Despite being quite the fan of inclement winter weather (yes, I know I’m odd), I’m always happy to have an extra reason to head out for a walk. So when my friend Zoe – or Splodz, as she’s also known -launches her annual One Hour Outside Daily Photo Challenge, I grab my phone or camera and step out the door for a more purposeful wander.
If you’re not familiar with Zoe’s challenge – or with daily photo challenges in general – let me set the scene.
Zoe is an Ordnance Survey Get Outside Champion, and a big part of her mission is encouraging people to spend at least one hour outdoors each day (or thereabouts). Every February, she pairs this ethos with a fun Daily Photo Challenge: 28 prompts across the month, each designed to nudge you outside with a bit of creative direction.
About the Daily Photo Challenge
Some prompts are simple, like taking a selfie to introduce yourself, while others get your brain whirring. This year’s “That’s Science” prompt, for example, had me wandering around puzzling over what would fit the brief in my local area. I opted for a plane because I live in the flight path, and it worked well.
As a naturally curious soul – often found photographing slightly strange, easily overlooked details (a quick scroll through my Instagram will confirm that) – I love having prompts that push me to see familiar places differently. They give my wanders a new layer of intention, encouraging me to explore textures, patterns, light, and oddities I might otherwise miss.
You don’t need to go on an epic hike to take part
One of my favourite things about the challenge is how un-prescriptive it is. Yes, the idea is to spend an hour outside, but it’s not rigid or guilt-inducing if life gets in the way.
We all have busy days.
Some of my photos are taken on longer, slower weekend walks. Others are snapped in the garden. And some (perhaps my favourites) are captured in the most ordinary of places: car parks, pavements, and in-between errand moments. Proof that you don’t need sweeping landscapes or grand adventures to take part – just a willingness to step outside and look a little closer.
Slow down and spend some time outside
Over the month, what I always notice is this: the prompts are just the excuse. The real fun is the shift of attention when you get outside. From walking familiar paths to noticing different things.
Spending even a short while outside each day, especially in February, when it’s cold and grey and tempting to hibernate, shifts something. You start noticing frost patterns on railings. The geometry of scaffolding. The quiet drama of puddles reflecting streetlights. You realise that even on errand days, even on ordinary pavements, there is something worth pausing for.
The one hour outside daily photo challenge doesn’t require wild landscapes or epic hikes. It doesn’t demand perfection or photographic brilliance. It simply asks you to step outside and look.
And in a world where we rush from one obligation to the next, that feels quietly radical.
If you’re curious, there’s still time to join in the Splodz One Hour Outside Daily Photo Challenge. Or, better yet, don’t wait. Create your own prompts. Give yourself ten minutes. Wander your street. Photograph something you’d normally overlook.
You might be surprised by what you find when you start looking differently.