Recently, a friend asked me what the point of my photography blog is.
The question set me thinking about why I continue to write and publish my blog each week.
I came up with two main answers.
(a) It could be because I love writing and because writing helps me to clarify my thoughts and understand myself a bit more.
If that’s the reason, why not simply keep a journal?
(b) It could be because I want to share my thoughts with a wider audience.
If that's the reason, why do I not try to grow my blog so that I reach a greater number of readers?
I’m going to consider the arguments relating to both answers.
1. If it’s writing I enjoy, why don’t I simply keep a journal?
My original reason for choosing to write a blog and publish it online was that, as well as clarifying my thoughts and discussing topics related to photography, I wanted to share my photography journey with others who might be starting out on their own photography journey or those who were thinking of starting this wonderful hobby.
I wanted to share my experiences as a beginner. I wanted to share the highs and lows, the things I learned, the difficulties I encountered and the discoveries I would make along the way.
As my journey progressed, I continued my blog as I wanted to share how photography was encouraging me to get out into nature, to get more exercise and to enjoy the great outdoors.
I wanted to share how photography was helping me to become more attentive to my surroundings, more observant, more in tune with others, with the natural world and with myself.
I wanted to share how photography became my way to relax and unwind, how it has helped me to slow down and become more mindful.
I am not a professional photographer, and never will be, so I wanted my suggestions to be straight forward and jargon-free. I hoped they would appeal to beginners and, as I progressed, to intermediate photographers also.
Part of my aim with my blog has been to introduce the work of other photographers and build on their advice where it has resonated with me. I hope that this has resonated with others too.
My reason for writing a blog is because I want to share my thoughts and aspects of my journey with a wider audience and that is not possible with a personal journal.
This answer brings me to address the second point.
2. Why do I not try to grow my blog so that I reach a greater number of readers?
My honest answer is that I know very little about growing a blog. I don’t understand the workings of SEO or how to optimise my site to be found on Google. And this is not where my interest lies. My interest lies in creating content and I did do an online course to understand the basics of attracting readers through creating good content. I learned some useful tips on this course which I continue to make use of.
My readership has increased steadily although it is by no means a large readership. Yet chasing numbers is not the primary purpose of my blog.
What I hope for is to see people finding something that is of value to them and hopefully making a return visit. I believe that this will happen naturally if I continue to put out content that is real and genuine. Through this content I would like to inspire others to enjoy photography and to discover the great benefits it can bring to our lives.
My blog is primarily about sharing my photography journey.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I hope I have succeeded in explaining what I consider to be the point of my photography blog.
It is a very rewarding experience which you might like to try for yourself.
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