Daily Shoot-Inspiration for Photographers

A while back some friends and I were chatting online about doing Project 365, which is a project where you take one photo a day for a year.  Something I’ve tried previously (a self-portrait version) and failed miserably, but am doing much better with now that I’m doing the ‘random photo’ version.

During this online conversation, a friend brought up The Daily Shoot as a good site for people who may be having trouble finding inspiration.  I wasn’t having a problem with finding photos for my project but I went to check it out anyway and I’m so glad I did!

The way it works is that every day the folks at The Daily Shoot give you a subject to use for your photo for that day.  For example, today’s is Make a high contrast photograph today. Then it is up to you to come up with your photo that falls under that category.  Here is the description from the website on how it works:

It’s easy to get started! Here’s how:

1. Follow @dailyshoot on Twitter. Every day at 10 am EST (2 pm GMT) a new photo assignment is posted to the @dailyshoot Twitter account. The assignment is tweeted again at 8 pm EST (12 am GMT) as a reminder. Some assignments are simple to help you keep the momentum, and others are more challenging to push you to learn something new.
2. When you make a photo for the assignment you want to share, simply upload it to one of the supported photo sharing sites.
3. Tweet a link to your photo mentioning @dailyshoot and the assignment’s hashtag (example). Several times an hour the Daily Shoot elves process these tweets and add thumbnails to your photos on this site.

It’s that simple!  Once you send that tweet your photo will show up on their website and people from all over the world who are taking part in the project can view it.  I’ve found some really great photographers that I have since friended on Flickr and follow their work, simply by seeing a photo of theirs that I liked on the Daily Shoot site.  I didn’t think of it when I started the project but I find myself enjoying seeing what other people come up with just as much as I enjoy the process of doing it myself.  It was like an added bonus, meeting new people and seeing the same subject from so many different points of view.

I also learned a few things along the way, what Low Key Photography is, for example. I had no idea what it meant when I saw the subject that day and had to Google it. It caused me to scurry around the house trying to make a setup, figuring out the lighting and learn exactly what Low Key photography is, and I ended up with a shot I was really happy with!

The best thing about this is that there are no real rules.  If you want to do it every day, cool!  If you are going on holiday and miss a week, whatever… there are no Daily Shoot police that are waiting to catch you slacking.  I personally enjoy it as it gives me the motivation to get my camera out and think of what I want to shoot on days where I may otherwise not pick it up at all.  That’s what it’s all about really, just taking photos and having fun.

They do give a few tips on how to get the most out of the project…

Two suggestions: First, don’t short change yourself by responding to an assignment with an old picture. Get out there and make something new and fresh. Second, while it’s easy to take lots of shots, choose your best one to link to with your tweet. Choosing your best exercises your editing skills, and that’s valuable too.

That’s it. There aren’t any other rules. You aren’t going to get demerits if you miss a few days, nor will you get gold stars for doing every assignment. We’re just here to help you with a little nudge every day. The rest is up to you!

Personally, I try to stick to taking a photo for that purpose rather than searching through my archives, just like they said.  The point of the whole thing, like I said, is to get you thinking and taking photos.  Sure, for a topic like yesterday’s, where we were to take a photo showing cold, I could have gone back and used any of my winter photos… but then I wouldn’t have ended up with a really pretty photo of some frozen fruit.  What they said is true, you would short change yourself by not taking new photos each day and trying to learn something from it.

I also try not to use my Daily Shoot as my Project 365 photo whenever possible as I like to keep my 365 photos as just random things going on in my life that day, rather than following a subject set out by someone else. It does happen though, on days where I am busy or tired and just haven’t gotten around to doing my photo for the day.

Anyway, if you are at all into photography and find yourself lacking inspiration, this project is fantastic.  You don’t have to be a professional photographer, you don’t have to have a super awesome camera, you don’t have to do it every single day and there is no right or wrong… it’s all up to you to make it be what you want it to be.

Here are the Daily Shoot photos I have taken so far.

Again, please do let me know if you choose to give it a try. I’m always so curious to see how different people interpret the subject each day and I think I’d find it even more interesting with people I know or have a connection with. I hope you enjoy at as much as I have been!