“Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world.” - John Milton
Tonight, I am grateful for this weekend’s unseasonably warm weather, for some very successful bargain hunting, for precious time with family, for the squeaky clean, snoozy pup on my lap, and for continued inspiration.
“When spring came, even the false spring, there were no problems except where to be happiest…” - Ernest Hemingway
“Colors fit together as pieces in a puzzle or cogs in a wheel.” - Hans Hofmann
Enjoy my #YearOfColour report — a visualisation of the colours you find on my Instagram. Each circle represents one of ten significant colours extracted from each image I posted in 2018. The size of the circles indicates two things — how significant the colour was in the image, and how well liked it was by my followers. Discover your colors at yearofcoulour.com.
“All my images are self-portraits, even when I'm not in them.” ― Nuno Roque
Take a picture that tells us who you are, without actually showing your face. #dogwood52 #dogwood2019 #dogwoodweek1
I am a planner, a francophile, a collector of vintage cameras, a traveler, a writer, a photographer, and an acceptor of challenges. Although last year was sometimes daunting, the Dogwood 52 Challenge taught me to experiment with photographic and editing techniques, to give and receive constructive feedback, and to step outside of my photography comfort zone. So, OK, let’s do this again!
Week 1 - Story Telling: Self-Portrait - Take a picture that tells us who you are, without actually showing your face.
Week 2 - Composition: Rule of Thirds - Motion - You know what the rule of thirds is, now is the time to use it. Use Rule of Thirds to show motion in your picture.
Week 3 - Inspiration: Black and White - Your inspiration this week is to simply take an amazing Black and White photograph of any subject you want.
Week 4 - Story Telling: Warmth - Tell a story that makes us feel warm inside.
Week 5 - Composition: Symmetry Landscape - Use Symmetry in a Landscape to create a new viewpoint for this week's image.
Week 6 - Inspiration: #NoFilter - No limit on what you shoot as long as the image is pure. No filters, presets or other edits. Basic exposure corrections only.
Week 7 - Story Telling: Love Story - Make us feel the love in this week's photo. Tell a love story in one image.
Week 8 - Composition: Leading Lines - It is easy to use Leading Lines to show depth in an image or guide the eye to a specific spot in the image. Instead, this week use leading lines to show the concept of infinity.
Week 9 - Inspiration: Mood - Your Artistic Inspiration this week is the mood you are feeling today. Take that mood and use it to create art.
Week 10 - Story Telling: Hometown - Tell us the story of your hometown (a famous landmark, something the town is known for, or your favorite place to relax.
Week 11 - Composition: Fill the Frame - Using Fill the Frame is a great way to isolate your subject and create interest in your photo. Fill the Frame with one color.
Week 12 - Inspiration: Trash - Trash is your inspiration. Tell a story or create something beautiful.
Week 13 - Story Telling: New Beginnings - Our world is full of circular patterns; as some things end, others begin. Tell us a story of a New Beginning.
Week 14 - Composition: Center Frame Portrait - Isolate your subject. Use this knowledge to create a portrait that exhibits loneliness.
Week 15 - Inspiration: Anonymous: This week's inspiration is Anonymous. Interpret this how you wish.
Week 16 - Story Telling: Shadow - Tell a story. Make it compelling while only using shadow.
Week 17 - Composition: Balance - Shoot a balanced image in the Accidental Renaissance style.
Week 18 - Inspiration: Weight or Mass: Heavy as a stone, light as a feather. Find inspiration and shoot an amazing photograph.
Week 19 - Story Telling: Aging - Love it or hate it, aging is something we all experience. So tell us the story of aging in a single photograph.
Week 20 - Composition: Negative Space - Create a powerful landscape using Negative Space.
Week 21 - Inspiration: Serenity - What does Serenity mean to you?
Week 22 - Story Telling: Stranger - It is easy to tell the story of someone you know. So for this week's challenge I want you to tell the story of a stranger.
Week 23 - Composition: Leading Lines - You have already used leading lines to show Infinity. Now try to use strong leading lines in food photography.
Week 24 - Inspiration: Who inspires you - Inspiration comes from many places. Tell us about who inspires you.
Week 25 - Story Telling: Freedom - Tell us a story about what Freedom means to you.
Week 26 - Composition: Geometry - We live in a world surrounded by geometry. Use Geometry in your photo this week.
Week 27 - Inspiration: Gratitude - What are you grateful for? Show us.
Week 28 - Story Telling: Your Culture - Photographers participating in the challenge come from nearly every country and culture. Tell us the story of your culture.
Week 29 - Composition: Depth of Field - Use DoF to make a subject appear part of something larger.
Week 30 - Inspiration: Exit - "Every exit is an entry to somewhere else". Be inspired by the Exit this week.
Week 31 - Story Telling: Friends and Family - Telling the story of someone you know well is sometimes the hardest story to tell.
Week 32 - Composition: Frame within the Frame - Using only natural elements, frame your subject. No actual picture frames allowed.
Week 33 - Inspiration: Tell a Lie - It is said that the "Camera Never Lies". Prove it wrong.
Week 34 - Story Telling: Color without Color - Tell a colorful story, but do it in black and white.
Week 35 - Composition: Symmetry Portrait - Symmetry is a strong compositional technique most often used in landscapes and architecture. So break the mold by using Symmetry in a portrait.
Week 36 - Inspiration: Your Habits - Some habits are good, and some are bad. Your inspiration this week is either.
Week 37 - Story Telling: Seasons - The weather is changing! Find inspiration in the seasons.
Week 38 - Composition: Rule of Odds - Use the rule of odds in an Urbanscape/Architecture photo.
Week 39 - Inspiration: The Elements Earth, Fire, Wind, Rain, and Spirit. Find inspiration in the elements of our world.
