This thread contains all past ideas for the Theme of the Week. Ideas submitted by members in the PotW Theme Ideas thread will be copied here, and any ideas created by a moderator if there were no other community submitted ideas will also be tracked here. Please check this list FIRST before submitting a theme idea.
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38 Answers
The Classical Elements
This would be a four-week series, with one each for
- Earth
- Air
- Water
- Fire
(I made this one proposal rather than four as it would be nice to see them run all in a row..)
Originally proposed by: mattdm
Ran on: March 5, 12, 19, 26, 2012
Imperfectly Beautiful
This theme challenges you to find beauty in unexpected places. Appreciating it not only in spite of imperfections, but perhaps even because of them.
Originally proposed by: LightBender
Ran on: February 1–14, 2020
Straight out of camera
This theme seeks your best straight-out-of-camera JPEGs. This also means no processed raw images: shoot RAW+JPEG if you want, but only submit the JPEG produced from the camera.
Scans of film shots are welcome to submit too. Please use your best judgment as to what constitutes "creative darkroom techniques" or scan touchups. Follow the spirit of the rule as best as you can.
There's no way to enforce the SOC rule, this is all on the honor system. Let's have some fun and see what we can get, Polaroid-style. =)
Originally proposed by: scottbb
Ran on: Feburary 15 – March 1, 2021
Reflections
The theme of this contest is simple: photos where mirrors, windows, water, or other reflective surfaces were used to get reflections.
Originally proposed by: Eric S
Ran on: March 1–15, 2021
Transportation
The theme of this contest is simply transportation. Trains, cars, ships, planes, bicycles, etc.
Originally proposed by: Matt
Ran on: March 15–29, 2021
Up There
Subjects in the photo should be unsupported by the ground. Examples include airplanes, balloons, bubbles, water splashes, astrophotography, clouds, birds/insects/animals in flight, etc.
Originally proposed by: whackamadoodle3000
Ran on: March 29 – April 12, 2021
Typography
A photo with a focus on typography. Letters, numbers, words and so on. The shapes of them, the layout or where they're placed. Address numbers on buildings are sometimes quite interesting. Writing on roads, signs and so on.
I imagine the focus being on the presentation of the words, rather than the meaning of them but I can see that latter working too.
We would probably have to avoid trade mark slogans and logos though, but I'm not exactly sure on the legality of that. Aside from legal reasons, SE or the Logo's company may not want to be associated with each other as the photo would be in a prominent place on the site. [Note: I didn't run the contest with this caveat. Probably not an issue. –scottbb]
Originally proposed by: Vian Esterhuizen
Ran on: April 26 – May 10, 2021
In Deep Thought
Capture a photo of a subject that demonstrates "deep thought", contemplation, intense musing, etc. The subject may be a person or animal, even an inanimate object, so long as the key concept of deep thought is the central focus of the photograph.
Requirements
- The subject of the photo must be in, or appear to be in, deep thought
- Should be a portrait shot of a person, people, or pets/animals
- Self portraits are allowed
- Inanimate objects or trees may qualify, but only if they depict deep thought
- An example might be the contorted silhouette of a tree that emulates a person in deep thought
- Another example might be a statue, small, large, even huge, that depicts deep thought
- The object of the subject's thought can be anything
- i.e. Another person
- i.e. The sky
- i.e. The relationship between being and time, wherein each reciprocally determines the other, yet the former cannot be addressed temporally, nor can the the latter be expressed as a being.
- i.e. Chocolate-pecan pie
Originally proposed by: Aquarius_Girl
Ran on: May 10 – May 24, 2021
Symmetry
The photograph must display some form of symmetry.
Originally proposed by: Maynard Case
Ran on: May 24 – June 6, 2021
Street Photography
Wikipedia says it quite well:
A type of documentary photography that features subjects in candid situations within public places such as streets, parks, beaches, malls, political conventions and other settings.
I feel that's a fairly broad theme, and basically anyone with any type of camera can take a photograph like this. Also, I think it would help a lot of us, including me, get over the self consciousness of carrying a camera and photographing in public.
Originally proposed by: Vian Esterhuizen
Ran on: June 22 – July 5 2021
Surprise!
Any photo that will surprise the viewer.
Originally proposed by: Caleb
Ran on: July 19–26, 2021
Portraits by Candlelight
Inspired by Is it practical to shoot portraits by only candlelight?, but not, I promise, as an excuse to submit the ones I already took. I want to see what everyone else can come up with!
Originally proposed by: mattdm
Ran on: Jan 14 – Jan 29, 2020
Tis the season for a fresh start
The concept of the theme combines the winter season with the idea of fresh starts. Give us your best seasonal photo, or your favorite new beginning. Bonus points for new starts with a seasonal flair!
