Benefit 1: Building Empathy for Your Subjects & The World
Long-term projects help develop empathy by making you consider what others are going through if you want to really examine humanity in each frame. I’m working on a Bangkok street project that aims to understand the lives of workers with respect and kindness, inspired by Matt Black’s American Geography series. His approach to documenting daily life and socioeconomics is how I want to tell these stories. Few photos on social media today seem to look beyond the surface. Taking time to understand your subjects builds empathy, fulfillment, and more powerful work.
Benefit 2 & 3: Unfair Advantage of Location
Shooting street means returning to the same places over and over. That builds an unfair advantage—you know the light, angles, and rhythms better than any tourist. I'm working on a transit project in Bangkok that’s taught me this deeply. Most travelers shoot the same scenes, while I get better images by knowing these spaces intimately. Over time, people grow used to seeing me, so I get access others can't. W. Eugene Smith inspired this idea—he’d spend days pretending to shoot without film in his camera so his subjects would get comfortable and moments could happen naturally once he proceeded to shoot with film loaded from there on out.
Benefit 4: Self-Examination
Long-term work helps you reflect on yourself, your reasons for creating, and themes that are bigger than you. Religion was forced on me growing up, yet I’m still drawn to it as a global force. My project Global Gods explores dominant and minority religions in various countries. I don’t know all there is to know about most religions in the world, so I want to stay aware of how being an outsider shapes what I photograph. That level of self-awareness should be part of your own creative process and it can inform what you think about and what you shoot.
Benefit 5: Reflection
This benefit is about seeing how the world sees you. Bangkok has these beat-up mirrors everywhere, and I’ve started photographing them for a new project. They reflect surroundings in odd and interesting ways. Inspired by Lee Friedlander’s shadow self-portraits in The Shadow Knows, this work puts me in the frame. Unlike most street work that hides the photographer, Friedlander made himself visible—something I’m exploring too and something I think all photographers should consider exploring at some point in their career.
Benefit 6: Always Knowing What To Shoot
Street photography can feel aimless unless you’re building toward something. Having multiple projects means you can shoot for one or more at any location. I once did a project photographing tourists, and returning with different ideas helped me see more possibilities. I got images I’d otherwise miss. Inspired by Martin Parr, that tourist project is one I’ve highlighted before, and it continues to grow with each revisit especially now that I have all of these other projects in mind, it’s become incredibly easy to keep expanding on those ideas.
Benefit 7: Expanding Your Artistic Horizons
Long-term projects expand your creative scope. YouTubers like Willem Verbeek inspire me—his Morro Bay and Purple Street Lights projects evolve as he explores new spaces. Especially the street lights—they lead him across LA to shoot in ways no one else is. My overpass project does the same—it forces me into new areas, unknown places, and gives me unexpected, satisfying results.
Benefit 8: Unique Projects Kill Copycats
The internet is full of plagiarism. If you commit to something unique and document it, that project becomes yours. People won’t chase Purple Street Lights because that’s Willem’s. Kyle McDougall’s Lost WWII Artwork project is another example. His deep documentation makes it clear it’s his. Anyone could copy you, but if you build something distinct, you’ll create a one-of-a-kind result that people associate with you and won’t want to plagiarize, because of how clear it is that they’re being a copycat.
Benefit 9: Building Patience
Long-term projects build patience. If there’s a goal, and you’re committed to it, you stay motivated. It’s easy to stop shooting when nothing feels exciting anymore, especially when just chasing single good photos. But adding a great image to an ongoing project reignites that excitement. The greats took years to make legendary work—some books span careers, but 200 great shots over a lifetime is doable. They weren’t chasing fast turnarounds. They stuck with their vision, and the results still inspire us today.