Most people's "before and after" photos aren't actually comparable. One was taken in morning light by a window, the other under a kitchen ceiling light at night. One was three feet back, the other five. The subject looks different not because anything changed, but because the photo changed. If you want to actually see change over time, the two photos have to agree on almost everything except the thing you're tracking.
Pick one spot, and write it down
Not "the living room" — the exact spot. Which floorboard, which tile, which crack in the pavement. If you can, put a small mark down (a piece of tape works) so you don't have to remember. The goal isn't precision to the millimeter; it's removing one more variable so a real difference has room to show up clearly.
Match your distance before you match your pose
Distance changes proportions more than people expect — stand six inches closer and a face reads rounder, a room reads smaller. If you're photographing yourself, a fixed distance (an arm's length from a mirror, or the same tripod mark on the floor) matters more than getting your exact stance right every time.
Track your own change, privately.
Get the app on Google PlayLight is the biggest variable, and the easiest to fix
Same time of day, same light source, beats almost everything else you could control. Overcast daylight near a window is the most forgiving and repeatable light most people have access to — it doesn't change much hour to hour, and it doesn't cast the hard shadows that direct sun or a single indoor bulb does.
Let the guide do the matching
This is the part SeeMyChange actually exists for. Once you have a reference photo in a Journey, the app overlays roughly where it was framed before your next shot, so you're not eyeballing the old photo on a different screen while trying to hold a pose. You still pick the spot and the light — the app just makes sure the framing lines up once you have.
