1 Month In!
So at the start of this year, I changed directions on photo projects. Though I loved the photo projects I did last year, I need something a little less structured for a couple reasons. First, I need something more simple so I can focus on consistency and allow me shooting more to improve the quality of my photos over time. Second, I needed something more loose that way if I found shooting a certain way, or shooting a particular subject resonated with me, I could put focus in it without feeling guilt of not achieving the assigned photo project. So I came up with shooting and posting at least one photo everyday.

How It's Going
So how is it going so far? Actually, really good! I was surprised when I hit that one month mark because initially, it was challenging. At first, I found it difficult to get inspired to go out and get photos. That is until I realized it doesn't matter how inspired I feel, I just need to get out there. I have found that even if I don't feel motivated, if I just grab my camera and get out of the house, the inspiration comes. Now, it has become a habit, and I am more in tune with my photographic eye. I feel like I am really developing it with this practice. This realization came when I didn't want to go somewhere to get photos, but just wanted to get photos where I was at the time. It was a small, run down shopping center in Oklahoma (you know the type), and I decided I would just get out of my car and find some interesting compositions. I turned off the logical side of my brain, and just let the compositions show themselves. I "found beauty in the mundane", and that was a really cool feeling. Now I am over a month in, and counting.

What I Have Learned So Far
The first thing I have learned is to let go of the idea of a perfect photograph. In the beginning, I would go to cool locations just for photos, only pull my camera up to cool subjects, etc. While this is fine when cool things are all around you, eventually you run out of "cool" things to look at. The thing that matters most with this project is that I am just doing the process of photographing, rather than focusing on the actual quality of the photographs. Focusing on consistency over the quality.

The second thing I learned is to focus on observing and being in the moment rather than photo hunting. This one may not make a whole lot of sense, but this project help me meditate on the moment more than expected. This realization came when one day I just started walking and I enjoyed the walk a lot more than I normally do. This is because I was in the moment, feeling the breeze on my face, hearing the birds, just living in the moment. This allowed me to appreciate the scene more and the muse was just showing me all sorts of compositions without me having to "hunt" for them. All in all, just enjoy the moment and space you are in, and allow that to influence your photographs.

The last thing I learned so far is that this project has really helped me attach photography to my identity. With every photo walk I go on, I think about the photos I take, I think about the photo opportunities I leave for another idea, and I think about why I am doing this. I do this because I am a creative. I feel the responsibility to create because I know if I don't, the thing I am supposed to create does not exist. It doesn't get a chance to live, a chance to impact others. So it is on me to create everything I can because if I don't, it won't exist.
I attach this creative identity to who I am, and this is affecting how I live. I bring the camera with me everywhere now because I never know when a photo opportunity will present itself.
The big takeaway with this lesson is that this project helped me realize who I want to be, and what I want to contribute to the world around me, even if no one wants it. I give it anyway for myself, because it makes me feel fulfilled creating this.

Conclusion
Overall, I am loving this project. It is teaching me things about the craft as I am learning a bit more how to create the images I want to create with every press of the shutter. I am shooting more, meaning I am putting more time into learning the craft. I am becoming more observant of the world around me, and in doing so I am finding more things to enjoy and be grateful for while I live in the moment. Lastly, I am learning how to be the photographer I want to be, and how to let go the expectation of being a certain type of a photographer, rather than just shooting what I want to shoot, and telling the stories that I want to tell. I am loving this, and I will be extending this project to 100 days, and if that goes well, it will be extended to the entire year.