I know many of us declared at the beginning of this year that you were going to finally get to that “Dream” project that you’ve been putting off for a few years so far. Well! You’re in luck. There’s still plenty of time left in the year to get your butt in gear and get to working on that gig so you can start some new promises for 2022. So yeah, this is a reminder that you are now midway through the year to get busy and get hot on that project. I know you have to work. The summer is coming up. Busy, Busy, Busy, as a little bee. That’s cool. Everybody’s busy. But honestly. How long does it take to conceptualize your dream, plan it out, secure a location/model/prop/equipment and get it in the books? The answer is not long once you commit to the idea.
Let me help you out a bit. Start here: Tell yourself, “No matter what, I WILL get this project done!”. Then sit down for a minute. Got no time? Sure you do. You’re human. That means you require food and water. At some point you’re gonna have to go to spend a little time in the bathroom… a few minutes at least. Sooo, can you see where I’m going with this. No? Fine, I’ll spell it out. Take a pad and pen into the bathroom with you the next time you have to “spend some quality time” in there. While you are sitting down for a few minutes, this is an excellent time to conceptualize, write down ideas, and think about how you’re going to pull this thing off and what you’ll need. You don’t need to spend a whole day in the bathroom, just enough time to get pen to paper and get those ideas out before your legs go to sleep.
See, that’s a guaranteed few minutes every day! You don’t need much more than that. And once you’ve got it written down, you can commit some time while you go about your regular day. On your way home from work, you can call up that fave model of yours and ask about her availability. Gotta pick up groceries from the store? Great. Stop by the hardware store right next to it and get the materials for the set you have to build. Or maybe its as simple as getting some gear. B&C Camera has a bunch of cameras, lenses, and lights you can rent for the weekend. You can easily reserve what you need ahead of time, pick it up Friday and return it Monday. So if you require a macro lens, they got it. Prefer a wide-angle lens instead…they got it. What about some lighting? They have 2-light, 3-light wireless trigger kits complete with soft boxes and stands that you can get for about $40 for the entire weekend. If you’re not in Vegas, check out some online rentals like LensRentals.com or BorrowLenses.com.
Need some ideas? Okay. Do that thing you normally do, but this time shoot it at night. Just try some long exposure stuff for a change. Add some light painting. Take that flash off TTL and use some of its other functions. Ever drag the shutter with it? Ever do any high-speed sync work on it? How about some stroboscopic techniques? Ever do that? Try some macro work. Do something in that remote location that you came across while hiking last year, next to that goofy looking tree your friend took a picture of you climbing.
Work on that self-portrait project you’ve been saying you were going to do. Try to emulate a lighting style you saw in that movie poster your girl/boyfriend likes so much. Here’s another one. Freeze the action on a quick-moving subject. Like a dancer spinning around, where you capture every single strand of hair frozen in space with no blurring. You now have 40 days left to get your project done. Don’t procrastinate any longer than you already have. If you think I’m speaking to you, I am. Get started. No more excuses. Go Shoot.
