Project365: How Taking One Photo A Day Is Changing My Photography

This Monday I started a Project365.  For those of you who don’t know what that is, basically I’m committing to taking at least one photo a day for an entire year.   It is that easy.  Or at least it sounds like it should be.  The thing is, I can’t remember the last time I was able to start a new habit and stuck with it for one month, let alone 12!  That being said, I plan on sharing my progress with you from time to time (don’t worry, you won’t have to see ALL 365 photos!) to keep me accountable.  

This week has been a pretty quiet week for us, which has made this project a bit more challenging than I expected.  After struggling to find things that I thought were photo worthy, I started to ask myself, “What are the moments from this day that I will want to remember?”  Hopefully, by answering that question, by March 27, 2018 I will have documented an entire year of my life and will also have learned some things along the way!

Here are a few of the things I’m hoping to get out of this project:

Number One:  Get More Creative

I don’t know about you, but I can get in a rut.  In fact, I kind of like ruts.  As a Type A person I tend to get into routines and stick with them without ever questioning what else is out there.  It keeps my sanity and it’s just comfortable.  If you read my first blog post, you know that I’ve been in a season of breaking out of some of those ruts and have been working on trying new things.  The thing is that none of the “risks” have disappointed.  I have enjoyed my experience every time and I usually learn something new!  So I’m hoping that my Project365 will help me to branch out in my photography as well.  I’m excited to try new angles, vary composition, and use different editing styles.

Number Two: Learn More About My Gear

Guys, we live in an age of incredible technology.  When I first got my camera I was incredibly overwhelmed by all that it could do.  I felt like the camera was calling the shots, not me.  Let me tell you, that’s not good!  So I spent a few hours reading the manual (the thing was like 700 pages) and I learned that yes, my camera is in fact very smart.  But I also learned how to control it and to get it to do what I want it to, not the other way around.  Now I’m in a place where I can use all those amazing features that seemed so overwhelming at first to my advantage and in a way that will increase the quality of my work.

Number Three: Further Define My Style

It might seem like this goal clashes a bit with the first two.  After all, didn’t I just say that I want to try new things and expand my horizons?  The thing about trying new things is that you won’t like every single one.  For example, I’ve tried almost every flavor on Gannon’s ice cream menu and while the experience was always good, there are definitely a few I won’t try again.  It’s not that those flavors are bad, they’re just not for me.  

I know that I love bright and airy photos.  I absolutely adore creamy, blurred backgrounds.  Detail shots literally make my heart skip a beat.   Those things all fit together to form my style of photography.  But I know there are other characteristics that could be a part of that puzzle, and I just haven’t tried them yet. 

Here are a few of the photos from Week 1!

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