A set of 64 constraint-based photo practices for working from the inside—where limitation becomes style and presence becomes proof. Each exercise strips photography down to pressure, proximity, and truth by replacing technical freedom with deliberate restraint. Designed to remove comfort and reduce control, these practices slow the photographer long enough for real moments to surface, prioritizing attention, patience, and repetition over polish. The goal is not better images, but deeper engagement—photographs that feel lived-in, necessary, and honest.
64 Words to Compose Photography By — Paired Photo Exercises
1. Force or creative or creative force
Exercise: Photograph only moments where bodies or objects are visibly pushing, pulling, resisting.
Tip: If nothing strains, wait longer.
2. Field or the flow
Exercise: Shoot continuously while walking one direction without stopping.
Tip: Don’t turn around.
3. Sprouting or gathering support
Exercise: Photograph beginnings only—tape going on, shoes tightening, stretching.
Tip: No finished actions.
4. Enveloping or discover or being youthful
Exercise: Shoot through obstructions so subjects are partially hidden.
Tip: Let the frame swallow the subject.
5. Attending or waiting
Exercise: Photograph only people doing nothing.
Tip: If something happens, don’t shoot it.
6. Arguing or conflict or creating conflict
Exercise: Frame moments where bodies overlap, collide, or interrupt each other.
Tip: Crowding is allowed—clean spacing is not.
7. Leading or to directing
Exercise: Photograph whoever others are watching, not who is skating.
Tip: Eyes tell leadership.
8. Grouping or holding together or create alliances
Exercise: Shoot pairs or clusters only. No single figures.
Tip: If someone stands alone, exclude them.
9. Small accumulating or small harvest
Exercise: Photograph the same small detail five times from different angles.
Tip: Repetition is the subject.
10. Treading or continuing
Exercise: Shoot feet only for 20 minutes.
Tip: No faces, no boards fully shown.
11. Pervading or piece or greatness
Exercise: Photograph one thing that appears everywhere in the space.
Tip: Background matters more than subject.
12. Obstruction or standstill or being selfish
Exercise: Block your own shots intentionally with your body or objects.
Tip: If it feels wrong, keep it.
13. Concording people or gathering people men/girls or fellowship or seen congregation
Exercise: Photograph groups facing the same direction.
Tip: Unity beats action.
14. Great possessing or possession in great measure
Exercise: Shoot images filled edge-to-edge—no empty space.
Tip: If it breathes, it’s too open.
15. Humbling or modesty
Exercise: Shoot everything from waist height or lower.
Tip: Lower than feels necessary.
16. Providing for or excess or enthusiasm
Exercise: Photograph gestures—hands offering, fixing, helping.
Tip: Don’t show outcomes.
17. Following or follow, copy, borwor something
Exercise: Follow one person visually for 10 minutes without interaction.
Tip: Stay consistent, not sneaky.
18. Connecting or branch out or work on something old or return to an old technique
Exercise: Recreate one mistake you usually avoid.
Tip: Do it repeatedly.
19. Nearing or approach or the forest
Exercise: Photograph only as you move closer—never pull back.
Tip: End too close.
20. Viewing or looking up or contemplation
Exercise: Shoot only upward angles.
Tip: Let things fall out of frame.
21. Gnawing bite or chewing or biting through
Exercise: Photograph damage, wear, bite marks, torn edges.
Tip: Time leaves teeth marks.
22. Adoring or grace or luxuriance
Exercise: Photograph moments of softness in harsh places.
Tip: Don’t romanticize—observe.
23. Stripping or splitting apart or flaying. Rubin’s strip down
Exercise: Remove one visual layer per image (crop in-camera).
Tip: Less information, more truth.
24. Returning or turning point or return. Start from a beginning
Exercise: Revisit the first place you photographed that day.
Tip: See what changed.
25. Without embroiling or innocence or pestilence
Exercise: Photograph only untouched surfaces.
Tip: Avoid drama.
26. Great accumulating or great storage or taming power of the great
Exercise: Shoot piles—boards, bodies, objects stacked.
Tip: Quantity carries weight.
27. Swallowing or nourishment or comfort and security
Exercise: Photograph resting bodies.
Tip: Movement is forbidden.
28. Great exceeding or critical mass or surpassing greatness or preponderance of the great
Exercise: Frame scenes where scale overwhelms people.
Tip: Let humans feel small.
29. Gorge or repeat entrapment or water to water something maybe
Exercise: Photograph the same motion failing repeatedly.
Tip: Don’t chase success.
30. Radiance or the net or clinging
Exercise: Shoot directly into harsh light.
Tip: Let highlights burn.
31. Conjoining or influence or feelings
Exercise: Photograph touch—accidental or intentional.
Tip: Cropping tight increases intensity.
32. Persevering or constancy
Exercise: Stay in one spot and shoot only what passes through.
Tip: Don’t reposition.
33. Retiring or retreat or yielding
Exercise: Photograph people leaving the frame.
Tip: Absence counts.
34. Great invigorating or great maturity or power of the great
Exercise: Photograph elders or experienced skaters without action.
Tip: Stillness shows authority.
35. Prospering or progress or aquas
Exercise: Photograph growth marks—new paint, worn ramps.
Tip: Change leaves scars.
36. Darkening of the light or intelligence hidden or brilliance injured
Exercise: Underexpose intentionally.
Tip: Darkness can speak.
37. Dwelling people or the family or clan
Exercise: Photograph who stays longest.
Tip: Time defines belonging.
38. Polarizing or opposition or perversion
Exercise: Frame two opposing actions in one image.
Tip: Tension lives between.
39. Limping or obstruction
Exercise: Photograph injury, hesitation, imbalance.
Tip: Respect limits.