Originally proposed by: scottbb
Ran on: December 16–30, 2019
Inspired by Photo-SE
Craft a picture that was inspired by a question, answer, or comment here. Include a link to the inspiration (and a sentence or two about how you got from the original question to your photo).
Originally proposed by: user2910
Ran on: July 5–19, 2021
Lomography
The challenge is to post the best picture that would fall short of "professional" photographic standards. For example, photos taken on old or cheap digital cameras that have low resolution, photos taken on long-expired film, or photos which exhibit significant "mistakes" such as light leaks. For more information, see the Wikipedia article on lomography.
For clarity, the word "lomography" refers to the genre of photography, not to the photographic brand Lomography. Photos submitted need not necessarily be taken on Lomography-brand equipment.
Originally proposed by: gparyani
Ran on: May 12 – June 1, 2020
Long Exposure
Either a picture containing motion blur (star trails, cars on a road etc.) or a combination of several photos to create a time-lapse in one photo.
Originally proposed by: damned truths
Ran on: June 9–21, 2021
All Blur
In the spirit of Why would one shoot a fully blurred picture?, let's see some abstract and semi-abstract works.
Originally proposed by: mattdm
Ran on: April 12–26, 2021
Music
Either literal (instruments, musicians, performance) or figurative (geometric or natural patterns which evoke the patterns of music).
Originally proposed by: mattdm
Ran on: July 26 – August 9, 2021
Food
Candidates can be:
• A mouth watering cooked dish.
• Raw vegetables.
• Raw fruits.
• Desserts.
• Beverages like tea, juices etc.
Originally proposed by: Aquarius_Girl
Ran on: August 9–23, 2021
Cats
Pictures of your cats. Kittens. Cats in baskets. Cats hanging from stuff. Cats in costumes. Cats with things on their heads. More kittens. Cats making funny expressions. Cats on fire, perhaps from attempts to shoot them by candlelight. Possibly lions. Cats, cats, cats.
Originally proposed by: mattdm
Ran on: August 23 – September 6, 2021
Relationships
A photo which shows a two (or more) people sharing moment. Like Mom-kids, Father-kids, Siblings, Person-pet, Person-Teacher.
Originally proposed by: Sudarshan Kadam
Ran on: September 6 – September 19, 2021
Metal on metal
All things metallic. Gears, heavy machinery, drilling metal, cutting metal...
Originally proposed by: spikey_richie
Ran on: September 20 – October 4, 2021
Festivals
Capture a photo of a scene that demonstrates a "festival celebration", or something which highlights what the festival is about, etc. The subject may be a person or a group of people, or even an inanimate object, so long as the key concept of festive season is the central focus of the photograph.
Festival doesn't have to be necessarily something "official" like Christmas. People may have local customs and hence accordingly local festivals too.
So, any sort of festival pictures are welcomed.
Originally proposed by: Aquarius_Girl
Ran on: October 4–20, 2021
Black and White, Metaphorically
In this theme, black and white should be represented conceptually, not literally.
Originally proposed by: mattdm
Ran on: October 18 – November 1, 2021
No Landscapes
As many of the photos have been landscapes, I think we should try to encourage photos that are not landscapes and more macro, portraits etc.
Originally proposed by: damned truths
Ran on: November 1–14, 2021
Science
Any subject that is related to science, or the study of science.
Examples:
- Refracting light
- Scientific instruments
- Fluids
- Astrophotography
- Magnetism
- Chemical reactions
- Biological processes
Originally proposed by: maynard-case
Ran on: Aug 6, 2012
Landscapes
Candidates:
1. Open wide areas with some point of interest.
2. Mountains/Valleys.
Open wide areas are a must. "Close ups" shots of a tree/hut won't be acceptable.
Originally proposed by: Aquarius_Girl
Ran on: November 15–28, 2021
Sliver
An image that captures only a small part of a much larger whole.
Originally proposed by: LightBender
Ran on: November 29 – December 19 2021
Shot with Film
Kodak Portra, Tri-X, Ilford Delta, Fujicolor Pro, ... any film you want, digitized however is convenient — but shot on film, with minimal digital post-production.
Entries should be photographs taken recently, well into the digital era, rather than older works. There's no way to enforce this, of course, but please follow it in the spirit of the theme.
Originally proposed by: mattdm
Ran on: December 20, 2021 – January 3, 2022
Environmental Destruction
Deforestation, plastic pollution, chemical spills, quarrying, deliberate burning.
Originally proposed by: niemiro
Ran on: January 3–16, 2022