Like most things in life, to get better at photography you just have to get out there and do it. Take pictures. Experiment. Play. But above all else, keep a camera with you and just take a lot of pictures.
I know this, and yet have had a hard time with the discipline around it. I take loads of kid pictures, but would like to try to mix it up some, learn, get better. With time at a premium (did I mention I have 3 kids?), finding some of it to play with my camera has been ridiculously hard.
So I finally took the plunge to force myself into it with my own Project 365 - take one picture a day, of anything, but ideally something that captures a bit of what that day was about, and post it. Every single day. For a year. The guy who originally (far as I can tell) came up with the idea, Taylor McKnight, wrote up some simple reasons why:
- Imagine being able to look back at any day of your year and recall what you did, who you met, what you learned… (Often we find it hard to remember what we did just yesterday or even last night, let alone a whole year ago!)
- Your year-long photo album will be an amazing way to document your travels and accomplishments, your haircuts and relationships. Time moves surprisingly fast.
- Taking a photo a day will make you a better photographer. Using your camera every day will help you learn its limits. You will get better at composing your shots, you’ll start to care about lighting, and you’ll become more creative with your photography when you’re forced to come up with something new every single day
He also set up a Flickr Group pool with 4,700+ members and 180,000+ contributed photos, an inspiring collection especially after you read some of the discussions attached to them. Each picture is supposed to include a caption to tell the story and, a year later, remind you what exactly you were doing.
So I just wrapped Day 3, and am taking my camera on a business trip to Ohio this week to try and keep the promising start going. You can follow my progress on my Project 365 photo set. My first 3 are posted below. Wish me luck and some discipline!

Day 1: Cool blue colors with the camera on the floor of the hallway in the WaMu Theater, Qwest Field Events Center, Seattle. Kathy, Emma, and I attended the Go Diego Go! musical.

Day 2: Grace up close on a “peaceful” lazy Saturday, with her sister Sarah looking on.

Day 3: An afternoon at the pool - looking up from our chairs past the umbrella to that rarest of sights, a cloudless Seattle sky.
