Having uploaded my 2014 100x project images, and then talked about them, I thought I'd better explain what a 100x project is!

The idea behind the 100x project came from a few flickr contacts who wanted to keep in touch while doing a particular project. In previous years we'd undertaken 365 day projects and 52 week projects together. However, the 365 day projects consumed a vast amount of time, while the 52 week project didn't keep us engaged enough. We needed a middle ground. So, the 100x project was born!

The idea behind the 100x is that you take 100 images of your chosen subject x. X can be an object, a theme, a genre or anything else you can think of, as long as there is some kind of link. My chosen x was Flora on Black.

I very much enjoyed taking part in the project, as I had in previous 365 day and 52 week projects, and I learned so much from sticking to the theme.

Anyone who knows me knows that I love statistics, and I couldn't resist coming up with some once I'd completed the project! I thought I'd share them with you...

• I grew 34 of the flowers myself, and my dad grew 55 of them - the remaining 11 were shop bought!
• There are 22 white blooms, 24 red/pink blooms, 21 yellow blooms, 21 blue blooms, 10 orange blooms, and 2 images with no blooms at all!
• The most photographed type of flower was the lily, with 7 different examples! There were 4 roses, 3 tulips, 3 chrysanthemums, 3 daffodils, 3 pansies, 3 poppies, 2 geraniums, 2 coreopsis, 2 iris and 2 forest flame images! There were also 66 other different types of flora pictured!
• In total, there were 77 different types of floral specimens used for the project!
• Now, what's interesting is that 17 of these were shrubs, 2 were houseplants, 73 were flowers, 1 was a vegetable and 7 were (traditionally known as) weeds - although I'd argue whether they were weeds or flowers!
• I took a total of 313 images, from which I selected the 100 for the project!
• I picked a lot of flowers!
• I learned that hardly any flowers grow in the winter!!
• I shot lots of flowers between June and October!
• I learned a lot about shooting floral images with up to three flashguns against a black background!
• I learned that a black background doesn't look black when you point a flashgun at it!!
• I learned that however perfect a specimen you think you've picked, it won't be perfect!
• I learned that water, bright light and green leaves don't mix!
• I learned that bugs get everywhere, and will photobomb you at every opportunity!
• I learned that you can't shoot a flower without also shooting a spider web between October and November!
• I learned that yellow is probably the hardest colour to shoot with flash!
• I learned that I love shooting floral images against a black background - as long as they're not yellow!
• My favourite images are number 33, 61, 78 and 85!

I'd thoroughly recommend anyone take part in a 100x project, especially if you're just starting out in photography, as it is a great way of honing your skills.

Take a look at my 100x:2014 portfolio page to see the complete set of images...