Time For A 365 Photography Project?

It’s a well-used cliché, but one of the ways to get better at photography is to shoot more, and there’s no better way to do that than to take on a mighty 365 project! But what does that mean?

Well, a ‘365’ is a personal project where you aim to take a photo every day for a year. That sounds relatively easy, but it can be a real challenge! Let’s take a look at how to get started.

It may have escaped your notice, but it’s a leap year in 2016. This is great for us, though, because it just gives us another day to come up with something creative. We’re mentioning it here in case you see people talking about doing a 366 instead of a 365!

There are no hard and fast rules for a 365, so there’s no need to put yourself under any pressure to come up with something amazing every day – the only stipulation is that you have 365 images at the end of the project. It’s very common for people to begin this project with lots of enthusiasm and ideas, but tail off after a few months. If this happens to you, we recommend reading blogs like ours for inspiration or joining a photography forum to share ideas. Having a browse on Flickr is another source of inspiration, but we actively encourage you to open your eyes to the world around you – there are photo opportunities everywhere!

Success or failure depends largely on taking every opportunity to shoot, which is why we recommend that you always have a camera with you. It doesn’t matter what camera you own – even a decent camera phone will do – but missing a great shot because your gear is at home will soon frustrate you.

It helps to keep on top of your post processing by setting aside a specific time every day or week to deal with this. Try not to put pressure on yourself to create epic post production masterpieces if it means that you get behind, because it can be hard to catch up again if you do!

Enjoying the process is crucial to success. Life is already challenging enough without making your photography stressful too. Have fun, be creative, and enjoy!

While most people begin a 365 on the first day of the year, there are no rules to say that you have to. So pick up your camera, get out shooting and you never know, you might produce a few wonderful shots worthy of printing to canvas – you can even use some as Christmas gifts for later this year!