Last week, Kat asked those of us who are taking her Starting the Journey e-course to write about why we photograph in our photojournals. What an eye-opening experience. She later asked us to start pulling some of our favorite photos (from the past 2-3 months) into an inspiration folder. I’ve never though to literally pull my favorite images into a separate folder but I noticed a trend…I noticed that 1) I love to fill the frame, 2) I really like to use negative space and 3) I prefer to use a wide aperture.
With that in mind, she then asked us to take a familiar object or place (something that likely was repeatedly represented in our inspiration folder) and photograph it from multiple perspectives. And by multiple…she meant 50+ photos. I started by selecting a location in my house that I regularly use…the light by the windows in our dining room and office.
I practice this exercise on a regular basis, but I rarely take more than a few shots before I upload them to my computer, edit and post to my blog. This time, I think I took 54 shots before reviewing my work and the only reason I stopped was because I had a kink in my neck (ouch). I also used THREE lens (50mm, 18-55mm and 105mm) during this exercise to further change my perspective. Yeah, you heard me right…I even pulled out the kit lens for its wide angle.
As you may or may not have determined, I decided to photograph my day planner…my NEW day planner. I’ve been saying for a while that I couldn’t wait for the year to finish out so I could get a new day planner. The one I’ve been using for the past year is a bit messed up, but it’s gotten the job done. Well, my mom heard my plea and picked up a really cute Lilly Pulitzer planner for me (the adjoining shop to her’s carries them).
This new planner is completely awesome…and considering that I will be carrying it with me EVERYWHERE, it only made since to photograph it. As a part of this exercise, Kat asked us to pay attention to the way the exercise made us feel.
Interestingly enough, I found myself paying really close attention to the light. There were several compositions that I had high hopes for, but the light was kind of yucky. I also found myself slipping into storytelling mode. If this were not a photojournal post, I’d likely be using these photos to tell a different story…that’s just how my brain works. Either way, I really enjoyed this exercise. I probably would have done this photo shoot without being prompted, so thanks Kat for this assignment. I’m not sure that I’d do anything different in the future – okay, I might eat before shooting. Happy Tuesday!
