projects?

[back alley]

i'm wondering how many of us regularly shoot projects?

or if more of us just head out and shoot whatever appeals at the moment?

do you start out with a project in mind or realize along the way that you have entered into a project by happenstance?

i shoot an area of edmonton called whyte ave., been doing it for years and years...but it never started out as a project but grew from a desire to shoot 12 fine images that just scream 'WHYTE AVE.'!!
(nowhere close yet, btw)

so? projects or not?

 

[MC JC86]

The idea to "do" a project occurs to me constantly. Unfortunately the idea of what the project will be is always illusive. With vague ideas as to whether I should focus on specific themes and subject, or limit the medium or equipment I use, or a combination of both, I generally just lose focus entirely.

I've gotten a bit of inspiration since joining here though, and am hoping to do something completely awesome soon.

 

[Particular]

I have a notebook filled with project ideas. I have binders filled with negatives, boxes with slides, and thousands of images in Lightroom that were just taken casually that have been accumulating over the years. I haven't gotten the notebook to communicate with the library very successfully yet.....,but there is always hope.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I have several projects in progress at any moment, and I also shoot individual images that appeal if I see something interesting. I carry a 35mm camera at all times and have found some interesting things that had to be shot immediately or they'd be gone. For long term projects, some are shot in 35mm, some in medium format.

 

[SciAggie]

For the last nine months I have been working (secretly) on a photo book for my daughter for a graduation present. So far I have close to 900 images. It has certainly given me a focus and purpose this year.

 

[willie_901]

I'm working on five projects right now. One of these is quit general though. Occasionally my eye will be attracted to a particular subject or scene and of course I don't care if it fits in to a particular project or not.

Projects help me focus my efforts, but they can also be constricting.

I should work harder on my projects.

Thanks for reminding me Joe.

 

[Shane]

My projects are very vague. I have two at the moment, night work and horizons.
I'll be able to drive soon so when I do, I'll start doing projects on places.

 

[Sparrow]

I'm planing to work on a few projects and seeing which work, Village Cricket, Working Lunch, Random Strangers (Street in Colour), and Northern Monoliths (19c architecture) are the working titles to date.

 

[Chris101]

I shoot projects. Like many others I always have a camera nearby, but I rarely shoot opportunistically any more. Some of my projects however last only a day, or a single roll for that matter. But I like to think them out before I start shooting.

 

[ricnak]

I do "projects" for just about anyone who cares to ask me. I am disciplined and methodical to get the job done. When it comes to my own projects - I'm hopelessly random. I have a hard drive full of snapshots.

 

[sara]

No projects at the moment. Inspiration 0%.

 

[Bob Michaels]

Just about everything I do relates to an ongoing project. I do better with objectives instead of wandering. And I seem to do mostly one project at a time. They vary in length from a matter of weeks to the longest being 4 years.

Now I do shoot randomly at times. Projects evolve from topics that I continue to return to. And sometimes a project will morph from another.

My current project is ordinary Cuban people, a challenge since I live in the US. It is a 4 hour drive to Miami and a 90 mile plane flight that ends up taking 4-5 hours from check in to clearing immigration / customs. So I cannot go there every week. But that is mostly what I have done for the last 18 months. I fill in domestically with adding to old projects and two separate ones that have started and stopped for several years.

The key to projects for me is to have a goal. That is a tightly edited cohesive body of work. Sometimes it is exhibited, sometimes just a section on my website. But it cannot be just a collection of thousands of images on a theme shot over an extended period of time.

 

[bigeye]

Hunt vs Gather

Hunt vs Gather

As an amateur, I have trouble focusing my 'right brain' long enough to consistently 'see' good pictures. I imagine that project focus is one of the advantages of being a pro.

I spent a couple of afternoons last week meandering around the area scouting scenes. I took only a handful of middling landscapes and the weekend, on the whole, was a bit wasted.

This week, I had a personal project that is important to me and I've spent 2 mornings on it, working carefully. In terms of the process of photography, if not quality of product, it was a much better experience. The time spent had a very purposeful momentum about it and while I'm not sure that the pictures will be any good, the composition process and equipment use 'clicked,' effortlessly. I know what I was trying to capture and was able to do my best at it.

- Charlie

 

[Bob Michaels]

Here is a description of a friend and mentor's project that has been ongoing for 20 years (his website needs updating) This work is widely exhibited and funded by grants.

The focus of my photography for the past 14 years has been exploring the cultural and historical significance of signs found in the rural southern landscape. Located along southern back roads, signs are a reflection of the people where the signs are found. These placards – in a very real way - reflect the people’s efforts to participate in the American Dream. Found in these signs are expressions of love, hate, religion, social gatherings, politics as well as the need to sell a product or service. It is an effort by its citizens to communicate to their community. While none of my photographs have any people in them, they do have a voice. In these signs scattered across the rural landscape, the presence of their makers is felt as sure as it they were there in person. In this body of work I endeavor to explore the role rural signs play in the social landscape of the American South.

See the photos

He, Rick Lang, a photo educator gets credit for convincing me to work on projects. It took him a few years as I am hard-headed.

 

[tbarker13]

I always have at least one sort of project underway. Just finished up one on women's roller derby in St. Louis.
Now I'm following a burlesque performer as she puts together a new routine/outfit etc. for an upcoming 3-day burlesque festival later this spring.

I'm also working on a series of portraits of women with interesting (to me) hobbies, professions, etc.

I find that these sorts of things keep me focused and shooting.

 

[Sparrow]

I always have at least one sort of project underway. Just finished up one on women's roller derby in St. Louis.
Now I'm following a burlesque performer as she puts together a new routine/outfit etc. for an upcoming 3-day burlesque festival later this spring.

I'm also working on a series of portraits of women with interesting (to me) hobbies, professions, etc.

I find that these sorts of things keep me focused and shooting.

... I think I see a theme developing there 😉

 

[shadowfox]

I'm in the camp of one-project-at-a-time.
Taken seriously, it will occupy any spare time you'd have (true in my case, at least).

Projects help to make me focused on honing my skills, and to connect with people. As a bonus, using film in this digital age, I get to use the best equipment that now has become affordable.

This time, I'm documenting a small but historic town in north Texas. How did it get started? by just being there and talking to people.

 

[dave lackey]

Projects! That is what I do with professional work/potential sales because of my consulting engineering/planning background. It is just natural for me.

Of course, personally, I do whatever I think is interesting whether plant abstracts, light painting, grandkids, sports photography, motorsports, etc. Digital, film, it depends on what I want the results to be.

Now, if I could afford to travel (even modest trips to Florida), I would just enjoy myself shooting the M3 all the time. No agenda, no schedule, just plain fun shooting.🙂

 

[Bob Michaels]

<snip> This time, I'm documenting a small but historic town in north Texas. How did it get started? by just being there and talking to people. <snip>

Interesting well done book on a small Texas town by a friend, David Wharton who is a professor at the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at Ole Miss. This was his PhD dissertation, later published. Much of the book is available on the website. Read the preface if nothing else.

 

[tbarker13]

... I think I see a theme developing there 😉

hah. True. But the first two do sort of feed into the general project on portraits of women.
But I do feel compelled to point out that I started the roller derby project after finishing a project on a bunch of veterans who were refurbishing an old WWII bomber. After nearly a year of shooting a bunch of grizzled older guys, I was sort of ready for a complete change of pace.😉