Pan + One

As in Peter Pan. 

I made it to 100 days!

And, Day 101, The Big One:

Word.

Week 2 In Photographs

This is week two of my 365 Day Project. As always, click on the thumbnails to see the entire photograph and read more about the day that I shot it.

Here is my favorite shot from this collection:

The 365 Day Project

Inspired by winter break last year, the discovery of Flickr and having no job, I began the project. It sounded simple, even to my amateur ears.

I would take one photograph of myself every day of the year.

And so, a sunny day in November suddenly marked the beginning of my journey into The 365 Day Project.

Early on I selected my photographs from the archives of family vacations and birthdays, and threw them up for others to view. I believe it was Flickr’s strong emphasis on community – the constant urging to share work with others – that rescued me from this cycle. When I began exploring daily photographs from other members, I was shocked and challenged by how beautiful they were. This wasn’t simply an opportunity to post mindless everyday snapshots.

It was a chance to display my creativity.

Only one other thing stood in my way: I am not a photographer. Though I have taken a class or two, my emphasis for years has been on drawing and, more recently, graphic design.

“Chloe,” I had to tell myself, “just do it.”

I devoured people’s comments to compensate, hanging on their every word concering what I had done. In some cases this proved to hurt more than help me. But slowly my struggles with originality and composition have faded, and I’ve learned to take the principals I’ve developed in drawing – line, negative space, balance – and apply them to photography.

Now, after 238 photographs of myself and, unfortunately, having quit a few months ago, I realized the 365 Day Project was one of my favorite undertakings of all time. I have learned more about myself, the way I think, and the way I photograph than I ever thought possible.

And I’m itching to try again.

See the rest of my work here, and check out some stunning sets from other photographers here and here.

Then try it yourself!

The Diana+

What a wonderful place the world of analog photography is. 

Enter the Diana+, Lomography’s remake of the Diana of 60’s legend. This beauty takes 120mm film, which in combination with its cheap lens and low-fi shutter, produces romantic, soft, quirky images. Lomography not only sells this film in both color and black & white, but has released some incredible clones: the Black Jack, the F+, the Edelweiss, the Glow in the Dark, and the Hong Meow.

The film can be a little expensive to develop, so if you’re not interested in paying, grab yourself a 35mm back. All the beauty of Diana+ with the convenience of standard film.