I used to scoff at 365 projects. The idea of taking a photo everyday struck me as easy and useless.

 

Which just goes to show what I know.

 

I've been writing/posting everyday for months here, a promise to the patron who bought me a pro account. The promise was given without thought, as I'd had no problems posting everyday for the better part of three years. How hard could it be?

 

Hard. Not impossible. Far from it. And it's not that I'm beginning to feel the strain.

 

Rather, I'm finding that, in order to have something to write about everyday, my thoughts hover over a wider variety of subjects. I play with the format I've created. I wax philosophical, nostalgic. I embed hidden meanings for a select few. I refute ideas I've seen elsewhere. I use the events that led to the photo to speak about something that I'm preoccupied with.

 

Writing constantly, just like shooting constantly, has allowed me to stretch. When I see that I've got a writing style firm enough that it can be copied by others, it's time to push the boundaries a wee bit, see how flexible the style is.

 

When I see someone using my format as a crutch, it shows me how sturdy it is, and that it can withstand a little abuse.

 

My mistake was in looking at a 365 from my perspective, as someone very comfortable with how he shoots, very satisfied with the way his photographic journey was progressing.

 

I didn't see that such a project isn't about photography specifically, but about someone using it to stretch whatever artistic skills they have, applying a degree of pressure, manufacturing a constraint that will produce unexpected bouts of creativity.

 

In creating a particular day's text, quickly are the stand bys tossed aside. Quickly do the go-to moves become boring. Quickly is the situation forced by time to generate new thoughts, is the mind cornered and forced to find new escape routes. It's a great feeling, that wiggle your brain makes when it figures something new out.

 

No more scoffing from me, no sir.