Filming one second of life every day

I can't take credit for the originality of the idea to film one second a day from my life for a year...I stole it from a friend. But I loved the idea so much, and I'm enjoying the experience enough, to want to write a quick piece about the whys and wherefores of it all!

What?

The idea is to film a second each and every day of ANYTHING that takes your fancy/makes you smile/will remind you of the day/is a bit odd/etc. My clips to date include: llamas, the countryside, fairy lights, food, friends, family and travelling. I've decided to film general, un-themed clips of my life, but other people have filmed their children growing up, their holidays, their pregnancies, their pets, their wedding preparations...there's no limit!

Why?

I thought it was such a lovely idea; to have a little film filled with snippets of my life to look back on. Two of my favourite ever posts so far (to write) have been my 'Things I learned from 2015' and 'Favourites of 2015' and so the concept of creating a video version of these seemed perfect. 

There have been some days this year I'd have rather forgotten existed and the last thing I felt like doing was getting my phone out to record a slice of the day. But, having committed (I feel I have anyway!) to find a second a day I want to remember and record has meant I have managed to find a teensy 'something' in each and every day. A 'something' that, although not always much, will help me to remember and mark that day for what it was. Whether it was a plate of cheese and biscuits late at night or a bunch of sunny, yellow, happy daffodils on a particularly sad day. It's made me more observant, more aware of my surroundings and more keen to find something life-enhancing or positive in each day. 

How?

This is where the idea gets technical...but not too technical! I use the app 1 Second Everyday to film, trim, store (and remind me to record) my second every day. I believe there are other apps which do the same thing, this is just the one I use. I find the app pretty easy to use and it's free; so that's a win-win! The app comes with a calendar (see my screenshot below) that allows you to film and then trim videos on each day. Then, at any time, you can choose to condense these seconds into one film at the press of a button. You can see from the screenshot that your calendar will fill up with videos as and when you film them - I'm writing this on Saturday 2nd April, so you can see that there's an orange corner on today's date and the boxes from 3rd April onwards contain no videos. This way you can easily keep track of where you are. 

My top two tips are: 

1. You can actually have 1.5 seconds (makes a loooot of difference, believe me!) you just need to click the 1S button on the trimming screen to change it to 1.5S. Thanks to my friend for pointing this out to me. D'oh!

2. (and something I've only just discovered a way around) You need an internet connection to open the app and record directly, but fear not - I would recommend you film using your normal phone camera instead of the app. All videos you've filmed outside of the app sync to the app on their corresponding days anyway, so you'll never miss a stand-out second because your internet has gone up the spout!

When?

I decided to film from my birthday this year to my birthday next year. However, you can start any time you like! And if you miss the odd day - so what? I think the key is that you enjoy the process of creating the film and creating a visual time-capsule, not that it becomes a chore or something you must or ought to do.

If you were to film a second of today, what would you choose to record or remember?

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