Try it.. you'll like it! :-)

Some of you know that I have been doing at photography project called Project 365 which means that I take a photo everyday. It wasn’t an easy decision to embark upon this since I decided to limit my project to pictures of seashells. I remember at the time wondering if it would be too hard to do. Would it be do boring for my flickr friends to look at everyday? Would I be able to keep it creative and interesting for a whole year??

As I write this blog I am on day 323 on my shell project. That means I have just over a month left and I will have completed my goal.

Today I want to talk about what I learned from this project. I learned not to be afraid to try something new. I learned that by forcing myself to be creative I become creative. I learned how to develop my skills as a photographer. It actually forced me to develop. When I first started the project I had a small point and shoot camera and that was what I did: I pointed and I shot. In the spring of last year I decided to buy another camera and suddenly I was way out of my comfort level because I realized I didn’t know how to use it. I don’t know about you but it is such an awkward feeling to be in a learning curve. It doesn’t matter if it is a new job, a new relationship, a new course load, a new baby in our arms suddenly we are feeling so ‘inadequate’. I have learned to be easy on myself during that ‘time’. I am thankful to our son David who helped me immensely in understanding how to use my camera: what is an f stop, an aperture, what is ISO, depth of field, shutter speed and on and on. I learned about bokeh. I remember the first time I was on flickr looking at someone’s picture and someone had left a comment “nice bokeh” and I wrote below it “what is bokeh?!” Now I know and have developed that skill into an art form. I see bokeh everywhere. I don’t want to make this too technical so I am not going to go into what bokeh is but if you want to know and how to get sweet bokeh in your photos write me and I will tell you.

I also learned about commitment. I started the project and I was committed to finishing it. We face that in so many ways in life. It is the day to day to day to day stuff that tires us out. But commitment is so essential to success. In every way. I am glad I stuck with this. It’s been challenging sometimes to find the time to daily stop and take a picture but the simple beauty I would see often overwhelmed me. As a result of carrying my camera around with me I began to see His beauty everywhere: in the face of a child, on the light of a flower, in the colors of the evening, on the softness of a butterflies wings, in the texture of a shell, in the movement of a hummingbird, or in the movement of the sea. A walk on the beach would result in peace in my soul, a conversation with a stranger, an unexpected view, or just the sense of thrill of capturing something I wouldn’t normally see. Photography has opened my eyes. I see! I really see now. I look for light, and when I find it I photograph that. Pretty simple but it is true. Light is always worth finding.

Don’t be afraid to try something new. Even if it seems daunting. Do it. It will be good for your soul.

So take that promotion even if you don’t feel qualified.. yet. Go on that adventure to a foreign land (hint hint). Make that phone call to a person you admire and tell them. Start writing that book. Take those dance lessons. Learn to cook well. Join the gym even though your body is telling you not to!

What would be the one greatest benefit? Well for me I used to say, I like to take pictures. But after a year of taking photos every day I can say I am a photographer. It has changed not only my skill but also the way I view myself. You can’t beat that! You will change in the process of being brave enough to embark on something new. How cool is that??!

Don’t be afraid to try something new and different. It is so rewarding. I just need to say this … while I was writing this blog a hummingbird came to the French doors and hovered there twice. I have been photographing/feeding them for about a month now and the joy they bring is phenomenal. This is the first time they after came to the door looking for food. They usually just hover where I hang the feeder. If I didn’t have such a passion to photograph God’s living beauty I wouldn’t have experienced that. What a blessing! I guess I can say another result of being a photographer is that I am not a hummingbird friend!!

Have a blessed Sunday! xoxo