Week 40 - Story Telling: Modern Convenience - What modern convenience of 2019 can not you live without? Create an image that looks like an advertisement for your favorite Modern Convenience.
Week 41 - Composition: Color Theory - Color Theory is a huge part of composition that most photographers don't explore. So it is time to explore it. Use Color Grading to create an image that looks like it is a still from a movie.
Week 42 - Inspiration: Work Work Work - Let it inspire you this week.
Week 43 - Story Telling: Film Noir - Film Noir is a dark and moody type of photography well suited to storytelling. So tell us a story using Film Noir.
Week 44 - Composition: Viewpoint - Changing your viewpoint creates a different perspective and is often used by photographers to create interest. Shoot this week from the viewpoint of another person.
Week 45 - Inspiration: Musical - Music is part of the soul, so let it inspire you this week.
Week 46 - Story Telling: The 7 deadly sins are Pride, Envy, Gluttony, Lust, Anger, Greed and Sloth. Tell us a compelling story about one of the 7 deadly sins.
Week 47 - Composition: Rule of Thirds Emotion - The rules of thirds is so popular because it is so versatile. This week use the rule of thirds to show emotion.
Week 48 - Inspiration: Current Events - What is happening in the world today? Be inspired by current events.
Week 49 - Story Telling: Storms - Storms are a powerful force of nature. Show us weather at its best.
Week 50 - Composition: Patterns- Patterns/Repetition are another well known compositional rule, but have you ever tried to use it in Macro Photography?
Week 51 - Inspiration: Food - Be inspired by Food. Yes, it really is that easy this week. You made it this far you deserve the break. A sweet, delicious break.
Week 52 - Story Telling: Self-Portrait - In the first week you took a self portrait and told us who you think you are. To finish this off take a self portrait that shows us who others think you are.
“La meilleure façon de réaliser ses rêves est de se réveiller. | The best way to make dreams come true is to wake up.” - Valéry
I have always been a morning person. As I get older, I find myself rising earlier and earlier. My alarm goes off at 4:45 every weekday morning so that I can take my time getting ready and be in my office by 6:15. I love that quiet hour before the work day begins when I can catch up on news, make lists, and be creative. Even on weekends, although the venue is different, the routine is nearly the same. I don’t consciously set an alarm, but Miss Piper ensures that her breakfast is served by 5:00 AM! Rather than “sleeping in” on weekends, it feels even more luxurious to enjoy an hour or so reading, sipping coffee, watching the birds outside our window, reflecting on the past week and planning for the next (with a snoozy beagle on my lap, of course). Affording myself the time to ease into the day ultimately increases my productivity.
English educator and theologian, Philip Doddridge surmised that “the difference between rising at five and seven o’clock in the morning for forty years, supposing a [person] to go to bed at the same hour at night, is nearly equivalent to the addition of ten years to [one’s] life.” Imagine the gift of ten extra years — that’s motivation!
“Which of my photographs is my favorite? The one I’m going to take tomorrow.” — Imogen Cunningham
Six years ago, I started Project 365 by posting one picture everyday — a quick iPhone snapshot of whatever I found interesting, beautiful, or indicative of my current situation. As the days and years passed, my interest and skills in photography, editing, and blogging grew and I was no longer content to post “whatever” caught my eye each day. I do love the idea of Project 365, but I often struggled to maintain the pace or to find new inspiration. At the end of each year, I wondered if I should reduce or even abandon my project. I mean, I didn’t miss a single day in six years — that’s 2,191 days (365 day/year + 1 Leap Year). That is serious dedication!
Every year, I tried to shift my focus from quantity to quality while recognizing that it is actually the quantity of photos that lead to the quality I strive to achieve. When I lacked inspiration, I found that capturing familiar subjects helped me to experiment with camera settings, lighting, angles, and editing techniques, ultimately allowing me to grow as a photographer. Yes, my photos did get better, but let’s face it, you have seen a lot of flowers, trees, books, pastries, cups of tea and coffee, glasses of wine, critters with wings or fur, and one particularly photogenic beagle! And if I’m being entirely honest, it isn’t always fun. There have been days when nothing captured my attention and nights when I was too tired to be creative or clever. In six years, I posted content while in five time zones, six states, and three countries. I have often wondered if I missed out on truly experiencing the moment by always trying to capture it in words and images.
I know that if I were to stop entirely, I would disappoint a lot of people — especially myself. I would miss the challenge, the careful observation, the creativity, and the learning. So in 2019, I have decided to afford myself the flexibility to enjoy the process rather than hold myself accountable to strict guidelines. This year, I might challenge myself with photo series, themes, colors, and even a Project 52, but I am not going to commit to posting everyday. I won’t be skulking around the yard after dinner desperately searching for something to photograph or browsing through my image archives at 11:30 pm to supplement a less than inspirational day. I want to plan and process, edit and proofread. I hope to write more of my own content rather than simply finding a quote to accompany my images. I am certain that I will have plenty of pictures to post a “calendar view” at the end of each month, but I will only choose the photos that I really love — several of which might be taken on the same day.
Last October, I began building a new platform to share curated photo collections, to archive of all my work since 2011, and to create new blog posts. I also included a contact page for you to offer suggestions and ideas. Although, my primary motivation for continuing this work is personal, I really do appreciate your feedback. In the past, I have posted all of my content directly to social media. Consequently, the number of visits to my Blogger site steadily decreased and the “likes” and comments stopped entirely. I sincerely hope that, by simply sharing links or single images on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, you will take the time to visit my new website and share your thoughts right here (C’est ma vie! aka melindalarson.com). Maybe you could start right now — Please let me know what you think by liking and/or commenting below!
Happy New Year and cheers to a new perspective! XO 🥂
