Hi everyone - I hope you’ve all been having a lovely holiday season.
Well, the 52 Week Challenge is back for 2018, and better than ever 😊
Just like last year, I’ll be posting separate theme reminders on the Sunday evening before each theme starts (so the next reminder with 2018’s Week 1 theme will be due on New year’s Eve) – but just like last year, below is the master list with all of the themes for the year, their dates and tags, so you can all have a little preview and start thinking of ideas…
As before – if you’d like to receive a weekly theme notification, comment below and I’ll add you to the list.
For those of you who are new to 365 (welcome!), new to photography, or just new to this challenge, it’s a great way to get inspired and learn new techniques. It’s not a competitive challenge, so there won’t be any judging or winners at the end of each week, and if you feel like skipping a week or just doing the themes that take your interest, that’s totally allowed 😊
The 52 Week Challenge has been developed by the wonderful community at Dogwood Photography – please do take the time to click through for full information about this and previous year’s challenges, more tags and ways to share on various social media platforms, and more info about the challenge’s creators.
The information below comes directly from the challenge page – and I’ve added our own tags in the format we’ve followed for the last few years here on 365 (again, click the link above for additional tagging options)
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Each week, the weekly assignment will be in one of 5 categories:
• Vision: This category is designed to push you to go beyond sight, to insight; to take inspiration and make it a reality. Vision exists in your imagination and is revealed your photographs; expressing something otherwise invisible. Developing a Vision for your work is showing to others what you see in your mind’s eye.
• Composition: Composition refers to the way the various elements in a scene are arranged within the frame. Challenges will focus on setting up the shot and developing our personal composition styles; styles which can become our trademark. Developing your composition will allow you to set the stage to generate a reaction from your audience.
• Technical: Technical Aptitude is just as important as creative inspiration in photography. This year's technical category is primarily focused on in camera processes, however, there will be some post processing techniques included.
• Creative: When this category comes up, you really have room to express yourself. You can interpret the assignment literally or figuratively. Unlike the other categories, the idea of this category is to let your artistic impression shine.
• Wild Card: Consider this a Show-and-Tell for grown-ups. You have freedom do shoot what and how you wish. Let us know if you're trying a new technique, composition, style, subject, working on a specific project, or just exercising your freedom. Have fun!
Week 1 - January 1st
Vision: Look Ahead
New year. New beginnings. New you. Look ahead. Interpret as you wish.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w1
Week 2 - January 8th
Composition: Colour Harmony
Get out your colour wheel. Do opposites attract? Can there be harmony with opposite colours? Does the Hulk wear purple pants? Mix warm and cool colours.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w2
Week 3 - January 15th
Technical: Full Manual
While the camera often determines shutter speed and aperture for the photographer, it doesn't know your creative intent. This week, challenge yourself to assume creative control over the camera by using full manual mode. Select a subject where varying the aperture and / or shutter speed helps enhance the composition and visual qualities of the image.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w3
Week 4 - January 22nd
Creative: Quiet Moment
Peace. Serenity. Tranquility. Convey a quiet moment.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w4
Week 5 - January 29th
Wildcard: Photographer's Choice
Capture an image on your terms; who, what, where, when, why, how … it's all up to you. Caveat: You must tell us your intent.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w5
Week 6 - February 5th
Vision: Alternating Rhythm
Alternate patterns of light to bring depth and rhythm to the photograph.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w6
Week 7 - February 12th
Composition: Fill the Frame
Fill the frame with your subject, no background. You will need to get up close and personal, or use a good zoom lens.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w7
Week 8 - February 19th
Technical: Zoom Burst
By changing the focal length during long exposure you can add movement to your frame, producing leading lines within your frame.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w8
Week 9 - February 26th
Creative: Forsaken
Abandoned and Forgotten were favourites in the past. Let's revisit the idea the idea this year with forsaken.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w9
Week 10 – March 5th
Vision: Selective Colour
I know, I know. Yuck. Selective colour can be cringeworthy, however, when done right, it brings compelling focus to the subject.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w10
Week 11 – March 12th
Composition: Negative Space
Minimize the composition to isolate your subject. The composition should be simple, thereby drawing your viewer to the subject.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w11
Week 12 – March 19th
Technical: Macro
