5 Genuine Ways to Use the Old Pictures to Your Advantage

Last updated on August 8th, 2022 at 02:10 pm

Reading Time: 9 minutes

I believe you are a photo enthusiast like me! Further, you adore storing old pictures on our phones as memories. But, when the phone notification says “Storage Issue,” you may delete the old photos.

Correct me if I am wrong.

I snapped a bunch of pictures and saved them in the phone gallery. But apart from keeping the old photos in the phone gallery, I explore options that allow me to share the captured pictures to my Advantage.

Advantage means you can learn something and reach more people to show what you captured through your lens. Also, on the other hand, seek to generate some output, if possible.

Yes, sharing on social media could be among the advantages you can tell. However, I will share points aside from that, and you’ll like them.

It doesn’t imply that pictures must be high quality and a DSLR snapped to get shared. Unquestionably! It could be the phone images too. 

Technology is Advancing, and the quality of phone cameras getting becoming top-notch. I consider you may know about the Vivo x60 pro that has the Zeiss lens. A perfect example!

Back to our discussion

Web Story on 5 Ways to Use the Old Pictures to Your Advantage

Old is Gold!

And 

1. Nat Geo Daily Shot Photo Contest

If you have loved photography, featuring or working with Nat Geo shall be your destination.

Set apart, Nat Geo Traveller India hosts a monthly competition on the website with a particular theme.

The contest follows a theme, and images submitted during the competition should follow the theme and abide by the guidelines written on the website.

How to Proceed

Once a month, you can visit the Nat Geo Traveller India’s Daily Shot Photo Contest to see the running competition theme. 

The contest theme demands if you feel you have an old picture in your phone gallery. Then, look for the image and submit that on the website simultaneously with the information required during submission.

And that’s it!

I think it shouldn’t bother you whether the photo you submitted wins the contest or not.

At least you have tried to use your old photo to your Advantage, and you must feel satisfied with your action.

The submissions that do justice to the contest theme will get featured on the Nat Geo Traveller’s India homepage and other social media platforms. In addition, the Top three Winner Photographs would get featured in the Nat Geo Magazine.

And that will be a huge, huge accomplishment!

When Did I Get to Know About the Nat Geo Theme Contest?

I began photographing sincerely a few years back.

You will agree that every explorer looks to join Nat Geo. So, while looking on the website, I learned about the contest.  

Another contest that used to happen on the website National Geographic You Shot shifted to Instagram. You might even have seen the hashtag on Instagram #natgeoyourshot, the only criteria to enter.

Let’s come back to our Daily Shot Photo Contest topic.

My Views on the Contest After Entering Multiple Times

Initial information,

The entrance fee is completely free, and you will get to know the guidelines when you read the submission page.

I used to check the contest theme not monthly but weekly at the start.

Likewise, when your favorite brand new smartphone is about to launch, you want that phone in your palm before it goes out of stock. Cheers! 

You know the curiosity.

After entering several Nat Geo Daily Shot contests, I remained unselected.

But once the Autumn theme contest began, I scrolled through my old pictures gallery and spotted an image matching the contest theme.

Following I submitted the image for the Autumn theme contest.

(Click on the image to view my submission on the contest page)

Within a few days, I received a mail that your image went selected.

So, three images would get a chance to feature from many chosen photographs. 

I was the Unlucky one!

But that doesn’t mean I stopped submitting my old pictures there. On the contrary, I still constantly monitor the contest theme.

It doesn’t feel bad at all after constant refusals. Indeed I feel proud that I had tried to use the old photographs to my Advantage that I had shot earlier.

As soon as you finish reading this article, you will immediately go to the website to see the contest theme and submit the following photo. Despite the outcome, correct?

Lines Summing up the Feeling

Just believe,
I know you wanted to achieve.

It should doesn’t matter whether you win or lose,
Remember, there are always two roads; decide which one to choose.

I know,

The one without footsteps,
Will leave behind your steps.

Just believe,
I know you wanted to achieve.

• So, that’s the first Advantage of using an old picture I wanted to share.

2. Search for Online Photography Competitions

It’s not only Nat Geo contests but plenty of them online.

How to find Photography Competitions Online?

You can search on google “Photography Competitions to Enter,” and you’ll find lists of website that organizes photo contests, both free and paid.

Following, submit the Amazing old photos from the phone gallery to your desired destination. You can see below my phone gallery photos.

It becomes considerably stressful to scroll over multiple websites and submit photos. Don’t do everything in a single day. I suggest making a schedule to enter competitions and checking various websites on chosen days.

You can subscribe to some photography-devoted blogs like digital camera world, 500px, and many more.

Furthermore, you can submit the images for licensing on the 500px. There exist many more websites that allow you to submit photos. In return, you get paid if someone buys them. I talked on those websites in the following points. So, keep scanning.

• Until now, I believe everything seems cool!

My Views on Entering Online Contest

Some time back,

I got to know about the Indian Photography Awards and enrolled happily. You have to pay to enter this competition, depending on the number of images you want to submit. You can find the details on the website once you begin.

It was a new experience, so I entered a paid competition.

Following I submitted the image for the Travel category.

(Click on the image to view my submission on the contest page)

The picture got a special mention. But, unfortunately, I was not amongst the winners. Unexpectedly, in 2022, I received a mail that your shot qualified for the Annual contest.

