Hello Again
91 Days 2023, Issue 0
Hello again.
Welcome back to 91 Days, a photo project where I take more than one photo per day and edit them into a weekly newsletter for about three months. This is the zero issue for 2023, which means that every photo you see above was actually taken in 20221. Consider them a "best of" edition. Perhaps a "b-sides" would be more appropriate. Either way, they serve to show where the project is starting from. There are notes on each photo down below, but, in the meantime, let me talk about where I hope the project will go.
Spring is an interesting where I live. Not only are there the natural changes in temperature and environment, there are the socio-cultural changes of kids going back to school2, offices and companies welcoming new employees, and, oh, yeah, taxes. And while I probably won't doing much photo-documentation around taxes, I'll be trying to capture some of the rest.
But, this is 91 Days and a simple photo a day just isn't going to cut it. We need to set some boundaries and lay out some goals. Let's start with that second one first, the goal.
Challenge Accepted
The goal for the 2023 edition of 91 Days remains the same: use this project as your motivation to get up out of your house, your office, your safe space, and get out into the world, camera in hand. Do this every day for the months of March, April, and May. If you want, post your photos to Instagram or Flickr or Mastodon or wherever3. That's it. Get outside and take photos.
If you want to set a theme or style of photography, feel free. It's your challenge, do it any way you like. The goal can be as fluid as you want. After all, there's no trophy, there's no grand prize at the end of this. No, the sole reason to do this challenge is because you want a challenge. Whatever that means for you is just fine. Which brings me to limitations.
Boundaries Set
Think of this as the customization section; here's what I'm doing for myself. I'm limiting myself to one camera. Specifically, I'm limiting myself to my 13-year old Panasonic Lumix GX-1.
During last summer's project, I went with a shoot with the camera at hand policy that started off well but ended up defaulting to my phone almost every time. And there's no problem with modern phone cameras! But, for myself, I want to find a way to get back into taking my time and really composing a shot. Using my older camera is a way to do that.
The GX-1 allows me to still take as many shots as I'd like and it's very portable, but it has it's limitations. It's not great in the dark, it's not great with wide scenes, it's not great at close-up. That said, it is still a great camera with its own aesthetic and nuances. Hopefully, by using only this camera, I'll be able to explore what I can do within the camera's limitations and thereby, somewhat ironically, move past my own limitations as a photographer.
But that's just me. As with the goal itself, you do you. Enjoy it. And, if you do want to share what you wind up photographing, the Flickr group is still there! In the meantime, here are some notes about these "also ran" photos from last summer.
Index
Sunset Tracks - I really like this photo as a rough draft. I keep telling myself that I'm going to go back with a tripod and get everything lined up right. However, this is an active train line and standing in the middle of the tracks for a photo is not the smartest decision...
Dusk - Power lines. I do love photographing these damn things. On the one hand, I feel like I've done it enough, on the other, I live in Japan. Getting a least a few shots that feature power lines like these is inevitable. There are just too many, dominating too many skylines, to avoid.
Pathway - As I've said before, I grew up in a desert. Flowers still capture my attention, especially when there are different colors at play. These are all in a single flower bed outside one of the classrooms I work out of.
Slide - Since spring is still fairly cold in Japan, I really doubt I'll have any pictures of the water parks in this year's challenge, but you never know. Maybe I'll win a free trip to Vietnam or Hawaii or someplace actually warm.
Seascape - By contrast, while it might be too cold to go swimming, it's going to be warm enough to go to the beach for walking around and taking photos. Here's hoping I get a chance to do so.
Bridge - Nikko is always around the corner and never not gorgeous so I'm sure I'll end up there sometime in the next three months and will, presumably, take a picture of this same bridge for the 19-thousandth time.
Bench - Closer to home, here's a lonesome bench near the tracks. I've walked past this bench many times but never sat on it. Maybe I'll change that next time I go by.
Although this is the first time they have been published in any form.
Japan starts everything in April.
Although you certainly don't have to.