By Tata Rossi 22 days ago, Inspiration
Creative lulls and uninspired photoshoots are an inseparable part of a photographer’s lifestyle but that doesn’t mean you can’t minimize their effects on your career. One approach that might help you deal with a creative block is to play some photography games.
The rundown below goes over an array of entertaining photography games that just might give you the boost of photography inspiration you need for your next project. Some will require you to think in creative ways while other options are only meant to help you unwind and have fun.
Price: about $7.5
This is one of the best photography games for students, as its plot is centered around Maxine Caulfield, a photography senior who has the power to control time and change various important events. Using her gift, the protagonist tries to help find a missing student while also predicting that an even more catastrophic cataclysm is coming their way in the future.
During the game, you’ll be able to take plenty of photos using Maxine’s analog camera. The pictures you take are all placed within an in-game photo album and grant the player rewards. All related achievements are named with specific photography terms or photography slang.
Price: free
Gurushots is a competition-focused game with fascinating rewards that include publications in photography magazines and exhibitions. After you've uploaded your images, other photographers will be able to rate them. There are various achievements you can get from the voters, as they serve to increase your level from a Newbie to a Rookie, to a Challenger, etc.
After reaching the Guru rank, the platform will let you create your own competitions. It also allows you to purchase Swaps, Fills, and Keys to boost your winning chances, but you can have just as much fun without spending a single cent as well.
Price: $4.5
In this game, you follow Pic who is a robot that goes on a thrilling quest while his camera for photography is the one tool that you as the player can rely on during the entire experience. You employ the camera to take pictures, get rid of obstacles, and swap items to allow Pic to advance to the next level.
The game also lets you rotate your pictures to interact with different areas. For instance, if you take a photo of a fireball and rotate it, you can shoot it at a bunch of boxes to get rid of them. Even though Snapshot won’t help you learn anything new about the art of photography, it will allow you to mix your favorite activity with engaging puzzle-solving gameplay.
Afrika is one of the most beautiful photography games out there, as it promises to deliver a unique experience to all users. This title combines simulation photography and safari genres while engaging animal lovers and photographers alike with its creative gameplay.
Afrika allows players to act as wildlife photojournalists who are discovering all the beauty Africa has to offer. This engaging title offers stunning, realistic visuals that primarily focus on landscapes and wildlife.
Even though its gameplay is rather straightforward, it’s still a highly engaging experience that will keep you entertained for hours.
Price: about $6.2
Umurangi Generation is a fantastic option for people who enjoy exploring stunning video game towns while being invested in an engaging story along the way. This first-person sci-fi photography game takes place in the colorful retro-future and follows the protagonist on their journey to becoming a master photographer.
You get to take plenty of pictures while making sure they are of high enough quality to let you advance the story. The implemented bounty system and other engaging challenges will help you discover a lot of interesting information about photography, composition, and color while devising your own style.
Price: about $11
Even though Firewatch isn't exactly a photography game in a traditional sense, it's still a fantastic first-person adventure title that uses photos as a fun little side mechanic. In this game, you play as Henry, a fire lookout hired to watch over the Wyoming wilderness.
While Henry is only capable of snapping a small number of pictures during his stay with the help of his disposable camera, the photos you take can later be printed out in real life. The combination of this neat gameplay element, the game's gripping narrative, and stunning landscapes make Firewatch one of the most interesting photography games on the market.
Price: about $2
This game puts you in the shoes of Jade, a journalist determined to uncover a huge governmental conspiracy that deals with human trafficking, extraterrestrial life, and the military. It’s a Zelda-like adventure that also comes with a fun photography mechanic.
During your playtime, you’ll have to take photos of the local wildlife to get money and other rewards. Additionally, you’ll employ Jade’s DSLR camera to take pictures that will help take down the corrupt government.
Price: about $13.5
This game’s funny, satirical approach to the zombie genre conceals some rather thoughtful gameplay flourishes, the most notable of which is its use of photography.
