How Mindful Photography Helps With Grief

Learning how to move forwards, without leaving your loss behind

Grief changes how you experience the world. It can affect your body, energy, and sense of connection to yourself and others. It can make us look at the world differently and interact with it in a new way. Sometimes there aren’t words to describe the experience, and it can be difficult to express how we feel.

Mindful photography is one way that can help.

It’s the practice of taking photos with awareness and intention. You notice what’s in front of you, what captures your attention and make an image.

What makes it mindful is the approach. You slow down. You notice. You bring curiosity instead of judgement. You’re not aiming for a perfect photo. You’re not forcing a specific frame of mind or outcome. You’re just paying attention, connecting with the present moment and how you’re feeling.

Here’s how mindful photography can support you in grief and help you move forwards, without leaving your loss behind.

A Way To Express Feelings

Mindful photography gives you another way other than words to express your grief. You might take a photo of an empty chair, a shadow, or light falling through a window. You don’t need to explain it. The photo itself holds something for you or can be a reflection of your inner world.

Sometimes you see an image and think, “That’s how I feel.” Photography helps you turn towards your grief, rather than push it away, creating spaciousness for all the emotions and thoughts.

Something To Focus On When It Feels Too Much

Grief can leave you overwhelmed or disconnected. Photography gives you a simple focus and brings you back to the present moment which can be very grounding. You can look for colour, texture, or light. Even a few minutes can calm your nervous system.

You’re not fixing anything, it’s a way of just noticing what’s in front of you and perhaps using it to see things in a different way.

A Way To Notice Change Over Time

Our relationship to grief is constantly changing. Photography helps you notice those changes. Maybe you’re more drawn to lighter images, where before you chose darker ones. Perhaps your photos now show more movement and space, whereas before they were static.

Looking back at a photo of grief can show the rhythm of it, how you’ve moved with it and adapted. Looking back at your photos can give perspective on where you are now compared to where you were and can help you recognise moments of joy, ways you’ve coped, acts of self-care, and steps you’ve taken to manage your grief.

Staying Connected To The Person Who Died

If your grief is a result of bereavement, mindful photography can help you stay connected in new ways. You might take photos of belongings, places they loved, or things that remind you of them.

You might capture something that reflects a feeling or value they gave you safety, humour, comfort. The relationship doesn’t end when someone dies, you can stay connected with them.

Reconnecting With Life

Moving forwards in grief isn’t about getting over it. It’s about learning how to live with it and integrating your grief into your life. Photography supports that process. By noticing details around you, you begin to reconnect with the world. It’s a gentle way back into life, reminding you that there is still presence, interest, and possibility.

It further helps by helping you to witness your grief, notice shifts, and re-engage with what’s here now.

Try It For Yourself

If you’d like to give it a go, here are three simple starting points:

1. Take a photo of something that matches how you feel today. Don’t overthink it, see what stands out. Tap into your curiosity.

2. Choose one belonging, place, or symbol that connects you to the person or thing you’ve lost.

3. Photograph it from different angles, connect to what the image means to you without judgment and with self-compassion

About Breanne

Breanne Cook is a grief coach specialising in combining traditional and contemporary approaches to grief work, offering services that include one-to-one coaching, mindful photography, and guided reflection exercises. Helping people to develop practical coping strategies while honouring their losses. You can learn more about Breanna here.