Just Like The Number

Project 3(Six)5

New year, new project, new blog (kind of).  I've been tempted to tackle Project 365, in which you commit yourself to taking a photo a day for a year.  Some people stick to a theme (self-portraits, kids, food), but I'm just hoping to make it out the other side in one piece, with 365 photos under my belt.

Nearly two years ago, I did 30 posts in 30 days.  It really pushed me to think about my days and I'd like to think it improved my writing a bit.  Looking back, I enjoyed having a snippet of each day recorded.  I'm hoping Project 365 will accomplish much of the same thing: improving my photography and providing a glimpse at a year's worth of the extraordinary ordinary.

I wanted to find a way to share the photos in my project beyond the handful of people who look at my flickr page.  Theoretically, I could do it here, but I didn't want to bog down this blog, nor change its feel, with daily photo posts.  Enter Typepad's newest service, the microblog.  Nothing fancy, just a slick little blog to quickly upload photos and perhaps a few words.  I call it 3(six)5.  My mantra for 3(six)5 is "More photos. Less words."  I'll let the pictures tell the story.

I hope you'll check it out now and then.  You'll always be able to link directly to it through the navigation bar at the top of this blog.  If you're feeling adventurous, you can subscribe directly to its feed.  There's a link on the sidebar of 3(six)5 for you to do just that.

Happy New Year!

Hoosier Photo Editor?

Perhaps some of us have assimilated a bit too well to Indiana . . .

Don't worry, though.  There are smocked overalls waiting in the wings for Christmas.  We're all about balance here.

If you're the type that interested in all things photo related, I've been having a great time using Picnik as an editing tool for my pictures.  It's a free site for uploading and editing pictures.  I received a 3 month subscription to their premium service at BlogHer, and I think I might be hooked.  I have Photoshop Elements as well, but either it has a really steep learning curve, or I'm dumber than a box of rocks.  My use of Photoshop entails manual books, online tutorials, at least an hour per picture, and a whole slew of swear words.  And with all of that I still can't figure it out.  For what I need now, I can do it quick and easily in Picnik - like the rounded corners and 70s color effect in the photo above. 

If you have experience with photo editing programs, I'd love to hear your thoughts.  Which programs are awesome?  Which do you hate with a passion?  I'm about over Photoshop unless someone can convince me it can be mastered.  

Until then, we'll be here doing Hoosier-y things.  You know, riding tractors, playing basketball, and eating pork tenderloins as big as your head.