Summer’s here, and I’m so excited for it. As a photographer, here are the top 5 reasons I’m lovin’ this July!

1. Favorite Photo Assignment

Each month, Lenspiration runs a photo assignment to nudge our growth as photographers. And for the month of July, we run the same assignment over and over again every year—because it’s literally the best assignment ever! The goal? To add beautiful, new locations to the Lenspiration Scouting Guide. So, wherever your summer takes you, whether it’s a stunning vacation destination, or a hidden gem close to home, the assignment for July is always to find a location of photographic value, take some quality photos there, record scrupulous field notes about the location, and then submit everything together for a chance to win a prize. Doesn’t that sound like fun?! For more details, you can get the assignment specifics here.

2. Live, Landscape Photo Shoots (join me LIVE on Instagram!)

Because Lenspiration’s emphasis this July is on discovering and documenting new places, I’ve decided that it would be fun to do some spontaneous landscape photography excursions this month. Because I’m already traveling, it will be easier to find new places. And I’d love to have you join me in the field, virtually! I may go out for sunrise, or I may just stop at random places when I have extra time to break away. But these shoots won’t be scheduled. So the only way to join me live is to follow me on Instagram! @lenspirationphoto When I go live, you’ll get a notification. Then you can hop in to experience the shoot in real time. Think of it as a virtual field trip into the picturesque places I happen to explore this month!

3. Choosing Photos for Next Year’s Calendar

July is also the time of year I happen to begin assembling the photos for next year’s fine-art wall calendars. Having pulled together 35 new photos from the past, I’ve assembled them into a survey where you can vote on which ones are your favorite. I’d love your help in deciphering which ones should be featured in my 2027 Calendar! You can take the survey here.

And here’s a short, 1-minute introduction video to the project!

Your vote genuinely shapes the final calendar. In a way, it’s a collaborative project, and I’m excited to see which images are most inspiration to you!

4. A Reminder of a Very Special Person

Speaking of calendars, does anyone know the abbreviated form for the word “July”? Jul, right? I know, it’s kinda pointless to have an abbreviation for such a short word as that.

But when you’re designing stuff, and you’re using three-letter abbreviations for months like September and December, it only makes sense to have a three-letter abbreviation for July too, for continuity’s sake. But why do I point this out? Because, well, Jul happens to be the nickname of the most wonderful person in the world. 🙂

Though my wife, Julianna, wasn’t born in July, nor were we married in July, nor do we have any children who have birthdays in July, still, I tell her that “Jul is my favorite month.” ❤️

5. A Reminder of A Photographer’s Responsibility

Patriotism and the month of July will forever be inexplicably linked in the annals of American history. And so thus, July is a reminder of my favorite quote from the Founding Fathers.

Photography is more than aesthetics. It’s a tool for communication. In a world saturated with images that often distort or degrade, choosing what photographs we share becomes an important responsibility. This is why the words of John Witherspoon, the only minister to sign the Declaration of Independence, are so relevant to us today, even in the world of photography. When I first heard this quote not too long ago, I was blown away by the implications it has for us as photographers! Listen:

“It is absolutely certain that overall wickedness and corruption of manners make a nation ripe for destruction. A good form of government may hold the rotten materials together for a while, but, beyond a certain point, even the best constitution will be ineffective, and slavery will follow. On the other hand, when the manners of a nation are pure, when true religion and internal principles flourish, even the most powerful enemies’ attempts to oppress them are usually disappointed . . . What can we conclude from this? That he is the best friend of American liberty who is most sincere and active in promoting true and undefiled religion. He is the best friend of American liberty who sets himself with the greatest firmness to suppress profanity and immorality of every kind.” –John Witherspoon

Every photograph we choose to share is an invitation for our audience to meditate on something. Therefore, we as photographers, with our cameras, have the power to influence morality in culture, thus playing a role in the rise or fall of this great country. Let us choose to be creators and distributors of that which is “family-friendly”: consistent with the principles of Scripture, worthy of all acceptance before God, excellent by His definition, and an accurate depiction of what God likes and what He Himself is like.

Coastal Reverie
Walnut Beach Boardwalk, Silver Sands State Park, Connecticut
Download as a free desktop background in the next Latest from Lenspiration update (subscribe)

Bringing it all together

So, there are 5 reasons I absolutely love the month of July!

We get to fulfill the Lenspiration assignment by simply exploring with our cameras. You can join me live on Instagram as I discover picturesque places in real time at picturesque times of day. I get to assemble my favorite photos for you to vote on to shape the Lenspiration 2027 Calendar. I am daily reminded of my most favorite person in the world. 🙂 And I am reminded of the great responsibility we have as patriots and liberty-loving photographers to uphold righteousness and suppress profanity and immorality on every level.

“For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.” –I Thessalonians 4:3-7