Winner of Photo Challenge Week 1 - Nature
The January challenge marks the first of many challenges in 2024. The response was much bigger than I thought it would be, but I couldn't be happier about it. Let's pick the first winner of the year!
I did not expect so many amazing and incredible submissions this week! But I was pleasantly surprised as the challenges seem to keep growing, which is fantastic and so much fun to see! A bit overwhelming, but after a lot of deliberation and reviewing all the submissions, I'm happy with my choices, and I hope you are too!
*IMPORTANT NOTE: This post is obviously too long for emails according to Substack, so if you want to see the post in its entirety I suggest you read it on either the Substack App or website. I highly recommend using your desktop to view it, all these submissions deserve it!
Next challenge is January 17.
The Winner -
Stephen came in with this submission that looks straight out of Lord of the Rings, and it just blew me away. Not because it reminds me of Lord of the Rings, but because it stood out.
It’s a truly beautiful photo that exudes a calming aura and atmosphere. Gorgeous work, Stephen! An absolutely fantastic way to start off the year!
While you're at it, head on over to the Note itself, leave a like and a comment, and make sure to give Stephen a follow and subscription.
Go check out Stephens Substack, Technology Should be Simple while you’re here. He’s been very active here on Substack and I, personally, find his content very interesting and I bet some of you do as well.
Honorable Mentions
There were so many beautiful and amazing submissions this week that I had a really hard time choosing the runner-ups. There were so many deserving entries that, unfortunately, I couldn’t feature if I wanted to keep this post as readable as possible.
The ones I’ve chosen have something special about them that I’m positive you’ll love as well.
The runner-ups for this first challenge of the year are;
, , , and .If you’re not subscribed or follow Pierre yet, I highly recommend that you do!
Pierre is also on Instagram, so make sure to give him a follow if you’re on Instagram as well! His work deserve to have many more followers, it is stunning and Pierre is clearly extremely talented and professional.
Don’t forget to subscribe to Pierre and his Tales of Ink and Light newsletter. Pierre is a professional photographer and if you love this winning entry, you’ll definitely love his other work, it’s equally stunning!
Fantastic work, Parker!
Parker is an artist, a very talented one at that, and a nomadic one. His work is absolutely gorgeous and I highly recommend you take a look at his portfolio website, I guarantee you’ll find something you’ll absolutely love!
Do not forget to subscribe to Parker and his Substack - Wandering, you really won’t regret it if you’re into art.
Beautifully stunning work, Allegra!
Allegra is an author, entrepreneur and wellbeing practitioner which her Instagram reflects in a beautiful way. So don’t forget to check out her Instagram while you’re at it!
Do not forget to subscribe to Allegra and her Substack - I Am Happy, while you’re at it. I believe you’ll find something of value, possibly more than you’d think.
Such a beautiful and happy little accident Liz, I honestly love it!
Liz has been kind enough to share some of her restorative yoga practices with us over on her website, so I highly recommend you check them out.
Do not forget to subscribe to Liz and her Substack, Life of a Mid Life Woman, she deserves it.
She is, in her own words, a mom of two boys, a decaf coffee drinker, a restorative yoga teacher, a dabbler in watercolors, a writer, and an unapologetic romantic. You’ll love her!
Haley recently got married—congratulations, by the way—so you may know her better as Haley Hopkins. She is a frequent participant, and I couldn’t be happier about it. It’s always a joy and an absolute pleasure to see her stunning photographs.
Do not forget to subscribe to Haley and her Substack, Warm Regards, she deserves it. She’s a gorgeous human and a very talented writer. You won’t regret hitting that subscribe button if you haven’t already!
As I said in my rebranding post, I’ll be featuring up to five runner-ups plus a winner from now on. But, as there’s so may absolutely fantastic photos, I want to give a quick shout-out to as many as I possibly can.
However, I’ve decided to restructure these posts a bit to keep them as readable as possible.
Each week, I'll select my absolute favorite submissions for feature, accompanied by a well-deserved shout-out. For everyone else, a link to their submission will be provided. This way, I can showcase the best while ensuring all contributors receive the recognition they deserve.
This week I’ll showcase my Top 12 for this challenge! These 12 were by no means easy to pick, but they absolutely deserve the recognition!
I hope to see all of you and many more in future challenges!
Photos show up in this order:
Again this is my top 12 for this first challenge of the year, but as Substack only allow up to 9 in a single gallery, I decided to split them into two galleries of six photos for easier browsing.
Photos show up in this order:
Here are all the other submissions I received this week, so make sure to check them out, leave a like and a comment, and who knows, maybe you’ll find someone to follow or subscribe to while you’re at it!
Every single person who submitted and entered deserves at least a like and comment on their submission, and if you like their content, give them a subscription or a follow!
PS: If I have somehow missed someone, I do apologize, but I’ve been battling a power-outage all morning so it’s been a fun start of the day trying to figure everything out. If I did somehow miss your submission. Please let me know so I can rectify that ASAP!
Thank you everyone who’s subscribed, followed, participated or just engaged in any way, you’re all awesome!
Next Challenge January 17
Don’t miss out on these challenges, subscribe today to never miss a challenge.
Such beautiful photos what a hard choice!
Patrik, I love viewing these challenges! They are always so beautiful and inspiring. Thank you for your work and community building. I love that your challenges connect people to art and each other. They are works of art in and of themselves. I haven’t been bold enough to enter a challenge yet because the entries are so professional and stunning. This week’s winner made my jaw drop & I audibly gasped! Maybe I will enter soon just for the boldness and fun of it. 🙂 keep up the great work (as long as it brings you joy)!