdown (and its fairly simple):
Your challenge is to find something most people would not consider to be beautiful, and find a way to capture it that IS beautiful, You can achieve it any way you desire. This challenge will help you with your composition and lighting skills. The way you compose the shot or the way you use light will usually be the way you bring out the beauty. It will also help you look at your surroundings differently. Everything is potentially a beautiful photograph. Its not a matter of finding something to photograph, its a matter of finding a way to photograph something that makes photographing it worthwhile.
There is not specific item you have to photograph for this challenge. And the only rule is that the subject you photograph has to be something that, if people were watching you photograph it, would be wondering what has possessed you to photograph something so plain, bland, boring, ugly, etc. Beauty is where you find it, and it is all around you. Train your eye to see things differently.
Here's an example.... this is smoke from an ethanol plant....
Challenge begins today, January 21st, and will run through Jan 31st at midnight EST. Entries must be taken in this timeframe. I will select and post the 5 images I feel best achieved the goal on Feb 1st and voting will run from Feb 1st through Feb 3rd 9:00 PM EST
Tag your entries EOTB
I will announce the winner later in the evening on Feb 3rd and then that person will have the honor of selecting the 5 finalists for Eye of the Beholder 2
@spankyjane I just went to your album to see and it wasn't there LOL oh well.... but yeah, everything is potentially a beautiful photograph... this isn't far off from the mundane challenge with the exception that by not constraining people to a specific mundane object, it should prevent people from going the "cute" route. I want to see people making the rest of us see beauty where we may have missed it before and therefore, getting us to see things differently. This type of challenge has the potential to be a game changer for 365 users because the more we look for beauty in unexpected places, the more positive the outcome.
@jsw0109, it was a toss up between that and me son and me dad... family won over the crab bait, although the messy one was kind of the better shot of the two, definitely more interesting...But I figured as I posted, I'll go back to the pier and get some more crab bait shots soon.
@doyouseewhatisee hope you enjoy the almost no constraints challenge :) I figure we're all spread out around the globe, so the concept of beauty is going to vary as it is, so this promises to be a fun and interesting challenge.
@melody2289 I am definitely looking forward to what everyone comes up with.
@gphelps5 I'd been trying to think up a challenge for quite some time for all the people that talk about how they like all the other challenges, but for various reasons, don't do them. The only constraint with this challenge is that you can't take pictures of things like dogs, cats, babies, models, sunsets, swans, dragonflies, birds, mountains, etc. (well, I imagine there are some dogs you could LOL)....I honestly believe it will be hard to pick 5 finalists, because I anticipate a lot of brilliant shots.
@sassik I've always found the pollution to be nasty... until very recently, when the sun was hitting it just right and there was so much depth and dimension to it..... but I think it takes a photographer with an artist's eye to see that initially. When I told coworkers the next day about the photo, they all looked at me like I was crazy so I pulled it up my 365 page with my cell and showed them and they all changed their minds and really liked it LOL
I think this is for me, because I really am intimidated by the thought of someone pushing me. Before I line up for that (I think I need to, before my year's done), I'll find the beauty in something ugly. Thanks for the relaxed format and great idea of this challenge!
@joa that's great to hear! (hopefully you will eventually get comfortable enough to join the get pushed challenge... I did it for a long time toward the end of my first year and I don't regret it at all)
@jsw0109 I love the fourth paragraph of your post, starting 'Your challenge....'. I have copied and pasted it elsewhere for future reference. Now, if I can just remember your words as I go about my day......
@jannkc@m9f9l are those examples of what not to take for the challenge? Sunrises/sunsets, pets, animals, landmarks, butterflies/insects, swans/birds, children, flowers etc are frequently photographed.... so those would be a no-no for this challenge.
@jsw0109 Great idea for a challenge. I frequently see photographs that I'm amazed that I can even say "wow that is beautiful" when I stop and think what the subject of the photo really is. My intention is to be "in"
@jsw0109 --- Hahaha!!! Yeah, me too. Thanks for the compliment. It was one of those moments I sat spinning the pen until I could see the name. And as they say ... the rest is history. Oh, and a picture, too. ;-)
This was a rusted gate at th end of a parking lot of a beautiful temple. when i was taking picture of it, a person driving by stopped and asked me..what was i taking a picture of, since there was nothing there :)
not sure if this is beautiful, but taking pictures has taught me to look at everything a little differently.. Beauty truly lies in the eyes of the beholder..
