I have written about Project 365 before, and I will probably write about it again. Specially if I actually make it happen in 2012.

Today, The Daily Digi also tackles P365, and Steph features the iPhone app Photo 365. I got that app a few weeks back and loved using it. Without committing to a new P365, I actually took photos each day for a few days after getting it installed. I didn’t know about the alarm feature though, maybe I should have that activated.

For 2012, I really want to get serious with Project Life. P365, I think, will be crucial to making that happen. So yes, in 2012, the focus of my Project 365 will still be documenting the everyday life. Improving my photography and finding my voice will be a bonus.

In 2010, I started my P365 on the first day of the year. This was that photo:

My next attempt will be that way too. I will start on January 1. But it doesn’t mean I have to wait until then to get in to the habit of taking daily photos.

The last photo I posted on the photo blog for 2010 was the one below, but it probably wasn’t the last photo I took for the project. There probably were more, but not posting them became the reason I stopped altogether.

Not being able to share my photos online was a bad reason to stop doing it. After all, the reason for starting it was to get good at taking photos. Maybe I got it wrong. Perhaps at the time, my reason for taking on the task was to have something pretty to share at the end of the day. And perhaps too, that’s why I failed. Each time.

Katrina Kennedy who runs CaptureYour365 really got it. You need to start your 365 project with your purpose in mind. Without that purpose, it will be tough to stick it out until day 365.

So Project 365 2012 edition for me will be about documenting the everyday life.

I haven’t attempted to do Project 365 in a long time. It was a conscious decision on my part to STOP obsessing about having to take one photo a day.

But since embarking on Project Life, I’ve wanted to take a photo of the everyday moments again. This is the first week. I don’t know if my PL project will still stay true blue P365 but I’m willing to see where this will take me.

After all, PL to me isn’t much about developing the photographer in me, but more about documenting life. Still, it would be a bonus to achieve both.

Read about what I did with the photos in this snapshot, what these found photos are, and about my Project Life.

[This is a collage of photos from my Project 365 attempt in 2009.]

I first heard of Project 365 through this post on Photojojo, and I tried it out last year. I wasn’t very successful in taking a photo for each day in 2009 so I’m trying it out again this year. So what is it exactly?

What is Project 365?

Started in 2004 by Taylor McKnight, Project 365 is all about capturing one photo a day for 365 straight days.  Although he started on the first of January, there is no strict rule that says you can’t start at any other day of the year. Others start their project the day after the birth of a baby, or perhaps the day after their own birthdays. It doesn’t really matter when you decide to start your Day One, for as long as you faithfully take a photo for each day since.

What do you do with your photos?

If you have an existing blog, a daily photo ensures that you never have to think of a blog topic again. However, you may also want to start a separate Photo Blog just for your P365 photos. I have setup one over at this wonderful service that I just recently discovered: Aminus3. Checkout my 2010 Project 365 there. With a photoblog like that on Aminus3, you can be assured that your photo becomes the center of your post. You can also find WordPress and Blogger themes that would work just as well for this purpose.

You might also want to join the Project 365 Flickr group. I think Mr. McKnight continues to participate there. I chose to join a smaller group though, Shutter Sisters’ Project 365 Flickr Pool. If you start the project with some of your friends, then you can go ahead and start your on pool at Flickr, or even setup a group blog.

Multiply is also a good social networking site that makes it so easy to share photos and order prints. Consider sharing your photos there too. A friend of mine posts her photos on her blog, and on her Facebook wall.

It’s really up to you what you do with your photos, but P365 gets more exciting when you share it with others

Why take a photo each day?

It’s a way to document your daily life. Someday you might have the need to look back and reflect on your previous life, and having these photos as prompts may prove to be useful. It’s also a wonderful way of reminding ourselves that life is filled with moments – happy, sad, triumphant – moments of many different emotions.

Taking daily photos also pushes you creatively. You will eventually look for something new in your own photographs. You will demand something different. So even if you don’t set out to improve your photography through Project 365, you may just find that by the end of the project, you will see progress. Early in the project last year, I observed this.

To sum up, I highly recommend this project, but also caution you on getting all caught up in it. Sometimes you may feel discouraged and find yourself without the drive to take photos. Here are some links that might keep you encouraged:

As the year unfolds, I will also be sharing other photo blogs that may give you more inspiration as you proceed to document your life this year in 365 photos.

Also, please do share with me your Project 365 links so I can visit you too