Your weekly dose of mental sunshine...

This week’s dose of mental sunshine is inspired by something I’ve been doing for a while. And something you can start to do right now as it is very much linked to the mental health awareness week's theme of nature.

Since photography is my day job, you might think I’d be a bit like the proverbial "shoe-makers children".

Well, that used to be the case, but since I started to go out on long walks again during the lockdown and began to see the natural beauty around I started to fall in love with taking “normal” photos again.

I find that it’s almost like meditation: seeing something interesting, and rather than let it pass by, stopping to really look at nature; exploring it from different angles and perspectives. The way the light falls on or reflects off it.

And, for those few moments, be totally present.

After a bit of research (and finding a scientific study on the link), I set up a group on Facebook to encourage others to join me in taking and sharing a different photo each day.

There are no strict rules. Just a wonderfully supportive group of people posting their daily photos.

One of the most enjoyable things is seeing how people have actually improved their photography skills, going from taking a quick “snap” to really thinking about taking the photo (lighting, composition and focus) It’s also been good to see how some photos have inspired other, similar, photos to be taken.

And having the group has added another layer of wellness, in the form of connection with others. It’s great to see a little snapshot from the lives of other people in the group and building a positive community of people around this simple premise.

All of my photos have been taken on my camera phone so you don’t need special equipment or a particular level of skill. You just need to take those few minutes out of your day to take a photo of something that resonates with you that day. Sort of like visual journaling.