@jsw0109 great idea for a challenge......these are the shots i am most drawn to......and i love when people laugh at me.....until they see the shot! i will work on getting something going this week.
@samwilloughby I've never seen a shot of the inside... everyone always shoots the iconic view or something similar... this is original and I thank you for sharing a view I've never seen before!
I think I've posted my contribution -but can't seem to get the EOTB tag to work. And I can't get my pic to come up in this reply pane.
Any suggestions would be gratefully received
Have mastered the Tag but still don't know how to post here.
Do the entries have to be posted on here or just tagged in the tag box? I think this is a wonderful challenge for all the reasons you mentioned @jsw0109 , a great way to ease yourself into challenges. Thank you !
@meangus you don't have to post on the thread... as long as you have the eotb tag, that's all you need. but if you DO want to post here, on the page where your pic is, copy the code in the box under share and then paste it in a comment here
This is a great challenge, it definitely encourages a person to pay more attention to their environment. I cropped this photo and played around with light levels in an attempt to create some drama. I''m open to constructive criticism as I am here to learn.
This thread reminds me of a "conversation" that went on between me and a couple of lads when I was taking a nighttime picture of some overflowing recycling skips a couple of weeks back :
Youth #1 : Ay you, wotch ya doin' ?
Me : Taking photographs
Youth #2 : Really ?
Me : Yes
Youth #1 : Wot of ?
Me : The rubbish
Youth #2 : F*****g weirdo ......
Anyway this is mine. Not rubbish, but barbed wire, which I think has a harsh beauty to it.
Thanks for offering up this challenge, Jeff -- I had fun with it all week. But I don't think I want to know what my neighbors were saying as I inspected their trash to get this shot of an old paint can.
@jsw0109 How do I enter your challenge? I've just tagged my photo from 21st Jan EOTB. Is that all I have to do. I often photograph off the wall things, so this is right up my street. :o)
I absolutely love this challenge idea! I completely forgot about it when taking this photograph, then remembered right after I uploaded it, so here's my attempt...
I like this challenge and the entries are incredibly beautiful. I took this shot earlier this month, but never posted it because I wasn't sure if anyone would "get it."
@benporter It's a dead straightforward picture of a bench taken with a point and shoot. If you Google "tiny planet" you'll get an idea of how to do it :)
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@melody2289 I am definitely looking forward to what everyone comes up with.
LOL (of course I'm kidding)
not sure if this is beautiful, but taking pictures has taught me to look at everything a little differently.. Beauty truly lies in the eyes of the beholder..
my effort to start with. Got another one planned for later in the week. Great challenge. Love it.
@intymalcolm LOL
@samwilloughby I've never seen a shot of the inside... everyone always shoots the iconic view or something similar... this is original and I thank you for sharing a view I've never seen before!
Any suggestions would be gratefully received
Have mastered the Tag but still don't know how to post here.
and
Let me know what you think! Critique welcome!
Thank you! @jsw0109
I believe abandoned houses are gorgeous. So here are my two:
This is a great challenge, it definitely encourages a person to pay more attention to their environment. I cropped this photo and played around with light levels in an attempt to create some drama. I''m open to constructive criticism as I am here to learn.
Youth #1 : Ay you, wotch ya doin' ?
Me : Taking photographs
Youth #2 : Really ?
Me : Yes
Youth #1 : Wot of ?
Me : The rubbish
Youth #2 : F*****g weirdo ......
Anyway this is mine. Not rubbish, but barbed wire, which I think has a harsh beauty to it.
It was low tide; I was surprised and intrigued, so I had to "click" it.
Thanks for a great challenge!
i saw this pile of ash and had to use this as its the destruction of something that is lovely, but still looks good!
cheers
ben
I was thinking the exact same thing... Get out of my head!
Thanks for posting the challenge; it was fun... and interesting!