What is your "life project"

Hello Everybody,

I have been spending the last couple of weeks pondering my life project (photographically speaking). Being only 20 years old, I feel as though with a long photography career ahead of me, a life project would be a fun endeavor. I have pondered many such projects, but always come around to bridges. I love bridges, and for most of my childhood I wanted to be a civil engineer and build bridges. The problem is, I feel it has been so done. I want my life project to be unique, something that only those close to me (and perhaps the people I meet through these wonderful boards) will see, and won't be the kind of thing that people say where have I seen that before.

That being said, what is your life project, and would you mind sharing a couple of its photos? I am interested in hearing it all, even if your life project is something strange, or seemingly meaningless - chances are if it is your life project it means something to you.

First I ever heard of a "life project"...pretty much everyone gets burned out on one thing or another and changes gears at some point. I guess my life project would be "photography", that is until I get burned out on it... :D

The ideal for you, with your love of photography and bridges, would be to get the most creative, unique, powerful shots ever taken...of bridges. Sounds like you could combine those two passions into something really special. Me...I'm much older than 20, have experienced many facets of life's high and lows, and am always drawn to photographing people, people, and more people, whether it be models in a studio, or the slices of life found on the streets of the big city in which I live. Good luck.

Interesting post.
If you are looking for such a project, I'd recommend that you photograph what you are passionate about, shoot something you can get behind. Even if it has been "done before", who cares! It has never been done from your perspective, and that is what makes it unique, your perspective.

My life project, is mountain biking. It is my other passion. Actually, I have two. The second one is my wife, every year on her birthday I have made a photograph of her. On my website, I call this particular section, "The Birthday Project".

If I were to impart any other advice to you regarding photography, I will leave you with the following advice I recieved from a photographer when I was about your age.
"Shoot from the heart". It's good advice.
I hope I don't sound as old as you might think I do in that last bit, it is just that I have been involved in photography, about as long as you have been around. I am only a very young 30 something. :D

Brian

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Originally Posted by h2oskierc

Hello Everybody,

I have been spending the last couple of weeks pondering my life project (photographically speaking). Being only 20 years old, I feel as though with a long photography career ahead of me, a life project would be a fun endeavor. I have pondered many such projects, but always come around to bridges. I love bridges, and for most of my childhood I wanted to be a civil engineer and build bridges. The problem is, I feel it has been so done. I want my life project to be unique, something that only those close to me (and perhaps the people I meet through these wonderful boards) will see, and won't be the kind of thing that people say where have I seen that before.

That being said, what is your life project, and would you mind sharing a couple of its photos? I am interested in hearing it all, even if your life project is something strange, or seemingly meaningless - chances are if it is your life project it means something to you.

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If your passion is for bridges, shoot them as you see them. Your vision is unique and your body of work will be the same.

If you make up your mind now that some subject is your 'life's work' and ignore other subjects in pursuit of that one, you will miss much in life. I'd recommend instead that you be as open as possible to new subjects.

I once read in an article that to get to really meaningful photos, one must 'shoot through the cliches'. What this meant is that when one sees a subject, one visualizes various more or less standard ways of setting up a shot and you should either shoot these cliche shots or at least frame them in the viewfinder and analyze them as if you were going to shoot them. Doing that will at least result in some really good shots. Once you have 'shot through the cliches' you should stay with the subject and explore it further to discover fresh and personal ways of capturing it. Doing this over the years has often resulted in some of my favorite photos.

I think your decision on what kind of subjects to explore is much the same. Shoot what seems obvious and easy to you (bridges) but always look around further and deeper once that initial itch is satisfied. While doing this, try and define in your work what it is that makes this such an attractive subject for you. It may be (quite probable actually) that after a few years of shooting bridges, the edge will wear of and you will find that you are enjoying some other subjects more enjoyable. Since you seem to be compelled to shoot bridges go ahead and do that and build up an excellent body of work in that area. What you learn while doing it will stand you in good stead in whatever follows. You may have to 'shoot throuhg' bridges before you can easily go on to other stuff.

All that BS having been said, there are a couple of themes that seem to catch my eye and which I endulge. I kinda think of them as self assignments.
One I think of as 'different drummer' where you have a group of similar things with one thing different somehow.
Another is taking pictures of things that aren't there.
Still another is observing how nature is always working at recovering from whatever kind of construction we throw at her, from falling down barns to small plants insistantly thriving in the midst of much manmade chaos.

I guess the overall advice that this pompous old guy would give is to relax, trust your feelings and instincts rather than try to force everthing into some preconceived plan. In life it's not the destination that's important, it's the trip.

I would have to say that you should photograph what you love and, of course, leave yourself open to other things. By shooting something that might be over done you have the opportunity to push yourself further as a photographer, to find angles that make each shot distinctly yours.
My life project is also rather over done... I am fascinated by reflections. Reflections of cars, buildings, colors and more... I have been working on this for about two years and thus far have only about five images. I don't actively pursue this project, but anywhere I go, anything I shoot, I keep an eye out for my reflections. There are some times when I have free time and I feel creative, so I do go out specifically looking for reflections and I keep an eye out for other shots. By not always actively looking for reflections I don't get burned out and it's something I still love to photograph.
Good luck with your life project!