Come up with a simple idea you would like to explore for a photograph or a short series of photos. Make sure the idea is small but has lots of room to grow and change.

Get or make a sketchbook. This can be a bound blank book or spiral-bound lined notebook, or you could simply take 10 sheets of strong paper and fasten them together.

Start your project by collecting related materials, writing about your idea, researching your idea, and even going out to take some test photos for your project. Paste visual material into your book. Think about the elements and principles you may want to use to make a strong photo and label experiments with at least three elements or principles in your sketchbook. Connect your visual ideas to your written thoughts and let the two work together in your process.

If possible, let your thoughts marinate for a few days. As thoughts come to you, feel free to add them to your scrapbook. Remember to use lots of different types of materials, including paint, drawing, fabric, objects, scribbling, photos, clippings, and anything you like. Make it rich and interesting—and play! At some point, hopefully, you will come to the illumination stage, and your ideas will come together for how you want to accomplish your photograph(s)..

Before you fully implement your ideas, take the time to explore possible processes for arriving at a finished photograph, including printing and painting on your photo, including text next to or on your photo, merging two or more photos together, and so on. Think through what would make the best process for you to express something about this subject.

Now go out and implement your plan. Make the photo or short series that you have been working towards. If you need a lot of time for post-processing, make sure to leave time to complete that.

Once you have a finished photo or series, take the time to write a bit about it in your sketchbook. Did it come out how you were hoping? Do you feel it communicates something new and interesting? Reflect on the entire process and how the image (or images) came together from start to finish.

Title your work, putting some thought into it. Turn in your finished photo(s) along with a digital copy of your sketchbook (you can photograph it). Your sketchbook should contain at least 5 pages of explorations, up to a maximum of 15 pages. Edit: this is supposed to be for photography but i clicked the wrong subject