The Book is complete and uploaded to Blurb. Just. In. Time. For. Lunch.
Which is good since I somehow missed breakfast, not to mention a mid-morning snack. Unsurprisingly, I made a handful of adjustments at the last minute, adding more photos and rearranging pages. I created more work for myself, without a doubt, but am much happier with the book I just uploaded to BLURB then I was with the book I stared at for hours last night.
Yay for me!
Of course, there is a little glitch. I need to upload a PDF file of the book to the
SoFoBoMo site. I have saved a PDF, but the maximum size is 15 MB, and mine just happens to be 36 MB. Hmmmm... that seems like a pretty big difference. Anyway, I will need to figure out how to make it small enough to upload. I mean, it's done and the book has been ordered so I know I completed the challenge. I will not wear myself out too much with the PDF detail. There are some other tasks to tackle today.
Still, the rule follower in me probably won't rest until it's all done the way it should be.
PDF glitch aside, I am so glad I took part in this. Getting out of the house in the morning with my camera and photographing in new places was a perfect way to spend a month. Not to mention the great people I met along the way. There is also a piece I didn't really foresee: I like photographing food! I have spent years claiming to be a people photographer, and yet this past year has proven to me that I can do a decent job of capturing mother nature's beauty and/or some yummy goody just begging to be eaten. This challenge has opened my eyes to the shifts happening in my work. And I think it's safe to say I like it.
My approach to this project was one that I hoped would challenge me (it did) and educate me (it definitely did) and get me to finally make a book (I did). There was also the hope that I would create a body of work to show others. I scoped out both locations ahead of time, shopping and eating and then asking to speak to the owner. I pitched my idea and came away victorious. Then there were phone calls and emails and schedules to work out. Time spent in each location was not just about capturing images and telling a story, but also about revealing some of my own story. Gluten-free is my life, as well as theirs, and each person was able to share with me different pieces of their journey. Most of that info is up in my brain and not on the pages of the book, as this was a photo challenge, not a journalistic one.
On the technical side of things I shot entirely with a Nikon D300 (2, actually, since the first one malfunctioned and was traded in for another) using available light. Images were edited in Lightroom and the book was built in Blurb' software, Booksmart. Here are some fun stats for the last month:
Camera malfunctions - 2
Computer meltdowns - 1
Miles on car - 736
Tolls paid - $24
Sandwiches enjoyed - 4
Baked goods eaten - 16 (roughly)
Hours spent making book - countless
Now to go take care of that final detail......
Surfers on Higgins Beach
