Photographing Everyday

I finally hit the 200 day mark. This means I have been officially photographing every day for over 6 months, half of an entire year. I have been kind of in a slump lately. The last two weeks I have been the most sick I have been in years. Life threw some waves that I had to figure out how to surf, but I am here, I am alive, and I am getting back to writing these things. In a way that will be the point of this blog: a check-in on where I am at, and a point where I can check myself back in to being more consistent. So let's go.

Figure in red dress stands in a dark covered arcade walkway with dramatic lighting and columns on either side.

200 days

So let's start off with me doing something hard and giving myself a compliment. This is one of the first things in my photography journey where I have been relatively consistent. I have taken photos and posted photos everyday on my socials for over 200 days now. The time of me writing this, I am on day 215. Now, I am not saying that every single day is equal in quality. It's kind of like real life, some days come easy, some days are real standouts with interesting things going on, and some days are just slow. Some days you have just enough energy to show up for the bare necessities and that is it. That's life. This project reflects that.


Some days there are cool things going on that I had the time to attend. I would get cool images, share them, maybe even make a reel, its easy then. Other days I have so much going on in life, I don't get to pick up my camera until 2 in the morning and I snap something just to show up for that time. Some may see this as lazy, and I know I did and still do sometimes. I don't like doing that, but I had to make peace with myself, and still do, that sometimes that's all I have left in the tank. I am running on fumes and I am choosing to spend those fumes on something I am passionate about, even if that is not reflected in that day's photos.


This has been a difficult project, I won't lie to you all. There are some nights where I am lying down, and I am contemplating on just not posting, on ending the streak because I am so tired. But me taking photos everyday and posting isn't about the streak. Hell, it isn't even about the quality of the photos, its about me showing up for something, a passion, a fire that would not be there without me putting time into. This is bigger than me.

Two friends sit on a carousel at dusk, one smiling while the other holds a camera beside orange-tinted rope lights.

I have gotten to a point where this project has gotten me to be more present. I care more about the moment than the photo. I am more attentive to my surroundings, more engaged with life around me. I am able to spot moments that might have gone unnoticed before, like a sliver of light on a table, the joy of a child holding a ball in front of a dog, a goose walking in just the "right" way, all these things we may see in our everyday lives, but we look away and forget they were there. My job is to live in these small moments, to document them, to tell the untold stories, no matter how big or small. Even if I had a camera where everytime a made a photograph it would instantly delete, I would still press the shutter because it made me stop to be in the moment and remember it, even if no one else cares.

Getting lazy

I do want to touch on something I brought up before, and that is the differences in quality. What I said above was true, I show up where I can, when I can, it just seems like lately I have been showing a pattern of little effort. I see that in myself and I own it. Maybe in the back of my head I think it doesn't matter because I do this every single day, but I am catching myself now. Just because it may be late and I can't go somewhere to get cool images doesn't mean I can't create something cool at home with whatever time and energy I have. So with all that being said, I am going to be pushing myself more creatively, especially at home.


So I can't promise that the quality of the images will increase, what I can promise though is I can be more intentional with my creative choices given the time and energy I have for that day.

A hand holds a black Fujifilm X-series camera against a dark background in selective color photography.

Improving?

So have I seen an improvement in my images from when I first began to now? While I can't say for certain with examples at the moment, my gut response is yes. At least I feel better now than I did before. And that doesn't mean I think I am taking more banger photographs now than before, I actually think I am taking less now than before, but that is a good sign. That shows me that my eye is developing more, that I am being more critical on my images and spotting actual good images rather than settling for okay or bad ones and telling myself its good due to lack of experience. So short answer, yes, I think I am improving, I better be as I am practicing everyday! Jokes aside, it would be cool to write a blog to do an in-depth "review" of sorts between then and now. That may or may not come in the future.


(Little side note: I am gonna stop promising stuff I may or may not deliver. I will point out good ideas and use it as inspiration, but I am going to just focus on creating rather than curating. Right now in my creative journey, that is more important. I get too in my head about deadlines and such to where I just burn myself out and do nothing. So I am going to create what I create, and just focus on being consistent in creating.)


Also, on the topic of improving: I want to compare myself now to me last year. I am doing more than I was last year. Last year, I did some photo projects and some newsletters, but now I am creating and posting everyday, writing blogs, still sending newsletters, I upped my game. I felt bad when I dropped videos, but I just wanted to state all of this to give myself some perspective. I am doing better, and I need to stop feeling guilty for not doing it all. Everything else will come in time.

Vintage Texaco gas station and Petrified Wood Station signs illuminated at dusk with reflections in water below.

Moving forward

This is just a 200 day check in. I still have the rest of the year to get through, and so do you. The moral of this blog is that I am still here. I am still making photographs, even if I struggle some days. I am still writing blogs, and I look forward to being more consistent with that. And the big one, I am doing better than I was last year. I just need to take that as a victory and stop feeling bad for everything I am not doing. So for those reading, I don't know what you are going through, but if you are showing up the best you can, when you can, that is what matters, and I am proud of you. It's hard for me to be proud of myself, but that is something I am working on. Just one day at a time, and that is part of the reason why I take photographs every day. It is me telling my story one day at a time.