In spite of being known for our mild, temperate climate and outdoor lifestyle, May is one of those months that can become monochromatic. Terms like “May Gray” and “June Gloom” describe those days when we are wishing for summer and sunshine, but plagued by a persistent gray, chilling marine layer along our coast here in San Diego. And with all that gray in mind, I’m thinking May be the perfect month to play with changing our moods. And thinking about weather and our attitudes toward it, I am reminded of a quote describing the teacher’s role in the classroom related to the climate.

I’ve come to a frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It’s my personal approach that creates the climate. It’s my daily mood that makes the weather… Haim G. Ginott

As a photographer, I also make choices about the mood in my images. The ways I frame the subjects, how the light touches them, the composition within, all impact the mood portrayed. And with mood in mind, can we find interesting photos to capture that reflect a particular feeling? So for May, our challenge is to capture a mood through a daily photograph.  I’ve listed suggestions for each day by letter of the alphabet, with a few extras thrown in to add up to 31, the number of days in the month.  You get to decide how to portray the mood.  You can experiment with lighting, use apps to change the appearance, try different ways of cropping, shoot from different angles…the interpretation is totally up to you!  You can be literal or take liberties with the definition, let your inner artist play! After you shoot, post a photo each day with the hashtag #sdawpphotovoices to Twiiter, Instagram, Flicker, Google+ and/or Facebook (the more the better!), so that we can all enjoy the posts. If you are game for some extra action, compose a blog post about a photo, a week’s worth of photos, write a photo essay, try a learning walk, or write some poetry or even a song! You are invited to create a pingback by linking to this url or post your blog address in the comment section. It’s fun for me to see what others are doing with the same prompts I am using! Here’s a couple of my experiments with mood. Vibrant: Tense: Optimistic (maybe only Jack…Phil seems indifferent or defeated): Hopeful: Tranquil: So now it’s your turn, here’s our list for May: 1. Anxious 2. Buoyant 3. Calm 4. Drained 5. Effervescent 6. Frustrated 7. Grumpy 8. Hopeful 9. Indifferent 10. Incredulous 11. Jubilant 12. Kind 13. Listless 14. Mellow 15. Narcissistic 16. Optimistic 17. Pensive 18. Playful 19. Quiet 20. Reflective 21. Solemn 22. Sad 23. Tense 24. Tranquil 25. Uneasy 26. Vibrant 27. Wistful 28. Whimsical 29. E(x)cited 30. Yearning 31. Zealous Let moods get your creative juices flowing as you explore through your lens during May.  Have fun, experiment, play with the limits of your photography…May is the perfect time for testing just how far you can go in controlling the climate through your images. You can post every day, once a week, or even sporadically throughout the month…whatever works in your life. Be sure to share and tag your photos with #sdawpphotovoices so we can find them!