Life is in the details. Get in close and show us the details we usually miss. You don't need a macro lens to shoot a macro shot.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w12
Week 13 – March 26th
Creative: Leading Lines
Back by popular demand, use lines to lead the viewer to your subject.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w13
Week 14 – April 2nd
Vision: Diptych or Triptych
Connect 2 or 3 images together, creating one image, to provoke a thought or tell a story.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w14
Week 15 – April 9th
Composition: Rule of Space
Your subject should be facing the frame, walking into the frame, this keeps your subject "in" the frame and engaging with it. Give your subject room to move.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w15
Week 16 – April 16th
Technical: Portrait Lighting
Whether Butterfly, Rembrandt, Split, or Loop Lighting, choose the technique which best flatters your subject.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w16
Week 17 – April 23rd
Creative: Humor
Laughter is the best medicine. Make us laugh.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w17
Week 18 – April 30th
Wildcard: Photographer's Choice
Capture an image on your terms; who, what, where, when, why, how … it's all up to you. Caveat: You must tell us your intent.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w8
Week 19 – May 7th
Vision: Edge Cut Sun
Having an edge cut through the sun looks nice, or having the sun rising over a line or diagonal within the photo. Stop down the aperture to create a starburst.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w19
Week 20 – May 14th
Composition: From Below
Get down low; below 2 feet, and change your perspective. Look out or look up.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w20
Week 21 – May 21st
Technical: Product
Imagine your image in a catalog or a magazine. It's not as easy as it sounds.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w21
Week 22 – May 28th
Creative: Door
A symbol of transition, a door or a gate provide a passage way.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w22
Week 23 – June 4th
Vision: No Peeking
Shoot as if you were using a film camera. That means that you will not look at the photographs you've taken until they are downloaded on your computer.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w23
Week 24 – June 11th
Composition: Contrast
An easy way to make a photo more interesting is to introduce some form of stark contrast: liquid/solid, hard/soft, delicate/brash.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w24
Week 25 – June 18th
Technical: Starburst
Create a very strong focal point and add an entirely new dimension of interest to your image using a starburst.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w25
Week 26 – June 25th
Creative: High or Low Key
You don't have to do both this year; choose your favourite and shoot that.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w26
Week 27 – July 2nd
Vision: Flattery
They say imitation is the highest form; so, past or present; choose your favourite master photographer and imitate their art or technique.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w27
Week 28 – July 9th
Composition: Left to Right Rule
Compose an image in the way we read; most countries read from left to right. Compose your shot to follow this direction.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w28
Week 29 – July 16th
Technical: Twilight Zone
While golden and blue hours bring beautiful lighting, shooting in twilight opens up a new way of seeing the world. Capture a "scape" that isn't dominated by darkness. Show the light and textures that can be found under the stars, in city lights, or a moon filled sky.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w29
Week 30 – July 23rd
Creative: Circles
The circle is a universal symbol with extensive meaning; it represents the notions of totality.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w30
Week 31 – July 30th
Wildcard: Photographer's Choice
Capture an image on your terms; who, what, where, when, why, how … it's all up to you. Caveat: You must tell us your intent.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w31
Week 32 – August 6th
Vision: The Alphabet
Alphabet photography involves taking photographs of existing or created objects to create a word.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w32
Week 33 – August 13th
Composition: Figure to Ground
If camouflage is designed to make things disappear, Figure to Ground is designed to make the subject stand out. Light on dark, dark on light.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w33
Week 34 – August 20th
Technical: The Wild Side
Capturing a captivating wildlife photograph requires knowledge of your camera settings and the behaviour of the animal. Capture a compelling wildlife photograph that has proper subject alignment (e.g., no "bird butts") and exposure. For an easy introduction, urban critters (e.g., squirrels) are easy targets. For an advanced challenge, a bird in flight could be considered.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w34
Week 35 – August 27th
Creative: Loneliness
One is the loneliest number.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w35
Week 36 – September 3rd
Vision: Ordinary
Find beauty in the ordinary.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w36
Week 37 – September 10th
Composition: Eye Lines
Eyes draw attention to certain parts of the frame, your subject will direct your audience's eye. Where is your subject looking? What are they seeing or not seeing?
