We all aspire to have a unique photography style that’s instantly recognisable. Although this is a worthy goal, there’s one pitfall that nearly everyone encounters along the way. When you first start developing a style, it can be tempting to force it onto every photo and dismiss any image that doesn’t fit with your specific look. In this blog, I’ll discuss why it’s important not to force your style and, instead, either adapt it to different scenarios or develop a completely new one for certain types of photography if needed.

Although I can’t speak to your specific style, I’ll share my own experience in the hope that you might find some useful parallels. After spending time reviewing my photos, I’ve identified three distinct scenes that I’ve photographed this year

Low Light Mood

City Sunlight

Summer By The Sea

Now, let’s consider what would happen if I tried to apply my “low light mood” style to a “summer by the sea” photo. It doesn’t take long to see that it simply wouldn’t work.

Or, let’s try reversing this: applying a bright, summery seaside look to a moody, low-light scene.

We can probably agree that forcing a style that doesn’t suit the scene is likely to cause frustration and disappointing results. Rather than forcing it, try creating a new style for that specific scenario, either from scratch or by drawing on certain aspects of your existing style and adapting them to suit the new conditions.