Photo Of The Day: Here’s Where Six Months Went

Day 109 of Project 366, the arrival at St Helena Airport of a British Airways Boeing 737-800 on 18 April to test the new runway. This was the day the issue of ‘wind shear’ threw the schedule of opening operations into a spin. We decided to photograph this historic landing from on top of the Longwood Barn. Click image for full post including video.

PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT 366 AT HALFWAY | Darrin Henry

Any good editor is often required to be ruthless, whether it’s trimming a news report, cutting a film or, in our case, selecting final photographs. Editing your own work is harder as you’re emotionally attached, but deadlines, print space, time and word count allotments require ‘yea’ or ‘nay’ decisions to be made quickly.

Photo Of The Day

Six months into our photography ‘Project 366,’ we’re halfway there, in calendar months at least and it’s a great feeling. A relief as much as anything! At first we worried we might forget to pick up the camera on any one day. After passing 100 days of Project 366 it sort of became automatic to think ‘photo of the day’ each morning.

Day 140 of Project 366, fuel stocks on St Helena being topped up by the tanker, Jo Lotus, on 19 May. We were out before dawn for this and shot a series of images from different parts of the valley. The image we selected shows the brand new jetty which would be officially opened the following month.

Day 127 of Project 366 – a night of glitz and glamour at the 2016 Miss St Helena beauty pageant on 6 May gave us plenty of images to choose from.

On the other hand, choosing just one picture when we have plenty has often been a headache. Worse if both of us have been shooting that day. Whose will it be? That’s where the editing dilemma comes in on this project; choosing a single image to represent the day.

Choice is a wonderful thing but too much of a good thing…

What Is A Project 366

A Project 366 (leap year) is a major undertaking, making the commitment to capture a fresh, interesting picture every day. And we’re not pulling from archives; we’re strict about shooting the content within that same day.

When we’re out and about it’s usually easy to capture a selection of images. However, you can normally tell when we have been at home all day or struggling for inspiration. These are the days we photograph still life: pegs, spice bottles, the filament in a light bulb or a bowl of fruit!

Day 160 of Project 366, a typical stay-at-home, rainy day photograph! We had been toying with the idea of peg patterns for a while and on 8 June it finally became a table-top, strobe project.

Day 80 of Project 366 – who knew Everlastings were so pretty? Growing wild near our house, these everlastings are so tempting in the late afternoon sunshine and a sure thing if we ever need a picture quickly. This one was shot on 20 March and given the title, ‘Havana’ as President Obama’s visit to Cuba was making headlines on that day.

Day 165 of Project 366, was a glorious weather day on St Helena which prompted us to take the camera out for the afternoon. The picture of St Helena and the Cross church made the cut from a huge selection, but this sunset view out the window while watching Euro 2016 later in the evening was a close second.

The immediate landscape surrounding our house has also become a ‘safety net’ resource, late in the afternoon when a photograph is still required. We are lucky to live in the countryside, surrounded by flowers, trees and great views, especially the gorgeous Atlantic sunsets.

Sunsets and everlastings have come to our rescue on a couple of occasions!

Day 46 of Project 366 – hiking to Flagstaff Post Box the track runs between the St Helena wind farm.

A Bay Watch Kitten On Day 53

The picture titles in Project 366 are mostly abstract, referencing world affairs, or events and personal experiences here on St Helena. Funny thing is, these titles are sometimes as difficult to choose as the pictures! Some are obvious, ‘Orlando Pulse’ on Day 164 was the day of America’s worst mass shooting in a Florida night club. Others, not so obvious. Day 53’s picture of a kitten is called, ‘Bay Watch’ as we had spent the afternoon taking pictures in Sandy Bay. The caption ‘Eliza’ on Day 70 that goes with a crayfish is actually the name of the boat we were on at the time.

Day 53 of Project 366 – at the end of an afternoon walking through the beautiful district of Sandy Bay on St Helena, back in February, we met this photogenic and very playful kitten. How could this cute little face not be picture of the day.

Day 155 of Project 366, the historic first air medevac from St Helena began on 3 June when a Guardian Air, Falcon 20 jet, touched down at St Helena Airport. We were blessed with gorgeous clear weather on this day, followed by wet and dreary conditions early the next morning for take-off. Full story with pictures & video.

One of the most interesting by-products of doing a Project 366 is a friend has now introduced us to a video version of the project, which I’m sure we’ll be trying in 2017. Watch this space.

Entering into the second half of the year our biggest fear, once again, is forgetting to take a picture one day or discovering a corrupted memory card too late. Fingers crossed!

Would you consider doing a Project 366? Or perhaps you are already, if so, let us know how you’re getting on.

Day 182 of Project 366 – this happy image of Saints catching up on The Bridge in Jamestown, 30 June, completes a successful first six months of the project.