So, that doesn’t mean I stopped using my old pictures to my Advantage if the photo hadn’t won anything significant.

Reading the niche blogs is a great way to find Photography competitions happening around, and you can bookmark the websites on the browser if, by chance, you forget the name.

Furthermore, I learned about the CEWE Photo Awards from the Digital Camera world blog. While searching the website for information, I found a blog post concerning this competition. So, I read the instructions and found it valuable to enter. 

• Similar way, if you find a competition-worthy. You can enroll and make use of your old photo gallery.

3. Sell on Shutterstock and Other Related Websites

Shutterstock is a stock image website that allows you to submit images for editorial or commercial use. In addition, you can read the difference between editorial and commercial content.

I had already said to use the old pictures to your Advantage, whether it’s a win or lose.

From Where to Start?

Apart from Shutterstock, several other websites let you submit the images like 500px, Getty Images, and several more.

The process is easy to submit the images once you create the account.

Ultimately, the images went shown on your portfolio page.

Here are my portfolio pages as an example-

1. Shutterstock Portfolio
2. 500px Portfolio
3. Istock Portfolio

My Views on Selling Images Online

First of all, make a schedule.

You also know that a portfolio with one or two or maybe ten images won’t do anything.

You have to submit hundreds of images online, demanding time.

Suppose you went to submit a bunch of images on a particular day. Eventually, when you notice no outcome. Then, you will become frustrated and never submit again.

It requires schedule and dedication.

To be honest,

I favored more dedication because we all make schedules in life. But, if that schedule remains unfollowed, what’s the intent of wasting your time?

I had scheduled to add 2-3 images on alternate days. Additionally, when I share a picture on my social platform, that same image must be submitted on the selling platform.

• I genuinely feel you will make a schedule and start submitting it right away!

4. Edit the Old Pictures with Your Learnt Skills

We have discussed deeply entering contests/competitions and selling the old photos online.

Let’s see, giving an old image life with editing skills.

A simple example is here,

You can pick any old picture from your phone gallery and give it a different feeling.

Remembered, The Advantage meaning concerning this article,

It can make you learn something and enable you to reach more people. The dedicated learning point is this one.

Look out for some sample examples below,

After editing them with acquired skills, I gave old photos a new life.

The Skillset changes as you will continue further. I will not go into detail related to editing.

1. A Single Bird Before VS After the Editing Touch

2. Set of Birds Before VS After the Editing Touch (Resembles like Cricket Stumps to Anyone)

3. Bird Sitting on the Tree Branches Before VS After the Editing Touch

These were examples of how effectively you can use your skills and implement them to the old pictures stored on your phone.

• You can do trial and error to edit. A secret formula, I did the same trial & error while I was beginning with editing the photos.

5. To Make a Photo Scrapbook & Keep an Eye on Instagram Contest

It would be a bonus point.

Make a Travel Photo Scrap Book

I understand a Travel Scrapbook is for Travel memories.

Instead of keeping the photos in the phone gallery, use Scrapbook to see the larger picture.

Yes, you got it! A bigger picture where you, your friends & your family relive the moments created together. 

Undoubtedly, Scrapbook would be advantageous for your loved ones.

I also kept some of the photos I had shot in the Scrapbook. One of them I have shown to you below.

Shot at Aru Valley during the Katarnag Lake Trek in Pahalgam, Kashmir.

Keep an Eye on Instagram Contest

Instagram is an image-sharing platform that needs no introduction in today’s world.

Did you know –

Research suggests that there are 500 million daily active users on Instagram globally & the average time spent on Instagram was 28min daily as of 2021.

The Instagram numbers are incredible & so does the contest.

Somewhere or the other, contests on Instagram are a routine, but we cannot keep up with every Instagram contest.

Instead, you can keep an eye on the fancied niche brands. The brands conduct Instagram contests sometimes or other.

Similarly, consider knowing about photo ideas for Instagram.

Suppose you love to travel & photograph. Then, you can keep an eye on Instagram pages like Goibibo, Make My Trip, Tripoto, Conde Nast Traveler, etc.

Pages require interaction with the audience to make them feel special.

My Views on Taking Part in the Instagram Contests

Likewise, while scrolling my Instagram feed, I saw a post about Make My Trip’s best-kept secret contest.

The contest demands to submit an image you feel is the hidden treasure of India. So, I uploaded an old photo when I went to Aru Valley and followed the guidelines mentioned.

I stayed confident that the photo I had uploaded was perfect for the contest because Aru Valley is less known.

I submitted the below image for the contest,

A few months later, the results came, and one fine morning, I woke up & saw the DM that Make My Trip had tagged me in their story.

I remained fortunate among the top 5 winners that were selected.

The winners of which got travel vouchers from Make My Trip.

It was yet another perfect example of using an old image to the Advantage.

• After reading this, I consider you will be thoroughly keeping an eye on Instagram.

WOW! 

So, that’s it. I hope you have enjoyed the article as much as I did while creating this.

I consider I could justify my thoughts on using old pictures to bring to your Advantage.

You can stay connected with me ❤️ over Instagram & Facebook for photo-related content, behind-the-scenes, and updates more often.

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