For a long time I've thought of starting a 365 project. I went back and forth about it. "YES! I really want to do this!" and "No... it doesn't seem to be what I need or want right now." There were many "I don't know! What part of the year would be best to start in?" and a few "But I'm so busy right now... I'll just wait a little bit longer to try..." So I sat down and REALLY thought about it, the why's of why I wanted to and the whys of my excuses not to. After much thought I decided against it. Sure there are many things about it that are worth doing it for.
I love the idea of forcing myself to create something every single day! To force myself to be creative, to share something I made every day with all of you, something to stick to for a year. I've seen several people do it for more than one or two years in a row even. Never (or very rarely ever missing a day.)
Ideas are a BIG part of this project. I knew if i tried I didn't want to be stuck with tons and tons of boring shots that could have been taken on the same day. I wanted each to be unique and have a story to it.
Coming up with ideas isn't the hard part, though at first it can be. The more ideas you think up the more ideas will come to you and more often. When I first thought about attempting a 365 I was hit with a lot of inspiration. I had so many ideas I typed them down as fast as I could before I could forget them, then I started sketching them out.
Drawing is not my strong suit. Many of my sketches involve stick figures. It's good enough that I can remember the details of what I wanted when I came up with the idea. I am able to add more depth to my ideas when i browse them looking for one to create.
In the end I decided What is the biggest thing I'd gain from all of this? Experience, learning and LOTS and LOTS of photos! But... What would I gain of just doing a photo when I had the time/props/inspiration of an idea I came up with and had sketched down in my little book?
Now what would I be gaining by NOT doing a 365? Experience and learning and each photo I created would be something I could be proud of. It would not be rushed. They may not come out often but when they do, I know I'll be able to dedicate the time and effort and resources in creating it so that each photo is the best it can be. I would be able to walk away from each photo for a day or even days at a time and then come back with fresh eyes. Fresh eyes... now THAT is something I've learned over the years to appreciate. For me, It can mean a world of difference between a "meh" photo and an amazing photo.
After looking at both of these, I knew what my final decision would be. I hate being rushed and I knew I didn't want to waste my time making tons of photos that weren't as good as they could be with an occasional pretty cool photo thrown in there.
Either way there is experience and portfolio building to be had.
I guess it all came down to this question: Would you rather have 365 rushed mediocre photos or 20-50 photos you can be really REALLY proud of?
In the end I chose quality over quantity. (Because that is what it would be for me, I know some people wouldn't have a problem getting both quality and quantity.) While some people can spend the time to create a high quality conceptual photo in a day, with all of my jobs I just don't have the time to create one each and every day.
For others there may be different reasons to do it or not, this list is just how it is for me.
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