As you play through the story, you take pictures of the zombies as well as other survivors to make money with photos, which you can later invest in various upgrades; you even get extra cash based on the quality of the photos and their subject matter.
Price: about $7.5
If the title of this game made you think of dogs, then you’re right on the money. Pupperazzi lets you take on the role of a dog photographer who has to take as many dog photos as possible.
While doing so, you’ll be able to have fun with the dogs and engage in various activities. There are overall 22 dog breeds that you can photograph to fill the Puppypedia section. This game is extremely relaxing and casual, representing one of the most entertaining photography games if you simply want to unwind.
Price: about $6.5
Alba: A Wildlife Adventure has you actively snapping wildlife photographs. In this game, you’re going to explore an island as a girl called Alba who has a phone she uses to take photos.
The gameplay revolves around cleaning and sprucing up a littered island to ensure the wildlife can live comfortably on it. To further support the message of this game, the developers plant a tree each time one more user downloads their game, which is a great initiative.
There are multiple ways you can engage with this game. For one, you can take pictures of the local area or do cityscape photography and have your acquaintances or subscribers guess the exact location. You can take this game to the next level by snapping close-up photos of smaller details and having other users guess what is the object in the picture.
If you'd like to guess instead of being the one who's taking photos, you can check out photo games online like GeoGuessr that have you guess where specific photos were taken. figure out where specific images were taken.
This platform lets you pick from different areas, with possible options including the entire world, Europe, the US, or other specific countries.
This is an engaging and casual game for photography enthusiasts. It has you draw various photography-themed objects on a whiteboard. You can either think of objects to draw yourself or get random prompts out of a hat. Other players need to guess the subject before you’re finished.
If you’d like to make the game more challenging, set the time limit for each turn between 30-60 seconds. If your friend group has some beginners, this game can be a great learning experience for them, as they can discover various specialized photography terms and types of photography.
This is an interesting and versatile game for anyone who wants to unleash their creativity while also setting a challenge for themselves. Each week that you’re playing this photography game online, you'll receive a theme that has to be incorporated into your photos.
The themes are rather general so you'll get plenty of creative freedom to implement all sorts of ideas. While you're taking photos, you can devise some innovative shooting techniques and angles that you can later make a part of your style, for instance, a food photography angle.
Restrictions are great motivators because they make you take full advantage of the tools you have at your disposal. In photography, one of the most efficient ways to elevate your skill level is to try to find potential in everything.
Unlike all the other photography games, this one only has a single rule – pick a subject and take pictures of it from a variety of angles. If needed, set a photo limit for yourself. Your goal is to ensure each shot looks as captivating and unique as possible.
Consider trying out multiple apertures and depth of field settings to make each picture look as if it was taken at a different location or time.
This is a great option for making some great memories with your family members. It can easily be transformed into a family photo idea that involves all your relatives! This game simply has you taking pictures of each family member and once you’re done, you can print them out or add them to a web gallery.
One way to make the entire experience even more fun is to ask your relatives to take the pictures themselves since then you’re guaranteed to receive some interesting and creative results, especially when kids are going to get involved.
A lot of candid and urban photographers regularly take photos from the hip to receive creative results. By diverging from your standard techniques, you’ll be able to gain a fresh perspective on how to approach different photography subjects.
Possible options include both hip shooting as well as snapping pictures with your eyes closed (as long as this is safe for you and the people around you). Go to areas that are filled to the brim with excitement like concerts, weddings, or celebratory events that involve a lot of group photos.
Limiting your style to a single gear piece or technique can become boring fast. To make things more interesting, restrict yourself to a specific feature of your camera, for instance, a camera mode.
Unlike most photography games, this one doesn’t have a lot of rules. Just limit yourself to Black-and-White mode only. If that doesn’t sound challenging enough, fit the entire photoshoot into 50 images or alternate between taking B&W and color photos.
A colorless world often makes it easier to appreciate details that would have gone unnoticed otherwise. The photo’s contrast and composition have a different effect on the viewer and can inspire the photographer to come up with new techniques and ideas.
