Looking for something that will motivate you to get out shooting? Why not try a Four-Season project? Simply pick a location close enough and accessible throughout the year so that you will be able to get to it at some point during the peak of each season. Pick a location that will highlight the changes in each season…. gardens and parks make good subjects; city skylines perhaps not so much. Many landscape subjects will work well, but here again there should be a significant difference in the landscape from one season the next.
The rest is easy: find a location that works, set up your tripod and shoot. The framing doesn’t have to be exact, but the closer each image is to the other three the better and more impactful will be your series. These can be shot handheld, as was the case with the four images above, but a tripod will make it easier to reproduce the framing from one image to the next. I exported a copy of the first image (winter in my case) to my phone and used it as an aid to find the same (more-or-less) position and framing each time I returned to this park near my home.
As a photo project, this will require a greater commitment than most, but the results are worth it. Aside providing motivation to get out and shoot, the results of a well-executed four-season project will look great printed large and hung in your office, studio, or home. They are also in constant demand at stock agencies and greeting card companies… try searching “four seasons” on the Getty Images web-site. Now is a great time to start a four-season project
Winter is about to breath it’s last gasp, so start now and you won’t have long to wait for your spring image.
