Put the date in your diary! Set your alarm clock! Grab your camera!
For…..
Sunday 15th April 2012 at…….4am!
What is the 4am Project?
The 4am Project is a ground-breaking global photography project that aims to encourage worldwide social collaboration to capture a view of the world at the often unseen time of 4am.
Since it’s launch in April 2009, the project has attracted participants from nearly 50 countries, and there is a digital archive of over 6000 images and is one of the biggest world-wide photography collaborations.
Why not flex your photography muscles with other photographers around the world at 4am (in your local time) on Sunday 15th April?
It’s a thought provoking project that inspires and challenges! Experience an often unseen time of the day and be part of a world wide community collaboration!
It was the 4am Project’s 2nd birthday on the 24th April, the date of the last global event, and 100′s of photographers across the globe took part in the birthday celebrations by leaving their beds and heading out into their neighbourhoods to capture their view of the world.
Some photographers had their cameras for company, some got together with friends, and whether solo or in a group, they all contributed to a global photography collaboration. This event alone resulted in over 1000 photographs being submitted, and since the project began two years ago, there are over 6000 quality images from over 40 countries! Amazing!
So, without further ado, sit back and enjoy April 2011 the view of the world before dawn….
I’ll have to kick off with the event I organised in my home city of Birmingham UK. I got together with Project Brutal and the iconic Central Library (which may be demolished) open it’s doors to over 40 photographers! I’ve blogged about it in more detail over on my Karen Strunks blog, but here are just a few of the highlights.
Enjoy some more 4am photographs taken from other parts of the world!
It’s always great to read and hear the stories behind the photos, and why people set their alarms to get up and take part in the project.
I love this video from Andrew Stuart who says of himself….. “The one where Andrew talks nonsense and makes little sense at a time when you are (or should) be asleep”. Great beach setting.
And Andew sums the appeal of the project perfectly in his blog post. “It’s something else the 4am project gives. I very much doubt anyone would say “yes, i’ll drive 100 miles across the country to take photos alongside a person i’ve never met, in the middle of the night, for no genuine reason”. However, the reason of it being in tandem with a lot of other photographers, insomniac or not, busy or quiet, and of different levels of interest, ability and style, even though you are not quite present, means the project thrives.”
There is no doubt that perceptions of familiar day time views change at 4am. Whilst everyone else is asleep there are photographers across the world embracing not just a collaborative project, but the secrets of the scenes that 4am holds.
What’s happening next?!
Well, you’l be pleased to hear that the 4am Project is set to continue! As of now, I am planning the hold the next global 4am event in the Autumn, September/October time, so watch this space or keep on eye out on twitter for announcements too.
I’ve also got a LOT of other plans for the project that I would love to realise. For the last two years, not only have I been working behind the scenes running the project, but also coming up with ideas to help it grow and reach it’s full potential. There is an AMAZING archive of images online and it would be great to see them off line too in a touring exhibition for example. That’s just one (big!) idea, and there’s plenty more. I realise I’m going to need help if I want to develop the project and take it forward, so I’ll be reaching out to companies that are a good match for the project and are in-line with it’s ethos, and have the ability to support the project in it’s development to see if they wish to sponsor the project.
Thank you to everyone who has taken part in the project! And for all your enthusiasm and great feedback too. Here’s to the next 4am Project event!
The new 4am date for your diay is 24th April, and the 4am Project will be celebrating it’s 2nd Birthday!
What a fabulous 2 years it has been! With hundreds of photographers from around 40 countries taking part so far, there are nearly 5000 images of the world a 4am – truely a global picture!
Thank you to everyone who has taken part so far!
The 4am Project aims to capture a view of the world at that often unseen time of day. It’s not just a photography project, but a global collaboration built by a world wide community.
Please help spread the word about the project on your websites and blog and tell your friends. You can even embed this snazzy countdown clock too!
Whether you are planning on getting together with friends for some urban exploration, or you want to relish the solitude and quiet that 4am can bring you, enjoy your 4am photo experience.
If I can help put you in touch with other 4am photographers in your area, please let me know, and I’ll put a request out to the 4am network.
Yes! You heard it right! The 4am Project is about to hit Manhattan. This is probably the project’s (and my!) biggest goal to date.
I am so delighted to be able to bring the 4am Project to the heart of New York City.
Times Square will be pumping with energy and will promise some stunning images to early morning photographers who want to capture the exhilarating activity in a 24 hour city.
If you are a New Yorker with an interest in the unusual (and perhaps mild insomnia) come and take part in this innovative global photography project to record and document the world before dawn.
I’m going to be hosting a special event in the beating heart of Manhattan that is Times Square at 4am on October 17th, and I’m inviting bleary eyed photographers on an exhilarating early morning photography walk to capture images of the city that never sleeps.
I hope you can join me and other New York photographers in this extraordinary photo walk at the ‘crossroads of the world’.
The 4am Project is an exercise in global solidarity to encourage the sharing of visual imagery that reflects the world we live in. This is the Project’s second year, and word has spread like wildfire, with people picking up their cameras in over 40 countries across the globe including UK, Brazil, Italy, China, Swaziland, Libya, Germany, Laos and the USA.
It’s a worldwide collaborative experience, aiming to capture a time of day that many people rarely see. At the heart of the 4am project is the aim to bring both photographers and non-photographers together, to create a global community which demonstrates how amazing our surrounding landscapes can be.
EVENT DETAILS
Time: 3.45 AM on Sunday 17th October
Meeting Place: Outside the New York Police Station on Times Square
Event ends at 5am, though I suggest it would be a nice opportunity to grab a coffee and meet the 4am Photographers!
Hrish ‘dhempe’ Thota organised a fantastic 4am Project photo walk in Bangalore, India. 13 photographers left their beds and headed out into the market place for an early morning photo shoot.
As you can see from Hrish’s slide show, 4am in the market place is very busy indeed! For these market workers, 4am isn’t an unusual time. They regularly set their alarm clocks and are working hard whilst most of us sleep.
Who will you meet at 4am? Will you have your neighbourhood to yourself? Will you get together with other photographers? Let me know your plans!
Photographer Lee Allen from Wolverhampton got together with friends and organised his own 4am Project photo walk for the last 4am date in April. Check out his amazing video!
