50 Photo Scavenger Hunt Ideas to help you create the perfect one

Thanks to smartphones, photo scavenger hunts have become one of the most popular group activity ideas. After all, many of us take countless photos with our phones on an everyday basis, so why not turn it into an activity? Moreover, they can be set up both indoors and outdoors and can include a wide variety of tasks, which has further helped to boost their popularity.

To demonstrate the endless possibilities this activity provides, we have compiled a list of 50 photo scavenger hunt ideas that you can use to create yours. Whether it’s your first picture scavenger hunt or you have created them before, we’re sure that you’ll find some exciting ones in this list.

1. Innovative “Photo-riddles”.

In the most popular form of photo scavenger hunts, players are tasked with creating various pictures and then uploading them to the game. However, you can also use photos when creating the game to set out the tasks players have to complete. For example, you can take photos where the riddle is in the photo and even make these photos interactive.

2. A photo tour around your city

Use a photo scavenger hunt to create a joyful tour around your favourite city. This photo scavenger hunt idea will work great for tour companies but can also be used by anyone else who wants to create a fun outdoor activity.

3. The Paparazzi game

Split the players into 2 teams: the stars and the paparazzi. Recreate a situation where the stars have to avoid having the picture taken, while the paparazzi have to take their picture without being spotted. At the end of the round, switch roles. The winning team is the one that has managed to take the most pictures of stars.

4. The bird park game

Do you have a bird park near your area? If you do, you can organize a photo scavenger hunt with the objective of photographing as many bird species as possible.

5. A group photo with country colors

Divide the players into teams and assign each team a list of national flags for various countries. The objective of this photo scavenger hunt game is to make a series of group pictures with the colors of a different national flag displayed in each one of them.

6. Find Pokémon in the wild

Imagine that your neighborhood is full of wild Pokémon. Place pictures of various Pokémon types around the area to make them appear, and task the players with taking a picture of them all.

7. Photo trekking around the mountains

You can often find the most beautiful scenery around the mountains. If you are located in a mountainous area, you can create a photo scavenger hunt where the players have to take pictures of a list of stunning panorama views that can be found nearby.

8. The Monster Hunter

Create an outdoor photo scavenger hunt with the scenario that your neighborhood is infested with monsters! Place them around the area of the game and set the task for players to take a picture of all of them so that the hunters can expel them.

9. The Quarantine Game

If you’re looking for a fun photo scavenger hunt game that players can play from their homes, try playing the Loquiz quarantine game. Players will have a list of items to detect and take pictures with, using artificial intelligence, unlocking more items for detection on the way. The more items they find, the more points they get!

10. The highest number of people in one photo

Do you have a big group taking part in the game? Why not give them a challenge to try getting the highest number of people visible in one photo?

11. The Ghostbusters game

Play it during the night in your town. Use Loquiz to place ghosts in various mysterious locations. Once the players find one of them, they have to take a picture of them using the augmented photo tool provided by the Loquiz photo scavenger hunt creation app.

12. The zoo game

Is there a zoo in your city? You can organize a photo scavenger hunt. giving each team a specific list of animals to take a picture of. Using the Loquiz Creator, you can even bring a backstory and some dynamic storytelling to the game.

13. Harry Potter’s photo class

Divide your players into 4 groups, corresponding to the 4 houses of Hogwarts. Each of the houses will need to make a series of class photos. The winning team is the one that has created the most original photo.

14. Find cats

If you play a game for a family outing in a residential area, then you can be sure that there are cats to be found around it. You can organize a competition: those who gather the biggest number of cat pictures within the set time will win the game.

15. The conference photo game

Need a break from a conference that provides a lot of knowledge? Set up a photo scavenger hunt game to give the attendees a fun activity that will help them recharge! After all, everyone in the conference owns a smartphone, don’t they?

16. The Starbucks Coffee in your town

Do you live in a big city? I bet that there are at least a few Starbucks Coffee locations nearby (but you can substitute it with any other chain of coffee shops). Why not make a photo scavenger hunt, where the winner is the first one to take a picture of all the branches in the given area? Of course, to make it more exciting, don’t disclose how many of them are there and make the players find out themselves.

