I'm still struggling to find motivation for the 365 Project. It feels like the urge to give up is there everyday now. I've found taking a fair amount of shots on one day then spreading them out has eased the pressure a little. Okay, it's cheating to an extent, it is a still a picture posted everyday though. Honestly, the way my head is at the minute, going out each day is the last thing I want to be doing. However good it may be for me.
I understand getting fresh air and walking is good for your mental health. Sometimes though, staying in and (attempting) to relax is also a good option. Sometimes even the thought of opening the door and bumping into whoever sends a shiver down my spine.

I've been quite quiet the past couple of weeks. My brain went into a bit of a shut down. However it has given me a lot of time to think, occasionally, too much.
Numerous times I've wanted to give up on the Project365. I've got this niggling feeling that won't go away. I feel like I'm not good enough, I have so many ideas and plans but none that seem plausible. It's so infuriating. At this point in time, doing the 365 isn't that enjoyable, however I am improving all be it slowly. I find that more often than not I lose motivation, or simply can't think of any photo ideas. I'm trying not to do shots of the same/similar places too often but that's not easy.

It dawned on me a while ago that I don't actually have any of my own work on display, at least not physically, it's all online or hidden away on the PC. However, I recently decided to start selling some of my images. The past few weeks I've received a fair bit of advice about the correct way to go about selling my prints, mounting and framing them. It's going to be a fairly big moment for me. I'm not entirely sure there is many people who actually want my work in their homes but I can hope.
I've always wanted to get my work out there and have it displayed properly. I need to start being more proud of what I've accomplished which will hopefully lead only to more. At the moment I'm awaiting various papers and colour correction samples to work out which I want to use. My mount kits should be arriving this week so maybe in the next few weeks I'll have the first few available to buy!

Some days I feel like I haven't got any better at photography, sometimes it feels like I've actually got worse, that I've not had any development. That is until I look back at older photographs and realise how bad they are.Don't get me wrong, there are some good shots mixed in, some which I will always be proud of but on the whole they are awful. Looking back through both my Flickr page and my unpublished ones it really makes me cringe. I've been doing photography for around 10 years now, which in itself is hard to believe, but up until recently I've never really felt like a real photographer.Some days I feel like I haven't got any better at photography, sometimes it feels like I've actually got worse, that I've not had any development. That is until I look back at older photographs and realise how bad they are.
Don't get me wrong, there are some good shots mixed in, some which I will always be proud of but on the whole they are awful. Looking back through both my Flickr page and my unpublished ones it really makes me cringe. I've been doing photography for around 10 years now, which in itself is hard to believe, but up until recently I've never really felt like a real photographer.

Night photography is one of those things I've always wanted to master. I've tried multiple times, and failed pretty much every attempt. So I thought now would be the best time to improve when doing the Project365 challenge.
Strangely, it's somewhat working. Already in a month (and a bit) I've seen a improvement. I've stepped out of my comfort zone with my photography and played about with it a lot more.

So, I originally planned this post to be out yesterday, however it has taken a lot longer than planned to organise and write. Writing about my mental health always requires more time than I plan for.
Thursday 1st February 2018 marked Time to Talk day. Although, a day really isn't enough. It should be time to talk everyday. The following post is probably going to be my most personal and most difficult to write but it's an important one.

Firstly this is not my usual topic of choice for a blog and it may not be a pleasant idea for some people. However, it is an important one. This week is Cervical Cancer Prevention Week.
I put off having my Cervical Screening Test, otherwise known as the delightful smear test, for a year. The day I received my letter inviting me to go to my GP to have potentially the most embarrassing procedure done was not my idea of fun.

So, to start I need to do a bit of a catch up for the past few days. I missed when the site was down for maintenance. I've added a new page and gallery for my Project365 images which looks better. Not going to lie though.  As satisfying as it is to have made my own website, it really was a complete pain.
The past few images haven't been my best but I'm not quite as stressed as I was. Worth it, I guess. Now I've separated the 365 pictures from the blog I should be able to put it to much better use. It's definitely easier to explain what's been going on and how I'm feeling. So far I don't think the mental health side of the blog has really been that obvious. I made this site in order to display both my pictures but to also, and mainly, improve my mental health through writing.