This project has been a long time coming. For years I have been involved in creating videos for my technology channel. The days fill up with (enjoyable) tasks, then the weeks all seem to roll into one. I thoroughly enjoy every minute of it.

My real passion is photography and year after year I promise myself that I will dedicate more time to enjoying this creative art. Things never pan out as planned, so I thought it about time to explore exactly how far and to what level I could take my photos.

The UKSnapshot PEN Pic-a-Day Project will start on 1st March 2011. Every single day for a whole year I will upload a new photo both to this website and also to the Flickr account related to the project. This will help me to develop skills and to share with the world some beautiful sights. This will encourage both my own and viewers creativity & help explore the possibilities of moving emotions through photography.

I also run the website called Geekanoids - so you will also find updates on this website too.

What does the title PEN Pic-a-Day mean?
Well, the latter part of the title should be self explanatory, but the ‘PEN’ part refers to the model of camera I will be using.
Having had access to digital SLR cameras in the past, more often than not when I venture out, the camera stays behind. Digital SLR’s are big, bulky and often heavy, so it seems like a chore to carry a camera bag with all the equipment inside. The end result is that when I see something inspiring, I have no way of capturing the moment.
They often say that the best camera to have is the one you have with you all the time… or something along those lines.
I remember about a year or so ago I had the opportunity of using an Olympus PEN camera. It was compact, superbly made and delivered the same quality results that a larger SLR achieved. So for this project I will be using the new Olympus PEN E-PL2 as my camera of choice, to carry everywhere I go.

Olympus UK have also kindly agreed to sponsor this fundraising effort and will be supplying me with their PEN E-PL2 camera. Many thanks to them for their kind help.

 

Charity Benefit

I thought it would be really great after the 365th photo has been published that I give something back to say a big thank you. This will be done in a really superb way. I will be printing large copies of the eight best photos from the project and auctioning them off for charity. All profits from the sale will be equally split between the two charities listed below.
In addition to the sale, any excess funds left in the kitty will also be donated to the charities.

 

The charity I am supporting is Cancer Research UK who have saved millions of lives by discovering new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer. 

 

The second charity I am supporting is The Anaphylaxis Campaign who help provide information & guidance to people at risk from severe allergic reactions (anaphylaxis) relating to foods and other triggers such as latex, drugs and insect stings. I have a personal interest in this as my daughter suffers from a severe peanut allergy. If you would prefer to donate to this charity you can find a separate fundraising page here.

 

What you get out of it!

That ‘feel good factor’ of helping.

 

Where to find the PEN Pic-a-Day Project

The website I have setup to host the photos will grow in popularity as the project progresses. There is also a Flickr account which shows some examples of my photography and will also host the project photos, and YouTube account.

You can find the UKSnapshot PEN Pic-a-Day website here.
You can also find my website here where I might publish a few updates. 

 

Previous Videos

Some of the videos listed below are a little out of date, a new video will be online soon. 

PEN Pic-a-Day Introduction Video

 

Please note this fund was originally on a different website at Crowdfunder, but due to the fact that no funds would be released unless I met the target, I felt that Just Giving would be of far greater benefit to my chosen charities.