another amazing (and sad) project -- photo of the day. the project is by jamie livingston, a man who took a polaroid a day, for eighteen years...until the day he died, on his 41st birthday. i find it absolutely incredible how his life's story is captured through one photograph a day. and again, how he was completed committed to this (very) long-term project. not a day missed, even when he was too sick to take a picture himself.

The photographer’s name was Jamie Livingston. He was a film maker and editor who worked on public information films, adverts and promo videos for MTV. Taking a single photo every day began by accident when he was 22 and studying film with Crawford at Bart College, in upstate New York. “He’d been doing it for about a month before he realised he’d been taking a photo about one picture a day, and then he made the commitment to keep doing that,” says Crawford. “That’s what he was like. There are some people who have flashes of brilliance and do things in a huge rush or creative burst but he was more of a steady, keep-at-it kind of guy and he did amazing stuff. Part of the appeal of the site is that Jamie was not this amazing-looking guy. He led an incredible life, but there’s an every man quality to the photographs.” - only the blog knows brooklyn

jamie livingston's first polaroid | march 31st 1979

and his last | october 25th 1997

an awesome summary of the project can be found here

a more detailed description of jamie livingston's project can be found here

and you can see all the polaroids, over the 18 years, here on this site

really has me thinking... yet again.

ETA: erin just commented this:

what gets me the most-- is that all of these things coming out is helping people right now to realise that we are part of history too. that our lives are all crushingly beautiful, painful, normal it painfully shows us reality, depth, and the art of life and the everyday. it makes you take a closer look at what you are leaving behind.. what story do i want to tell?

and she's so dead on!!

WHAT STORY DO I WANT TO TELL?

what stories am i telling right now? especially as a professional photographer, who sadly struggles to capture my own story...openly, freely and honestly.

can't help but think that the universe is screaming at me right now. and i am listening.