Using Mindful Photography to Boost Your Mood

A mindfulness-based intervention that beautifully combines awareness and appreciation.

Mindful photography is a self care tool that is a dynamic blend of awareness, appreciation, and creativity.

Armed with a camera, you can explore your world through a different lens, freezing time by capturing a snapshot of your life.

In the last year, I have personally and professionally used mindful photography with great results. Mindfulness based interventions (MBI) are empirically validated techniques that promote health and enhance our mood. There are a number of ways to practice mindfulness, photography being one of them.

I started using mindful photography in my clinical practice during the early months of the COVID pandemic. My patients were struggling to meet their self care needs because many of their usual options (gym, support groups, library, theater) were not available. Mindfulness is a self care tool that can be used anywhere, and there are many ways to vary the routine to keep it engaging.

With this in mind, I created a mindfulness photo challenge. I encouraged my patients to take one photo of something “interesting” in their environment every day. My hope was to shift the focus from the quarantine and restrictions to more positive aspects of their surroundings.

The photo could be of anything, I only asked that they chose a new category every day. For example, one photo of a flower or their dog, but not a week’s worth.

There was no expectation that they would share the pictures with me, but many of them wanted to show me their finds. They excitedly held their cell phone up to the video camera (it was all telehealth sessions at this point) and scrolled through their photos, talking about each picture. By discussing the photos again, they relived the positive emotions that were initially triggered by the shot, further boosting their mood.

My patients shared photos of fascinating wildlife, beautiful flowers, interesting cloud formations, and colorful sunsets. I saw adorable dogs, cool cars, and favorite books.

For me, it was an insightful glimpse into their world. For them, it was a carefully chosen snippet of their life that they wanted to remember and share.

I certainly was not the only one encouraging connection through photography during this time. In March 2020, a Facebook group was created: “A View from my Window.” As the name suggests, this public group encourages its members to post a photo of the view outside their window. When the group was formed, the world was shut down and so many people were isolated, but no one needed to be “alone.”

People from around the world started sharing beautiful photos of their environment and leaving supportive comments for others — a united connection during a global pandemic.

This group is now over 100,000 members strong and its purpose remains to unite and encourage people during “tough times.”

“To me, photography is an art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place… I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.”

— Elliott Erwitt

Mindful Photography in Action

There are many ways to apply this practice in your life.

7 Day photo challenge

You can do a 7 day challenge and snap one photo from your environment every day for a week. It’s great to choose a variety of categories such as nature, family, food, animals, or cars. At the end of the week, look through your photos and remember the positive emotions that were triggered in that moment.

A creative way to showcase your daily photos is through the free app, 1 Second Everyday. This app organizes your photos, or brief video clips, into a longer video montage. A fun way to see a highlight reel of your memories.

A day in the life

Another great option is to document a single day in photos. Every hour or so, take a picture of your life in the present moment. This might include a picture of your breakfast, unfolded laundry, sleeping cat, smiling toddler, outside weather, or your current read.

At the end of the day, review the photos and reflect on the images.

• Did you accurately capture your day?
• If not, what was missing and why?
• Is there something you would like to add to your day tomorrow?

When we view our day’s photos in order, we more clearly see the peaks and valleys throughout a 24 hour period. The one constant in our life is that it is always changing. The peaks don’t go on forever, nor do the valleys.

Family time

Mindful photography is a fun way to introduce children to the health promoting benefits of mindfulness. Encourage your child to take a few pictures during a walk around the neighborhood. After the walk, review their photos and let them tell you why they were drawn to each image. This is a great way to share a mindful connection with your child.

The Takeaway

Mindful photography can be a powerful self care tool. When you pause to really look at what you have, you see life differently. This simple, easy to implement technique combines awareness and appreciation for a potent mood boost.

What is the view outside your window?

Jill is a clinical psychologist, animal lover, and runner. She shares behavioral health tips every Sunday on her blog.