Tag: 52wc-2018-w37
Week 38 – September 17th
Technical: Focus Stacking
A technique which combines multiple images taken at different focus distances to give a resulting image with a greater depth of field. Especially helpful in macro.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w38
Week 39 – September 24th
Creative: Abstract
Photograph a common object in an abstract manner.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w39
Week 40 – October 1st
Vision: Classic Novel
Create an image that identifies a classic novel or story.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w40
Week 41 – October 8th
Composition: Rule of Odds
Compose and image highlighting an odd number of subjects; some see this as natural and more pleasing to the eye.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w41
Week 42 – October 15th
Technical: Shutter Drag
Used to balance fill light with ambient light or add motion-blur to images.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w42
Week 43 – October 22nd
Creative: A Song
Create a photo from the title of a song.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w43
Week 44 – October 29th
Wildcard: Photographer's Choice
Capture an image on your terms; who, what, where, when, why, how … it's all up to you. Caveat: You must tell us your intent.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w44
Week 45 – November 5th
Vision: Show Half
Tell a complete story by only showing half of it.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w45
Week 46 – November 12th
Composition: Golden Triangles
A diagonal line divides the frame from corner to corner, two more lines are added from the other corners, intersecting the diagonal line.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w46
Week 47 – November 19th
Technical: Step Back
Edit your image to where you think it's perfect and let it sit for two days. Then return to it and see if it works. Print a picture and review it from a different perspective before finalizing.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w47
Week 48 – November 26th
Creative: Split Tones
Another favourite; last year's technical, is this year's creative. Have fun with it.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w48
Week 49 – December 3rd
Vision: Look Back
We need to look back to see how far we've come. If you were Captain Ahab, which skill would be your whale? Post a comparison.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w49
Week 50 – December 10th
Composition: Golden Ratio
Often called Fibonacci, the spiral leads the viewers eye to the squares (the subject), compose your image using the Golden Ratio.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w50
Week 51 – December 17th
Technical: Exposure Compensation
While high dynamic range pictures can help capture challenging lighting situations, there are times when you need a single frame. Use exposure compensation mode on your camera to capture backlit or other challenging lighting situations
Tag: 52wc-2018-w51
Week 52 – December 24th
Creative: Self Portrait
Not popular, but it's good for us to get on the other side of the lens. This year it's in a creative category, so be creative.
Tag: 52wc-2018-w52
@m2016
Hi Mel, thanks for putting the 365 community into this very instructive all-year-long challenge. I have been participating to some of the weekly challenge in 2017 (since i joined the site in August), and I will try to follow it up in 2018. Could you add me in the list, so that i could receive the weekly notification.
Thanks! Vincent
Thanks Mel! I've definitely been operating more at a 52 week level than a 365 day level. I did a few weeks last year and petered out, but would like to hit it a little better in 2018! Thanks for keeping me on the list!
Thanks for putting this together again Mel, I'd like to carry on getting the weekly reminders, hopefully I'll be able to participate a bit more in 2018 :-)
Not sure if I will be able to keep up, but would like to be added to the list to receive a weekly theme notification. I like that it is just for inspiration and to challenge myself rather than being competitive. Thanks!
Kathy I'd love to take the credit for creating this challenge, but it's all the work of the Dogwood Photography community - link to their website is in the main post above, it's well worth checking out.
The challenge is followed by various groups online, and this time last year I posted the theme list to see if anyone would be following along on 365 - which sort of evolved into me posting a weekly theme reminder to help keep us all (and myself) motivated :)
Hi, I’m new to this forum and really excited to explore my creativity and see if I can push my boundaries and maybe also meet new people. Will ease my way in but if you could please send me the notifications for each weeks theme I’d really appreciate it ❤️
thanks, mel, for organizing this. i did the first year from beginning to end but with the really technical ones in the second year, i sort of got lost. i think this year will be do-able for me even the hard technical ones so hopefully i won't get sidelined again.
Sounds great - I hope I will actually finish this time! Topics look really cool so please add me in as a good reminder. Thank you for taking the time to do this.
Hello! Back at 365 once again in need of inspiration, accountability, and a challenge. Please add me to list happy new year! Just to clarify when is the capture to be posted and tagged on due date i.e. January 1 st or this wk we add our photo?
@dogmomlo Hi Lauren, you can take and post your photos at any point during the week - a new theme begins each Monday but you have until the following Monday when the theme changes again. Also, that's not a hard and fast rule - if you don't get around to completing a theme you can always catch up in your own time, there's no penalty for being late :)
I'm not sure if I'll be able to do them all, but I'd like to try. Please add me to the list to receive notifications, and thank you for organizing this!
Tweets ahoy!
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Hi Mel, thanks for putting the 365 community into this very instructive all-year-long challenge. I have been participating to some of the weekly challenge in 2017 (since i joined the site in August), and I will try to follow it up in 2018. Could you add me in the list, so that i could receive the weekly notification.
Thanks! Vincent
Can you add me to your weekly list please. I'd like to see if I can have a go at this.
Delighted that you'll all be joining in :)
THANKS!
after a three year hiatus, going to try this again, and would like to participate
Kathy I'd love to take the credit for creating this challenge, but it's all the work of the Dogwood Photography community - link to their website is in the main post above, it's well worth checking out.
The challenge is followed by various groups online, and this time last year I posted the theme list to see if anyone would be following along on 365 - which sort of evolved into me posting a weekly theme reminder to help keep us all (and myself) motivated :)
Looking forward to this.
If there's anything you're not sure about, ask away!
The next one will be posted this evening - if you could keep an eye out for it and let me know if you've been notified :)