5 YEARS ON…

Finding Light: How a Lock-down Challenge Changed the Way I See the World

I go on walks. It all started nearly five years ago, just after our first lockdown. Back then, Nikon launched a creative challenge called #CreateYourLight—a simple yet brilliant concept that encouraged photographers to capture their surroundings based on different themes. It wasn’t just about taking photos; it was about interpreting the world in your own way.

I’m not sure how long the challenge lasted, but one thing stuck with me—light is everything in photography. And in many ways, it became my motivation. I had been posting my photos for years, but something shifted in 2020. That was the year I truly began pushing myself, seeing photography as more than just a hobby.

After that first lockdown, I found myself appreciating the outdoors in a way I never had before. The flowers, the birds, the sound of water flowing freely—it was all so beautiful. There was a clarity to it, a raw and simple joy in just being outside.

Now, five years later, things feel different. The world looks a little gloomier, a little heavier. But I remind myself that it’s okay not to see things the same way all the time.

Today, I went out for a walk—because why exercise indoors when life is so beautiful outside? I was searching for life beyond my own four walls, and I found it. People were out—walking, running, pushing strollers, playing with dogs—just soaking it all in. After five months of gray skies, the sun was finally back, and for a moment, it felt like those early post-lockdown days again.

A reminder that even when things feel dull, light always finds a way back.