Basic Tips for Beginning Your Photography Projects

Robert Rodriguez Jr / Issue No. 50 / July 27th, 2024

Hello Reader,

I hope you're having a great summer so far! And if you're in the southern hemisphere, a great winter season!

Ask Me Anything

I’ve written in the past about how important I think working on projects is for your growth as a photographer. Even simple projects can positively change your perspective in ways that just going out and shooting whatever comes your way can’t.

Working on a project is one of the best ways I know of to build your skillset, explore your creative vision, and move away from feeling "stuck" in your work. The creative constraints necessary will give you focus, clarity, and most importantly, the motivation to pursue new possibilities. We all need that for sure!

I recently received an email asking some great questions about how to get started, so here are my answers in case you’ve ever thought about embarking on your own project, or want to start another!

Q. How do I choose a subject that is not to broad but also not too limiting, and will keep me interested?

I would start with thinking about what naturally interests you rather than considering everything as an option. What are you drawn to when you go out to photograph? One way is to look at your library of images and see if you notice any patterns. Often we don’t realize we’re gravitating towards the same kinds of motifs.

Also, this doesn’t necessarily need to be a specific subject, like flowers, or streams. It can be a color, or a mood, or even how light affects a scene. For example, I once made a portfolio of images that featured backlighting. I love the way that looks and realized it was something I was very attracted to, both compositionally and emotionally.

Another option might be close-ups or intimate landscapes. The limiting factor here wouldn’t be the subject matter, but perhaps the range of focal lengths you work within that would unify the project. Or maybe a minimalistic approach to composition, where you look for simple designs that contain large shapes with minimal detail—for example, dramatic clouds in the sky (leaving everything else out.) I’ve done this with large bodies of water where I wasn’t “close-up” but limited my composition with a long lens.

A large part of working on a project is the idea of creative constraints and how “liberating” that can be. Because you are limiting your possibilities, you gain clarity because you have a direction, a focus for your exploration, for your efforts. This might seem counterintuitive, but when you have a goal, you gain a better sense of what is moving you towards or away from that goal…which is very different from just wandering and being pulled in many different directions creatively.

So again, just follow your natural instincts and trust the process of being curious…then narrow that down to a motif, as I mentioned before. Remember, you can work on different projects successively over time, so all of your interests can get their due attention when you’re ready to move on to the next one.

Q. Do I schedule to go out periodically (weekly, monthly…) specifically to work on the project or do I work on the project while out generally photographing and I notice my topic presents itself?

My suggestion is to focus on a project exclusively once you start, especially if it’s a new experience for you. This will give you the benefits of working on the project in the most efficient manner. All of us know what it’s like to just go out and see what happens…what’s much harder is the discipline to focus creatively.

So what better way than to go all in when you start. Of course, if you find yourself in amazing circumstances, by all means take advantage of that. But otherwise you will gain the greatest benefits (in all areas - technical, creatively, mentally) when you remain focused.

Finally, the length of a project can vary widely based on your situation, energy, available time, where you live, and the nature of your project. Generally I think working in three month ranges is a good starting point. As your experience increases, you can adjust as need for your own specific goals and way of working.

I know of photographers who have worked on projects for year, but they had also completed many shorter and less ambitious projects in the past. Start small, and see how it goes. As they say, less is more.

Have questions you'd like me to answer in upcoming newsletter? Please replay and send them in!

Inspiration

Creative Path Community

So far we've had 41 votes on the poll running at the Creative Path forum asking what types of cameras you're using. So far the results are as follows:

• Mirrorless = 68%
• DSLR = 41%
• Smartphone = 31%
• Film = 12%

There's been some great conversation as well about camera usage, including a 40" x 16" print from an iPhone! Take the poll and join the conversation. Vote here!​

Questions, comments, feedback? Please reply and share your thoughts, I'd love to hear from you. Thanks for reading!

Robert :)

PS - I’m currently working on a whole new project that’s going to enable me to help you achieve greater clarity and progress in your photography. I’m really excited and working hard behind the scenes to get everything ready! Stay tuned for more info coming soon!