While the majority of my street photography is taken while wandering aimlessly, I occasionally set myself a task to spur on some creativity. These tasks focus on creating a collection of images over time—whether during one single walk or over the course of many outings.
The projects are usually based around one specific element: colour, location, a certain subject, or even weather conditions. This approach isn't uncommon—many street photographers use it as a way of building cohesive portfolios and developing stories that come together naturally.
However, aside from the end result, I've discovered one major benefit to setting yourself a project: it's an incredibly effective way of beating creative lulls and boosting motivation. When you force yourself to work systematically and with intent, rather than spontaneously, it often brings about a spike in inspiration.
One of the great things about street photography is its randomness - finding stories in scenes you stumble across and creating moments from the everyday. Limiting yourself to specific rules makes things trickier, but it also gives you a clear path to follow.
Sometimes I get what can only be described as 'cloudiness.' The world feels almost too busy to find meaningful scenes and stories. Limiting your view to certain guidelines helps dissolve that cloud and brings focus back to your work. But it's important to note that projects aren't just for the down days. 
While in Hanoi - a city I fell in love with (almost) instantly - I set myself a little photography side quest. Aside from capturing life of the city and the general scenes, I wanted to build a collection of photos based around one of my favourite colours to photograph: red. Obviously.
In truth, it was almost too easy: red was everywhere. But that didn’t take away from the enjoyment. If anything, it sharpened my awareness and pushed me toward subjects I might have otherwise overlooked. Some of those images ended up being among my favourites from the entire trip. What I’ve come to appreciate is that these kinds of projects subtly change the way you move through a space. Sometimes with street photography, it's easy to react to the moments around you more than filtering and searching for them. When working towards a collection of a specific subject, you start to notice patterns that would normally pass you by without a second thought. It’s a small shift, but it changes everything about how you engage with your surroundings.
There’s also a quiet sense of satisfaction in collecting these moments. It's like piecing together something over time without fully knowing what the final result will look like. Each frame becomes part of a larger puzzle and while it doesn't lessen the impact of the standalone image, they become somewhat more meaningful when viewed as a collection and body of work. And perhaps that's the biggest benefit of all: it doesn't have to be about chasing the perfect single shot and I guess the moral of the story is simple: sometimes, limiting yourself allows you to see more.
