As newbie photographers, we should be looking out for opportunities to take more photos. We need to brave new avenues to learn more about the craft and improve our own skills. The Internet has definitely done wonders for the arts. I say this because I have seen so many online communities that foster art, and educate more and more people, photography included.

Photography enthusiasts can find a good number of communities all over the ‘Net that helps newbies and pros alike to connect with each other. These groups serve up inspiration and a good dose of tips, to keep the passion burning. More importantly, they provide newbies like us with the information and encouragement we need to keep on capturing moments through our cameras.

Apart from engaging in Project 365, you may want to join in the weekly challenge at I Heart Faces.

If you’re like me who spend countless hours blog hopping, you’ve probably seen this logo before. I’ve always enjoyed looking at beautiful photography, but I’m not one to really participate consistently. Being exposed to so many beautiful works of art can be intimidating, and sometimes I may feel inferior, but that totally misses the point of these challenges.

What is I Heart Faces?

…a photography site focused on the art of capturing faces and their various emotions. Each week, people from across the world have the opportunity to enter their favorite face photos into a themed photo challenge. A “Guest Photographer Judge” will choose ten of their favorite photos that will then be displayed on our home page. 

That’s how the founders of the I Heart Faces Photography site describe their community. Having faces on each photo entry is a theme in itself, but adding another on top of that theme makes this challenge even more interesting. Photographers of all levels are welcome to participate. To be honest, I’m not even looking at the challenge as a competition. Simply being able to submit an entry is triumph on its own. The awesome thing about joining challenges like is that you gain a targeted audience. Other participants, though not required, will visit your photos and leave comments on your entry. It will totally help you receive much needed feedback on your work. Of course, you can increase the likelihood of this happening by visiting their entries too and giving meaningful comments yourself.

There are also participants who write about the process of taking their photos. There’s a lot to be learned there. Definitely.

Apart from the weekly challenges, site owners and contributors publish tips, tutorials, and other photography related news. To know more about IHF, checkout their FAQ page.

This week, I missed the deadline (opens on Mondays, closes on Tuesdays) for entries. The theme is Yellow, and there are 619 entries. Wow. Check them out!

If I wasn’t late, I would have joined with either one of these: