A photo a day for 64 weeks
This is the first picture drawn from a personal project that will run until the end of 2010. Let me explain.
The internet has created a fascinating playground for photographers. Personal projects that at one time would only be seen by a select group of friends, or maybe at your local photographic club or group, can now be seen by anyone who has the inclination to click on your website, assuming they can find it amidst the thousands available.
Some intrepid photographers took the decision to take a picture every day, a 365 project as it has become known, and post them to the web.
There are some wonderful examples of this, some that make me gasp each time as I wonder how they find the time and indeed raw creative energy to produce interesting pictures day after day. More on these later.
Anyway, I love digital photography, but I also love film, and indeed as many photographers do (or is it just a male thing?), I have a favourite film camera tucked away that gets far too little use, and with the recent announcement by Kodak about the demise of Kodachrome I have decided to take the plunge.
Recently I began shooting on Kodachrome 64, and allowing for the delay between finishing a roll, sending it to the US for processing, and then scanning, I'm now ready to start publishing them.
My aim is to publish one picture a day on Flickr and pull out 64 of the more interesting frames for publication on this blog over the next 64 weeks. This will take us to the end of 2010, a date that marks the death of Kodachrome, 75 years after its introduction, as the last processing laboratory handling the film will no longer offer the service.
There is no set theme to the pictures, they will be of everyday unspectacular moments, the strangeness of things overlooked. I suppose it's about taking pictures for their own sake, enjoying the moment, the click of the shutter and the challenge of finding the best vantage point, coupled with a limited supply of film.
I must also state that I am not publishing the pictures in the order they were taken, but instead trying to ensure they work as a series.
Inspiration, well in addition to the 365 projects mentioned above then it comes from the great William Eggleston's Democratic Forest, where everything is worthy of a picture, mixed with a dash of nostalgia for colour slides. And if you don't get that, just watch this scene from the sublime Mad Men.
I'd love to hear from anyone who is shooting their own project, whatever the subject or format, digital or film, and I'll mention some of them as we go along. So if you'd like to be featured send me an e-mail.
My next picture will be published here next Wednesday, in the meantime you can follow the daily set of pictures here. As the project progresses there will be an edited collection of 64 pictures (a sort of 64x646x64, that is: 64 shots x 64 weeks on Kodachrome 64) that will also be grouped together in a set.
Comments are welcome, and I look forward to hearing about some of your projects. Enjoy the light.
I'm 
~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~33~RS~)
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Hi Phil. I decided I wanted to try a 365 project, beginning 1st July this year. I've been enjoying photography as a hobby for a couple of years now, and finding myself becoming increasingly more lazy in my quest for pictures I figured this would give me the drive to go out and find subjects. I roped in my friend Scott who only recently bought a DSLR to see how he got on, convincing him it would rapidly evolve his technique. How naive we both were!
Just recently I have really struggled, to the point where I'm now waiting four or five days, shooting a batch on a single location or theme, and then uploading them all in the one day. It's certainly taught me some level of discipline, but I'm not entirely sure it hasn't smothered the enjoyment. My advice to others would be to make sure this isn't going to kill your passion before you embark. I'm determined to see it through, but we shall have to see how it goes.
You can check it out here if you like. I haven't posted for a few days now, though hopefully tomorrow another batch will go up. Photographer's name should be somewhere to the bottom right of each shot. Rules are only minimal processing allowed (though there's some HDR sneaking in there on occasion).
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I do another project which requires a bit less commitment. It's called "12 of 12" and you have to take 12 photos of your day on the 12th day of each month. You can find it at http://chaddarnell.typepad.com/runchadrun2/12_of_12/ and mine (not as good as yours!) are at http://picasaweb.google.com/s.r.e.turner/ .
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Hi Phil,
Great idea to commemorate the Kodachrome 64. I'm currently shooting my second 365 Project, having started initially on 1st Jan 2008. I was fairly new to photography at the time, and I'd recommend doing it to anyone who wants to get to know their camera better and learn the ins and outs of how it works.
I've put some of my better shots in this set if anyone wants to have a look!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joefreeman/sets/72157621756843937/
I'm currently going through a bit of a slump - it really is quite a considerate effort to come up with a different photo every day - but I've not forgotten to take a photo as of yet (touch wood). However there are lots of 365 Project groups on Flickr that can offer inspiration and suggestions if you are having a tricky time!
Good luck, and I'll be following with interest!
Joe
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The whole idea about a 365 project is: take and publish the photo on the same day. When you are going to mess with the dates it might be a nice series but not a 365 project, which is sorry because you don't really experience what a 365 project is about.
Good luck anyway, i'm following you on Flickr (Meeuwenlaan) and i like the Kodachrome. Maybe you could start a separate new 365 project with any digital camera you can find, just to have the experience.
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@herreb - that's nice in theory, but from experience, it can be hard to publish your shots every day! It's often commitment enough just taking a photo! There's no hard and fast set of rules that you have to adhere to; everyone approaches their own 365 projects differently which is why they often make for interesting viewing.
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Delightful and good luck!
I'll add you to my RSS feed.
A picture is worth a thousand words, and I often only have my lunch breaks for news review. So sometimes I try to keep my news briefs short by checking out the Photo Logs on
-- Reuters/BBC (global),
-- TPM.DC (nat.politics),
-- Philly.com (local news) and occasionally on
-- AP (for a hardcore news fix).
I may not get all the details of the stories, but I can usually get a high-level idea about what's going on in the world from 5 minutes of flipping through shots. Wild, eh?
Although, I must also confess that I'm a National Geographic Magazine subscriber for it's 'Eco-porn.' Who has time to read the articles? I get the Mag for the Photos. Ho-yeah... Now THAT's the way to shoot endangered species.
Best of luck!
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well a 365 project might be a nice experience I started one when I got my new and first digital camera; however, a normal working person can't do it. I stopped mine after my holidays and changed it to a up to 7 good pics a week - still means that I have my camera withme where ever I go, but not being forced to publish keeps my streem cleaner from low quality shoots, just check here: dijle
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Hey Phil have you tried Kodak Ektar? It is like the print version of Kodachrome, and a lot cheaper than sending your old Kodachrome to Duane's.
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My lightweight digital camera recently broke, so I've been shooting film again lately with my all-manual Pentax K1000, and it's such a wonderful feeling. It's not just men who have a favorite film camera! I've never worked with Kodachrome, but I really enjoy the slower pace and greater attention required to get nice pictures with film. I like having point-and-shoot digital for snapshots and day-trips; I take the film camera when I want to slow my brain down a little and really pay attention to the world.
I look forward to seeing your pictures!
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I only shoot in film - mostly with my Nikon F100 or Mamiya. And I'm a female so it's definitely not a male thing. When I can afford a digital Hasselblad then I'll switch over. Just wish I had time to shoot photos every day...
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Hi, Phil. Great idea. I look forward to following the project.
I started a 365 project in January, and I'm still going strong. I use either an Olympus point&shoot or my Pentax K20D. While I don't upload every day, the photos are truly daily.
[URL="http://foothills.zenfolio.com/p308296387"]My project can be found here.[/URL]
Thanks, and good luck!
Glenn
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Hi Phil! The 365-project is one of the best experiences I've ever had. I am currently working on my second year. It's hard for me to go for only the one year. I used to write a regular journal, but have found myself using my camera every day for documenting my life.
I participate on a daily photography site called ShutterCal.com. It's a very cool site that displays your daily photos to you in a calendar form. The site is a great community of photographers, professional and not, who look and comment on each others photography projects. It's a great way to share your project, get photo tips, receive comments and meet people all over the world. The site is free to all.
If you'd like to see my project: Hecate's ShutterCal
Enjoy your project!