17. The Loquiz Photo Scavenger Hunt game template

The easiest way to create a photo scavenger hunt is to use the template we have created. You can edit this game by yourself, by starting a Free Trial account. Once you start, you will have the possibility to move all the pinpoints to your own location, tasking the players with taking creative photos in different places.

18. The Werewolf game

Imagine a role-playing game alternating between day and night. During the night, everyone closes their eyes but the werewolf. This person chooses another player to “kill”. Then, during the day, everyone opens their eyes. They vote for the villager to sacrifice by taking a picture of one of the players. The player with the most pictures will be taken out of the game. If the werewolf is killed they lose the game, if they survive until the end, they win.

19. Find cars of a certain make and scan them

This is one of the easiest picture scavenger hunt ideas which is also quite fun to play. Make the players go outside and compete with others by finding as many cars of a certain make as possible. To set up the game, use our artificial intelligence tool, which will automatically identify the cars and scan them.

20. Exchange clothes

If you’re looking for funny photo scavenger hunt ideas, this might be it. Take a picture where every player will have to exchange clothes. Then from the pictures, ask other players to guess to whom each set of clothes belong. I can ensure you that you’ll laugh a lot. 😁

21. Bird pictures

Using the Loquiz object finder, ask the players to try scanning wild birds. It sounds easy but birds are small and fast creatures. In order for the picture to succeed, you will need to approach them carefully. Photo scavenger hunt ideas involving wild animals are only for patient players!

22. Photos with world leaders

Using the augmented picture, you can add a world leader to a picture taken with Loquiz. Do you dream of being in a picture aside from Angela Merkel? It’s going to become a reality.

23. The mugshot game

At the beginning of the game, all the players are informed that they are under arrest. Now, using Loquiz, you can build a game where, one by one, the players have to take their pictures as mugshots. The most original one wins the game.

24. The Magical Detector game

If you have children under 10 years old, they will love this game: the Magical Object Hunt. They have to find a series of items using your magical detector (or your device in other terms). However, you can’t know what each item is unless you solve challenging riddles first.

25. The Color Scavenger Hunt

This is another one of the ready-made photo scavenger hunt games created by Loquiz. Players have 12 different colors + 24 additional colors to unlock. They need to find items with similar colors to get the best score. This game is perfect for teaching the subtleties of different colors to your children.

26. Find 13 items with a hexagon shape

A round shape? A square shape? Too easy. What about… a hexagon shape? The players must take a picture of 13 items with this shape. I can assure you that it’s tougher than you’d imagine.

27. Pokémon Snap, in real life

Pokémon Snap is a videogame from 1998 on the Nintendo 64. However, a new version was released this year on the Nintendo Switch. The principle is simple: While you move, you need to snap Pokémon with your camera. Why not reproduce the same idea using the augmented photos in Loquiz?

28. Mystery picture

Take a mysterious picture (or many). Ask your players to go outside and find where it was snapped. The winner is the first who succeeds in taking a picture of the mysterious place. As the game master, you will be able to validate the picture (or not) from the results page.

29. Shadow play contest

Create a list of animals that the players need to shadow-play, using only their fingers. Then take a picture of all of them. Using the results page mentioned in the previous point, you can attribute bonus points for the most original pictures.

30. A list of monuments from the city

You’re in a city, and you want to take a picture of as many monuments as possible in a set amount of time. This could be an interesting photography scavenger hunt challenge that you can build for your players. Imagine doing this in Paris or Rome – the game could go on forever.

31. Take a picture of warm items

Some items have a warmer temperature than the atmosphere. Sometimes, they can be hidden in our surroundings. For example, a sink provides hot water. Ask the players to take a picture of a set number of such items and see how long it takes for them to find more than 10 of those.

32. Recreate the characters from Lord of the Rings

Have you watched the Lord of the Rings trilogy? What if you become a member of the Fellowship of the Ring? Ask your players to make a picture recreating these characters using only materials from their surroundings.

33. Take a picture of street art based on clues

Street artwork can be beautiful, and vibrant, but hidden at the same time. You can use Loquiz to make a game of clues, where the final target is a street artwork. You finish the game if you succeed in taking a picture of it.

