Discreetphoton's 365 Day Photo Challenge

ePHOTOzine member David Pritchard, also known as discreetphoton, has just completed the 365 day lens challenge, taking a photo every day for a year. Here, we find out a bit more about the challenge, and how it went.

David completed the challenge with a Tamron 18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD lens. “I had heard Pete (Peter Bargh, Editorial Director of ePHOTOzine) talk about the lens before, and he sounded quite impressed with it,” says David.

“For a long time, I'd been without a kit lens. The one I'd had before just wasn't versatile enough when held up against my other kit. I wanted to see just how far I could push a lens of this nature.”

The challenge involved using the one Tamron lens for a full year to really stretch the versitility of the lens and see what it is really capable of, taking a different photo every day.


“Being honest, I didn't expect much from it,” admits David. “All of my existing lenses are from the upper price ranges. I had plans to travel to Rome last October, and I saw the challenge as a great way to cut down the weight of my bag. I realised that I might be taking a huge risk, but figured it was worth it.”

And so, the challenge began. “From the first couple of days, I felt that the lens was a great bit of kit. It weighs next to nothing, and the range that it covers is quite staggering the first time you see it.

The biggest surprise for me was how well the lens lends itself to close up work. As the project developed, I looked for new ways to use it within my existing range of equipment, trying it with extension tubes, dioptres and flash units. I managed to find examples of situations where the lens managed to improve my chances of getting good shots, like a dragonfly that was just out of reach of my macro lens, or working in confined or busy places,” explains David.

The challenge has opened David's eyes to the world around him. “The project forced me to explore my local area quite extensively. This led to me finding some lovely little spots, which even surprised some of the locals, and led to my highest valued print sale to date!”



The difficult part, David found, was finding new and exciting things to shoot for each day. “The hardest part of the challenge was keeping things fresh. This was especially difficult towards the end of the project. Because you don't know what you're going to face in a year, it's hard to stay focused and positive when you are thrown a bunch of lemons. Luckily, the range of the lens meant that I could always find something to shoot, from small details to sweeping vistas. I'm not sure I could have done it with any other type of lens. You don't realise how long a year is until you start counting up the days!” Says David.

So, what is his verdict on the Tamron 18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD lens that he used every day for a year?

“The lens has been an absolute gem to use. The quality is excellent considering the lens' brief. Even now that I've finished the project, it lives on my camera, because I know that even if I can't get the best picture possible with it, I can pretty much always come away with something, and it's perfect for lightweight travel. That's made the whole thing worthwhile, and I'm really grateful to have had the chance to do this.”



Take a look at David's Blog, the days zoom past where he has written a blog entry for every day that he used the lens.

Congratulations on finishing the challenge, David!