The Mental Physical and Spiritual Health Benefits of Nature Photography As Your New Hobby

The primary reason you should take up adventure nature photography as your new hobby is that it promotes physical health and wellbeing. Physical health is important in all of our lives, and often it is difficult or mundane to force yourself to exercise in a repetitive routine. Many Americans suffer from obesity and a lack of physical activity is the cause for this disease. Taking up an active hobby such as adventure nature photography helps promote physical exercise in a unique and interesting manner. When I began gathering nature pictures and taking little hikes with my son in 2004, I weighed in at over 270 pounds. I was seriously out of shape, but now I weigh in at a trim 180, and have lost 90 pounds doing something fun and exciting.

Another important reason you should consider adventure nature photography is mental and spiritual health. Thousands of people suffer from anxiety and depression all over the world, and this is often caused by a lack of perspective in what really matters. If you take up adventure nature photography as your new hobby, the cares and concerns of work, school and the everyday stressful tasks of life will begin to melt away as you focus on the beauty and peaceful creation all around you. When you consider the way that God takes care of his creation, and that nature does not stress and worry about money or about what is going to happen tomorrow, we can then possibly begin to believe that he will, in his own way and time, take care of us even more than he does the animals and flowers in nature.

One of the greatest benefits of becoming an adventure nature photographer is that it will give you an interesting reason to spend more time with your friends and family. Loneliness can lead to depression and anxiety, and having a friend or a loved one to share a nature photography experience with helps to build and strengthen your relationship. Husband and wife, as well as parent and child relationships, are critical in all societies and cultures; as family is the primary building block of all our lives. I often will consider going to the mountains by myself, and when I picture doing this in my mind I think to myself, "I would be lonely going on my own", so I will ask my wife and kids if they want to go with me.

Although you may be concerned that you will not be able to hike if you are seriously out of shape or have another physical disability. You can begin by walking and hiking just a little at a time (such as walking in your back yard or neighborhood), and this will help you to build strength and endurance. Then again, you may be concerned that nature photography will be too expensive and you simply will not be able to afford a camera or equipment. However, quality point and shoot digital cameras are fairly inexpensive in today's market and you can obtain a high resolution digital camera that is easy to use and operate for less than a hundred dollars.

In conclusion adventure nature photography is an exciting hobby, which promotes physical health and vigorous exercise in an interesting way. When you have an interesting hobby such as nature photography, your focus will begin to see God's provision for creation and this helps you to mentally shift from monotonous daily routines, thus relieving stress and anxiety. Quality friend and family relationships are critical in all of our lives, and often an interesting reason to spend quality time together is all that we need. So, If you suffer from physical, mental or even spiritual health issues; and would like a way to spend more time with family and friends, you should consider adventure nature photography as your new found hobby.