March 9, 2012

Year 2 - 52 Photos Project


Hey everyone! Happy Friday to you!

I'm excited to share with you the brand new details of what year #2 will look like here at 52 Photos Project.  I have been crafting the plans and the layout for quite a few weeks now, and it's a huge relief to finally share the good things that are to come.

As most of you already know, 52 Photos Project is a fun and creative outlet for me. I never imagined that so many of you would participate and that friendship connections would be born from this experience along with our common love of photography. I am so very grateful for each and every one of you who said "yes, I'm gonna link up a picture this week" and of course to all of the photographers who were brave in sharing the details of their journey via the interviews. You all have seriously blown me away with your kindness, your support, and your courage.

We have a few more weeks to go before Year 2 begins, so allow all of this info to sit for a while. Hopefully you'll be as excited as I am.

*** 1st things first - Week 1 will begin on Earth day, April 22nd. If you haven't participated in a while or if you want to start at the beginning... mark your calendars! I will be tweeting & facebooking reminders in the weeks leading up to then.

The Galleries:  A new photo prompt will be revealed every Sunday (per usual), but the gallery will open up on Monday and will stay open until Saturday. That gives you six days to make your way over here and link up your photo.

Photo Prompts:  I tried to keep the photo prompts light, airy, and delicate because both professional and amateur photographers were participating. The audience was a mash up and I tried my best to keep everyone's interest engaged.
The prompts for year two will delve a little deeper which I believe will allow you to creatively expand in your photography. Also with each photo prompt, I will be sharing a mini writing assignment that is completely optional for you to journal privately or on your blog (with your photo submission).

Photo Features:  I'm an avid web surfer who is always on the lookout for inspiration, new photographers, and gorgeous photos. Once a month, I'll share a new feature called "Tell Me About this Picture" where you'll get to meet the artist and photographer behind a breathtaking photo.

Also, look for spotlight photos from regular participants who submit to the gallery and the flickr group.

Sponsorship:  I have been asked repeatedly over the last year if I would consider adding sponsors to this site. I was really torn about this decision for a long, long time. But then I started thinking about how adding sponsors to the site would benefit independent business owners with the exposure (A lot of web traffic comes through here daily). 
Let me be clear: I am not interested in profiting a single penny from hosting this site. 
What I am interested in is building a community and supporting my peers as well as independent, creative businesses. The monies collected from sponsors will all be used to purchase items to either A.) give away here --or -- B.) Donate to a worthy cause or charity. I will always be sharing those details here.


Photographer interviews & the weekly Newsletter will be phased out. I've already stopped offering and sending out the newsletter a few weeks ago. While I am so beyond thankful to the subscribers, it's just takes up too much of my time to craft, write, & send out a "what you missed" newsletter once a week.

If you want to keep up with all that is happening here at 52 Photos Project, considering following on Twitter, Facebook, or subscribing to the blog feed.


I am beyond ... so beyond excited to share with you that I will be offering two unique online photography workshops before the end of the year! The details will be released before the courses & enrollment begin. Right now, all I can give you are the dates:

Photography Workshop # 1 will run for 4 weeks:  July 29 - August 25
Photography Workshop # 2 will run for 4 weeks:  November 25 - December 22

The workshops will be open to everyone and I've tried to schedule them so they don't collide with any major holidays. Much more info is coming in due time.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read through. I'm delighted that you have supported me - and my hope is that you have felt supported here too. We've still got some exciting weeks to finish up before year 2 begins. 

Wishing you a great weekend !!


There are a bunch of share buttons right here below this post. I would so appreciate it if you would click on one of them to share the news!!

13 comments:

Deborah said...

while late getting started this year, I have enjoyed my participation and I am definitely looking forward to participating in your second year! and your classes sound exciting!

melissa said...

Bella this is awesome! I definitely need to pick up my camera more and you give me just the inspiration to do so. xoxo

Anonymous said...

O thank you! Now I can play each week, too. I am looking forward to starting from the beginning and carrying through for 52 weeks! This is such an inspiring project.
~Dawn

Donna Wynn (Yogiknitgirl) said...

Bella this all sounds so wonderful. I have grown immensely with my photography and my camera since I participated in the first year of 52 Photos Project. Thank you for all your hard work and your encouragement to so many of us to get out there and capture a moment. You are amazing and I speak for all of us, thank you for all the time and effort you are putting into this for us to enjoy. The workshops sound yummy, can't wait to see what is in store!!!!

Kerstin said...

Wow, Bella, this all sounds great! You are putting so much effort into this community and I know I am not alone in expressing my gratitude and appreciation to you, thank you so much. I like the idea of combining the photo with a writing prompt and to be encouraged to delve deeper. Looking forward to continuing to be a part of it :)

Laurie Richardson said...

Bella, I second every comment above! I discovered you soewmaht late in this current project year, but it has quickly become one of the creative highlights of my week, and I soapprieciate all of the time, effort, creativity and love of cratf you put into & share with the world! I am so excited to continue with the project this new year and cannot wait to see what thought provoking challenging prompts you come up with for me to help make me a better photographer AND writer-two of my greatest passions! Blessings to you and thank you again for your encouragement and inspiration! :)

Sam said...

Exciting! I want to challenge myself to share photos here more often...since I do mostly photos w/ my iPhone, I am not so good about uploading my photos to the computer in a timely fashion. Looking forward to the fun ahead!

michelle gd said...

bella, so terribly exciting...all of it!!! you have created a wonderful forum here and it's expanding in fabulous ways. woohoo!

Stef said...

so happy and excited for you and this site!! yay!!!

can't wait to see what unfolds ...xxx

Misty said...

This all sounds like a good way to get more comfy with my camera. Like the added writing prompt ideas as well. Can't wait to hear about your classes. One during the long summer months sounds great!

Cheryl said...

I'm looking forward to participating in another year of photography assignments and explorations. I've met some amazing photographers through your site. Thank you.

urban muser said...

i've really fallen apart here at the end of the 1st 52 weeks so i am looking forward to starting fresh! can't wait.
:)

Laura said...

I am very excited to have found this project in time to get in at least for the second year. :) Everything sounds like a lot of fun I can't wait to start!
thanks!