One of the popular things for aspiring photographers to do these days is to participate in a 365 Project and attempt to post a photo every day for 365 consecutive days. I started one at 365Project.org back on Jan. 1, 2012. I've been "mostly" successful which is to say that I've missed a few days. :-) So, I got to thinking … what is required for a truly successful 365 Project? Below are three scenarios that cover some of the possibilities:

1. The Purist: Takes a photo every single day for 365 days in a row and posts them on their 365project … perfection.
2. The Bulldog: May not take a photo every day, but manages to post filler photos (from other times) so that each calendar day has an image in it … determination.
3. Then, there's Me … The Optimist: I've taken a photo "almost" every day (only missed a couple), but sometimes they just didn't come up to 365 standards, so I left that day empty. I guess every time I miss a day, then I'm just starting a "new" project on the next day I post … optimism :-)

One thing that this process has caused for me, is a much deeper knowledge of my camera equipment and a greater attention to detail as I'm taking photographs. Plus, it makes me think photography every day and at least attempt to do something new and creative. I also think the "peer pressure" from others doing the project, especially ones you know personally, pushes you to try a bit harder to get a good image posted every day.

This is not a real photo, but an image I created from scratch in Photoshop CS5.