34. Make an origami scenery

Do you like making origami? What if you made a dozen, and created scenery? What if you compete against other teams? If you add a little bit of storytelling, this can definitely be a fun photo scavenger hunt idea.

35. Museum photo scavenger hunt

Want to set up a photo scavenger hunt in an unusual place? Try doing that in a museum, as there’s a high chance you’ll find a lot of interesting things to take photos of there. These kinds of public photo scavenger hunt ideas are well suited for the times of the pandemic, where you need to keep a distance between the players.

36. Take a picture of 15 different items that are worth more than 1000 €

The most expensive items are sometimes not the things we expect. See that shopping cart? It might cost more than your laptop. To win the game the players must take a photo of 15 such items quicker than others.

37. Recreate one Pixar movie on a picture

Pixar movies are numerous. But each of them is captivating in its own way, with a vibrant visual identity. What if you ask your players to recreate a Pixar movie? You can use the augmented photo feature and add a few Pixar characters to the photo. This photo scavenger hunt idea will work equally well for adults and children, as everyone loves those movies!

38. Take a picture of the right train station, based on a list of clues

If you’re located in a metropolis. there are probably countless train stations in your city. Your players will have to find the right one and take a picture of it using only a limited number of clues, most likely leading them to inspect at least a few of these stations.

39. Instagram dish contest

Instagram is well known for its large community dedicated to aesthetic food. What if you decide to make a photo contest of the best food pictures, among your friends or colleagues, allowing everyone to show off their culinary skills?

40. Take a picture of the oldest statue

A city can have hundreds, if not thousands of statues. You can create a photo scavenger hunt with the task of finding the oldest statue in the city. You can then validate each entry from your players on the results page.

41. Take a picture of 13 yellow houses

Are you located in a vast residential area? I bet that the houses have different colors, as people all have different tastes. Why not ask your players to grab their bicycles and wander around until they snap 13 yellow houses?

42. Recreate a Marvel movie and take a picture of it

Similarly to Pixar movies, Marvel Cinematic Universe offers a wide range of characters and stories. What if you make a list of movies to recreate through 3 pictures each? For each picture, you can use the augmented photo feature to add some characters.

43. Make a Photo Murder Mystery game

Set up a closed room with a dozen people. Give random secret roles: 2 murderers, 1 sheriff, and 9 innocents. Murderers need to kill everyone; the sheriff needs to find the murderers. Both roles have weapons, that they can use with the help of their camera. I talk more about this idea here.

44. Make a human pyramid and take a picture

Make a list of specific human pyramids, then ask people to execute them… if they are able to! Once the pyramid is created, each team must take pictures to prove their success.

45. Take a picture of all the bells from the city

If your city has a lot of monuments, you might find that they have a surprisingly high number of bells. What if you offer your players to take a picture of all of them? The winner is the one who succeeds in doing this. To raise the difficulty, don’t tell your players how many bells they have to find!

46. Find 4 items made of steel

Steel is a cheap and widely used material. But it’s not the most aesthetic one, so it isn’t used that much. It’s very likely that you won’t be able to find many steel items in the room you’re in! Ask your players to try and take a picture of 4 of them before everyone else.

47. Recreate a scene with Greek gods

The Greek gods come with a series of strong personalities and passionate stories. What if you make a photo scavenger hunt, where people have to recreate different divine scenes with Zeus, Demeter, Hera, Hermes, and other Greek gods?

48. Take one picture per species in your garden

Your garden might have many plant species that you want to teach to your family. Give them a challenge: Take 1 picture per distinct species. The more they have, the higher their score.

49. Make a picture of your team pretending to be a mysterious animal

Make 2 teams. One team has to pretend to be an animal, and the other needs to guess what animal it is only from the pictures. No more interaction is allowed between the teams. Then flip the roles and see which team got the answer quicker.

50. Find the shortest street in your city

Each city has its shortest street hidden somewhere (because… It’s difficult to spot). What if you make a remote game, where people are located in different cities? Each of the team needs to take a picture of the street. As a game master, you’d be able to make a collage out of it.

These photo scavenger hunt ideas should give you plenty of options for creating your next game. However, if you’re still looking for more, feel free to contact us. We’ll be happy to discuss these and other ideas with you to help you create the perfect photo scavenger hunt game!