In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, photographers around the world have lost the opportunity to shoot outdoors or in their other favorite locations due to a slew of stay-at-home and shelter-in-place orders.

Luckily, there are just as many ways to get creative indoors as there are outdoors, which is why we’ve put together this list containing 20 ideas for home photography projects that anyone can try (no matter their skill level – as well as when things get back to normal.)

1. See ordinary items in a new way with a macro lens

It’s incredible how different ordinary objects can appear when they’re shot close-up.

You’ll view everything from refrigerator magnets to television remotes with a fresh appreciation when you get up-close and personal with them! You can try the same thing without a macro lens by using the minimum focusing distance of any lens.

2. Photograph the whimsy of colored liquids using food dye and a glass of water

It’s amazing how many things we can shoot just with a glass of water. For instance, set up your camera in front of a clear glass full of water, then photograph the process of food coloring being dropped within.

Tilt the glass, swirl the water with a utensil, and try other kinds of movement to see what effects you can create as the dye settles fully into the liquid.

3. Try cross-polarization

Let two polarizing filters work together (one on your camera and one on an LCD screen behind your subject) to highlight the “stress” in clear plastic objects like rulers or protractors.

This will result in a multi-color swirl of abstract patterns that make for some truly psychedelic shots. Try the same thing with plastic cutlery or CD cases!

4. Photograph oil and water trying (and failing) to mix

No, oil and water don’t mix, but it can be a treat to watch them try! Create some abstract shots by shooting oil in water through a clear container. When you zoom in close, you’ll see hundreds of bubbles formed in all sizes.

You can even impart some color to the shot by placing a colored background behind the clear dish or adding some of that food coloring from project number two.

5. Get into food photography

There’s no better time to try out some new recipes than being forced to spend a lengthy amount of time indoors.

Already, people across the internet are bragging about the amount of bread they’re making from scratch, so if you try something new in the kitchen, why not photograph it, too?

Taking pictures of food is a great way to practice compositions you might never have tried before, and even just arranging food more deliberately on a plate is an interesting art form of its own.

6. Focus on the hard lines and interesting shapes of indoor architecture

Take some time to really appreciate the build of your home, even if it’s just a simple doorway or a built-in shelving unit.

Get up close and personal with the patterns and textures of wood, brick, or concrete, then play with these shapes in your photography. Try, for example, playing with the idea of leading lines or framing – both of which will bump up your composition skills a notch.

7. Try flat lay photography

With your camera and the internet to keep you company during a lengthy stint indoors, now is as good a time as any to revive that Instagram account you made last year and then promptly abandoned (it happens to the best of us).

Flat lay photography is one of the most popular photo formats on Instagram and other social media sites, so give it a try with food, journals, your skincare routine, or absolutely anything else you can find in your house!

8. Capture your pets at their best (or worst!) moments

If you’re anything like us, you probably already have a few hundred (or more) pictures of your pets in your phone, but try taking more high-quality and deliberate shots of your pets while you’re stuck at home with them!

9. Break out the Christmas decorations

It’s a lot of fun to play with colored lighting and fairy light effects, and we’re willing to bet that you have some strands of Christmas lights stored away in your attic until next year.

If that’s the case, bring them down and see what shots you can come up with by setting a new, colorful tone.

10. Play with unique materials like glass marbles

Be particularly mindful of interesting shapes and textures you find around your house, even in the most mundane objects.

Glass beads or glass marbles make for fun subject matter due to their whimsical colors and reflective surfaces. See what you can do by shining light through them, for instance.

11. Blow some bubbles

Appease your inner child by blowing bubbles and photographing them as they tumble and fall across the room.

It can be a bit challenging to capture a bubble’s reflective surface, especially while it’s in motion, but that’s what makes this photography project a good one to try for when you have plenty of time. Be patient, and with some practice on your focusing technique and shutter speed theory, you’ll get the shot you want!

12. Use up those bath bombs you’ve had lying around

Bath art is always a fun way to engage in some well-deserved rest and relaxation while experiencing some creative photo opportunities, too.

If you have any bath bombs or bubble bath lying around, now’s the time to use them! Before you hop in, photograph the satisfying release of color and fizz into your bathwater.

13. Try some DIY projects to expand your collection of gear

Image by Martin Cooper

Believe it or not, you can make everything from light boxes to reflectors to a host of other lighting modifiers using common household objects and what equates to little more than trash. That’s right – we’re talking Pringles cans, corrugated cardboard, and Elmer’s glue!

14. Break the rules in ways you wouldn’t otherwise

For instance, use lenses for situations you wouldn’t normally. Intentionally create some “bad” compositions and see where you can embrace beauty in the chaos.

Change up your style in a way that you would never attempt outside of this pandemic’s stay-at-home orders. Just have fun with it. Laugh at yourself. Rules are made to be broken, anyway.

15. Freeze objects!

Playing with ice can be a treat. All you’ll need is a clear container and, well, anything you’re okay tossing in the freezer. This could be anything from flowers to the pens and paper clips on your desk.

Photographing them while the ice melts can create fascinating opportunities for reflection.

16. Try food landscaping

If you’ve already given food photography a shot, level up with a fun little project called food landscaping (or “foodscaping“). This practice involves the careful placement of miniature figurines on food surfaces to create some surreal scenes. Or, you can try creating complete scenes using food, too.

This is your chance to get creative! For instance, the hairy skin of a kiwi could symbolize grass in your scene.

17. Paint light trails with a flashlight

You don’t need sparklers or other kinds of pyrotechnics to paint light trails, and you don’t even need to be outside!

In fact, all you need is a flashlight, a tripod, your camera, and a dark, open space. This could be your living room with the lights turned off!

Then, set a self-timer or ask an assistant (i.e. family member) who is stuck indoors with you to be your subject by swirling the flashlight throughout the length of the shot.

18. Learn time-lapse photography

Again, there’s no need to be outdoors to embrace this technique. Even if you don’t have a balcony or a porch to set up on, you can always try time-lapse through your window!

From the movement of cars and people outside to the lazy way clouds float across the sky, you’ll be amazed at what you can capture just from your humble home.

19. Make some “outfits of the day” with clothes from the back of your closet

We all have those outfits that have found their way to the back of our closets and gone unworn for many an age.

Whether they don’t fit us any longer or if they’ve just gone out of style, take the extra time indoors to revive these outfits. You don’t even have to wear them ‐ just arrange them neatly, coordinate with some accessories, and use the flat lay technique we mentioned earlier.

20. Get in front of the camera for once

As photographers, it’s not often that we find ourselves in front of the camera rather than behind it.

Now is the time to get out of our comfort zone! Even if you’re alone during these weeks of pandemic-induced self-isolation, you can still use the self-timer to get creative with self-portraits and artistic poses.

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Don’t be surprised if you learn a thing or two while trying out these projects. You may discover some new techniques or ways to approach photography that you wouldn’t experience otherwise, just from trying something new. Most of all, have fun with your time indoors.

At the very least, you won’t be bored once you’ve made it through this list of things to try!