40. Taking apart or untangled or deliverance
Exercise: Photograph disassembly—wheels off, tape removed.
Tip: After matters more than before.
41. Diminishing or decrease
Exercise: Reduce your framing with each shot.
Tip: End nearly empty.
42. Augmenting or increase
Exercise: Add more elements each frame without moving location.
Tip: Let chaos build.
43. Displacement or breakthrough or parting or resoluteness
Exercise: Shoot moments right after interruption.
Tip: Aftermath holds truth.
44. Coupling or coming to meet or meeting
Exercise: Photograph converging paths.
Tip: Timing over clarity.
45. Clustering gathering together or finished
Exercise: Photograph end-of-session gatherings.
Tip: Energy drops—notice it.
46. Ascending or pushing upwards
Exercise: Shoot ramps or bodies moving upward only.
Tip: Gravity is felt visually.
47. Confining or entangled or oppression
Exercise: Frame subjects boxed in by architecture.
Tip: Corners are pressure points.
48. Welling or the well
Exercise: Photograph source points—where people return to stand.
Tip: Origins repeat.
49. Skinning or revolution or the bridle
Exercise: Photograph rotation—boards spinning, bodies twisting.
Tip: Blur enhances revolution.
50. Holding or the cauldron
Exercise: Shoot crowds from within, not outside.
Tip: Heat comes from inside.
51. Shake or arousing or shocked or thunder
Exercise: Shoot during sudden noise or impact.
Tip: Don’t stabilize.
52. Bound or keeping still or stilling or mountain
Exercise: Photograph immovable objects with moving subjects.
Tip: Contrast defines power.
53. Infiltrating or development or advancement/gradual process
Exercise: Photograph the same spot at three different times.
Tip: Change is subtle.
54. Converting the maiden or the marrying maiden or returning maiden
Exercise: Photograph first-time attempts.
Tip: Vulnerability matters.
55. Abounding or fullness or abundance
Exercise: Fill every frame completely.
Tip: No breathing room.
56. Sojourning or traveling or the wanderer
Exercise: Photograph people passing through, not staying.
Tip: Don’t follow long.
57. Ground or the gentle or calculations
Exercise: Shoot ground textures only.
Tip: The surface tells stories.
58. Open or the joyous or lake or usurpation
Exercise: Photograph open spaces after activity.
Tip: Emptiness echoes action.
59. Dispersing or dispersal or dispersion
Exercise: Photograph people separating.
Tip: Capture the moment of split.
60. Articulating or limitation or moderation
Exercise: Use only one setting all session.
Tip: Commitment sharpens intent.
61. Center returning or inner truth or central return
Exercise: Return to your first image and respond to it.
Tip: Dialogue over progress.
62. Small exceeding or small surpassing or preponderance of the small
Exercise: Let the smallest detail dominate the frame.
Tip: Small things carry weight.
63. Already fording or after completion or already completed or already done
Exercise: Photograph cleanup and departure.
Tip: Endings are quiet.
64. Not yet fording or before completion or not yet completed
Exercise: Photograph anticipation without resolution.
Tip: Leave the story open.
64 Words to Compose Your Photography By (without examples)
- Force or creative or creative force
- Field or the flow
- Sprouting or gathering support
- Enveloping or discover or being youthful
- Attending or waiting
- Arguing or conflict or creating conflict
- Leading or to directing
- Grouping or holding together or create alliances
- Small accumulating or small harvest
- Treading or continuing
- Pervading or piece or greatness
- Obstruction or standstill or being selfish
- Concording people or gathering people men/girls or fellowship or seen congregation
- Great possessing or possession in great measure
- Humbling or modesty
- Providing for or excess or enthusiasm
- Following or follow, copy, borwor something
- Connecting or branch out or work on something old or return to an old technique
- Nearing or approach or the forest
- Viewing or looking up or contemplation
- Gnawing bite or chewing or biting through
- Adoring or grace or luxuriance
- Stripping or splitting apart or flaying. Rubin’s strip down
- Returning or turning point or return. Start from a beginning
- Without embroiling or innocence or pestilence
- Great accumulating or great storage or taming power of the great
- Swallowing or nourishment or comfort and security
- Great exceeding or critical mass or surpassing greatness or preponderance of the great
- Gorge or repeat entrapment or water to water something maybe
- Radiance or the net or clinging
- Conjoining or influence or feelings
- Persevering or constancy
- Retiring or retreat or yielding
- Great invigorating or great maturity or power of the great
- Prospering or progress or aquas
- Darkening of the light or intelligence hidden or brilliance injured
- Dwelling people or the family or clan
- Polarizing or opposition or perversion
- Limping or obstruction
- Taking apart or untangled or deliverance
- Diminishing or decrease
- Augmenting or increase
- Displacement or breakthrough or parting or resoluteness
- Coupling or coming to meet or meeting
- Clustering gathering together or finished
- Ascending or pushing upwards
- Confining or entangled or oppression
- Welling or the well
- Skinning or revolution or the bridle
- Holding or the cauldron
- Shake or arousing or shocked or thunder
- Bound or keeping still or stilling or mountain
- Infiltrating or development or advancement/gradual process
- Converting the maiden or the marrying maiden or returning maiden
- Abounding or fullness or abundance
- Sojourning or traveling or the wanderer
- Ground or the gentle or calculations
- Open or the joyous or lake or usurpation
- Dispersing or dispersal or dispersion
- Articulating or limitation or moderation
- Center returning or inner truth or central return
- Small exceeding or small surpassing or preponderance of the small
- Already fording or after completion or already completed or already done
- Not yet fording or before completion or not yet completed
Readings
SMART PHONE PHOTOGRAPHY: Basic Guide
