The common advice, at least in America, is always hold your head high when you walk. Well, I say sometimes it's better to always look down. Never know what you'll find down there.

I have a ton of photo projects going. Some are fairly common for everyone, such as take a photo of graffiti when I come across it. Some are perhaps common for foreigners in Japan, such as always take a photo of every torii gate I see. Others are likely less common for most people, such as take a photo of anything purple I see.

Photo projects are great to keep the creative juices flowing. When you are often in the same area, things grow normal and you stop noticing them. It's the same as writers block, I suppose, you might call it photo block, when nothing new jumps out and everything old seems uninteresting, so nothing seems worth taking a photo of.

In addition to certain things to look for, a photo project might include some kind of limitation, such as only take photos with your 50mm lens, or only use your smartphone.

Back when I taught photo class more often, I recommended to always have a list of projects and choose just one or two to follow when you go out for a photo walk.

This particular photo is from my Always Look Down project. I have a ton of these shots, finding interesting things or arrangements on the ground.

David LaSpina is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku.

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