“I can’t do that, exclaimed Valerie! I don’t know enough about publishing to write a book.”
That is the initial reaction of so many of the people I’ve spoken with about SoFoBoMo. The Solo Photo Book Month is a project that pits you against yourself. Pick any contiguous thirty-one days between 1 July and 31 August 2016. Choose a subject, photograph it, edit and arrange the images, and create a photo book. No fuss, no muss.
The cold reality is that most of us are just not motivated to deal with the potential pitfalls. We find it hard to get motivated. We find it hard to maintain focus. We find it difficult to get done!
But that is one of the greatest aspects of SoFoBoMo. There is no time to worry about what MIGHT happen. There is no time to choose the BEST format. There is no time to doddle.
Because you only get thirty-one days to complete the project, you have to keep moving. You can shoot something with which you are familiar and cut your learning curve. Or you can crash on something completely new to push the envelope.
Planning for SoFoBoMo
You must develop the entire book’s contents within the thirty-one days of SoFoBoMo. But you can prepare for the event. Consider the following before you start:
- Subject – What do I want to shoot?
- Theme – How and where do I want to shoot it?
- Software – What software do I need? What do I need to practice in that software before the event?
- Photo editing software
- Book editing software
- Slideshow software
- PDF conversion software
- Hardware – What hardware do I need? What do I need to practice with that hardware before the event?
- Camera
- Tripod
- Flash / Strobe
- Remotes
- Scrim
- Reflector
- Etc.
SoFoBoMo Ideas
Some subjects / themes that I have seen:
- My local area – shot as street photography
- Uses “normal” lenses
- Monochrome is pretty standard
- My dog / cat / pet
- Can be indoors, outdoors or both
- Can be with or without people / family
- Selective color – digital darkroom technique that still requires some form of subject matter
- Macro – field technique that still requires some form of subject matter
- Travel – document your vacation in book form
The most important part is that you sign up for SoFoBoMo 2016. We look forward to seeing what you can create.