Hecate
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I agree with Hectate on the comment before me. I also did a 365 project. I found this website Shuttercal.com. They give you a calender to keep tract of your 365. It made it very easy to keep everything organized.
If you have a chance check it out. I dont think you will be disappointed. Here is a link to my project. 365 Project
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Good luck with your project! You will find it very rewarding.
I've been doing a project 365 since 1989. I am at day 7592 now. I first did it just for myself, but then went online in 2007. I shoot with a film camera, so sometimes I'm behind schedule, but that isn't important, the important thing is continuity. (I am behind schedule right now, as I was travelling for three weeks and just came back. I have 20 rolls of film to develop and scan and that will take a while)
The project is a lot of work, but well worth the effort. I will continue until my death.
You can find my blog here: [Unsuitable/Broken URL removed by Moderator]
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Hello Phil.
I've been part of the City Daily Photo family http://citydailyphoto.com/ for nearly a year now. It's great fun! The rules are simple - Post a photo a day from the city where you live. They're well over 1000 cities covered. My blog is collection of photographs portraying life in one of the world's wealthiest cities - Abu Dhabi, the island capital of the United Arab.
Drop in sometime! http://abudhabidailyphotograph.blogspot.com/
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I glad to see there is another person sending this venerable product out in style. You might want to see what others are doing. The most ambitious project of which I'm aware is Daniel Bayer's "Kodachrome Project" (http://kodachromeproject.com/blog/). I have a collection of links to news (including this article), contemporary images, and historic images at: http://ronald.andrews.googlepages.com/kodachrome Film is still available on eBay. Processing is available through next year. It is not too late for anyone to shoot their first Kodachrome slide.
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Many thanks for all you comments, emails and contacts on Flickr.
I've now got lots of links to follow and sites to explore, but this is a long term project so I'm going to take my time and enjoy your pictures.
As promised I will be posting here each Wednesday and including some of your websites and suggestions. Best wishes.
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For reader interest, here is a short version of my email. Thanks for the email acknowledgement!
Hi Phil. Bravo!! Neat project and certainly an important point in time to mark as you propose to do! I look forward to your work online.
I shot film in my younger days, as we all did, and even won a newspaper contest in London (Ontario, that is) while in high school with a Kodak Brownie, believe it or not. For the past few years I have been in a continuing, probably life-long, learning curve with digital photography mainly using Nikon equipment: CP8800, D200, D300 and D700 over time.
I also use an amazing little Panasonic LX3 point & shoot with Leica optics). If you haven't heard of it, take a look at the U.K. based DPReview web site.
To challenge myself to re-learn "old tricks", as well as to widen the scope of my photography, I started a blogger.com blog in 2005: "JBIPix of the Day - A Personal Photoblog". I try to post a number of photos every day reflecting life around me wherever I am. The gamut ranges from nature, animals, flowers, landscapes and architecture to events and concerts.
Over time, photos at the site have been viewed in over 80 countries. Some are good. A few have been published in Canadian and U.S. newspapers as contributions by readers (no money, sigh). Some are obviously on the learning curve.
Part of the success of the blog is due my ongoing dialogue online in DPReview's great forums that have world-wide participation by pros and enthusiasts alike!
A blog format suits my style cataloguing results daily, then monthly and yearly. You can see this progression in the archives.
BTW. I read BBC News daily as a welcome break from the pervasive North American centric U.S. coverage on our air waves here. It's a good balance along with our beloved Canadian CBC networks.
Best wishes John from Toronto
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I initially started a 365 on flickr back in June, but moved to blipfoto.com after a colleague recommended the site. My project is at www.blipfoto.com/xanderburgess.
It was announced today that blipfoto.com have been nominated for a Scottish BAFTA award, in the Web category.
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great project! A few years ago a friend and I bought a box of hundreds of slides at a flea market in Pontiac, Michigan. I've started to scan a few, here's a link if you're interested :)
[Unsuitable/Broken URL removed by Moderator]
Luisa
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