In a photographic rut
Posted on October 1, 2008 in Corel Photo Painter (Category: Default)
A few months ago I was getting in a photographic rut. I was bored with my photography!
The weather was quite poor. It was early Spring and still not good enough to go out and ride to look for some opportunities. Work was interfering. We just had had a major reorganisation and the new bosses were full of energy and ideas. That was contagious but I was hesitant to follow. Seen it before, and seen it fail every time. Opportunities were not "popping" up and my eye was failing me.
So, I was wondering, did I have Spring time blues or should I get myself involved in some "project"? I had been thinking of finishing at least 1 photo book before the summer but, with the trouble I had with Lulu.com, I wasn't much inclined anymore to use their services.
I was definitely getting bored with my photography. It had all become the same ol' crap. I wondered what to do.
Some of the suggestions I got were good, and might be just the kind of suggestions you need too when you have photographer's block.
A project. Set yourself a challenging project. One that is ambitious and challenging yet something you want to do. One that you can pick up (and put down) from time to time to explore and approach from different angles. One that might result in a recognizable body of work.
A website. Set up a website to display your best work. Check the internet for tons of examples, like the Shards of Photography photo portfolio.
A city tour. Pick a city, book a weekend trip there and shoot there with the purpose of coming up with a set of photos that could be (self)published as a book.
A local tour. Take the bus (metro, tram, whathaveyou) to a random place in your hometown. Get off and walk around and shoot for 2-3-5 hours. Go nowhere in particular, seek nothing. Embrace whatever you encounter.
Another local tour. Take a look every morning to your city's events agenda. Take note of the interesting public events taking place. Then select the one(s) that seems most interesting, or just the one(s) in a district you'd like to visit anyway, just in case the event is not that worth. Or just pick a random one. Not only do you have a reason to go out (shooting the event) but you still have the option to walk around for 5 hours.
An adventurous trip. Plan and book that adventurous trip you've been thinking of for all those years: a road trip along Route 66, a cycling trip across the Pyrenees, a safari in Kenia, or take the Transsiberia Express to Mongolia.
An exhibtion. Use the photos you already have to put together an exhibition, even just for family and friends. Select the photos, get them printed to a high standard, arrange a venue (like a local cafe), and make it happen.
A 100 prints project. Either go through your old photos or shoot and pick 1 photo every day or week. Print it and keep it stored. After 100 days/weeks, evaluate your photos. If you're lucky you might have enough good prints to do a book or an exhibition.
A self portrait. Not a simple snap in the mirror but a real one. In any style you want. And not necessarily just the outside. Impressionist or Surreal is good too.
A course. Book a photography course in a line that you usually would not pursue, like nude photography with professional models. Don't forget to shoot the horny Newton-wannabees as well as the models. :)
A different kind of photography. Try your hand at table-top photography, macro, pinhole or infrared if that is not your usual kind of shooting. Otherwise try landscape photography, or street or soft focus portraits.
A different kind of gear. Do not buy a new camera or other gear! Instead try to rent or borrow gear that you normally don't use, like panorama, medium format, large format, B&W film, or colour, or digital. Explore its uses, its quirks, its benefits.
Revisit your old work. Revisit your old work, not to put together an exhibition but as a history lesson. How did you improve? Did you change style or methods? Are you now shooting different subjects and scenes? Learn from your mistakes. Perhaps find a line of shooting you abandoned long ago.
Make cards. Use your photos to make postcards, and post them to friends and family. Drop by your local shops and see whether they are interested in selling them.
And if all of this fails, Sell all of your cameras. It sounds rash but what good are they if you Original article: In a photographic rut
photo, photography, book, good, trip
The weather was quite poor. It was early Spring and still not good enough to go out and ride to look for some opportunities. Work was interfering. We just had had a major reorganisation and the new bosses were full of energy and ideas. That was contagious but I was hesitant to follow. Seen it before, and seen it fail every time. Opportunities were not "popping" up and my eye was failing me.
So, I was wondering, did I have Spring time blues or should I get myself involved in some "project"? I had been thinking of finishing at least 1 photo book before the summer but, with the trouble I had with Lulu.com, I wasn't much inclined anymore to use their services.
I was definitely getting bored with my photography. It had all become the same ol' crap. I wondered what to do.
Some of the suggestions I got were good, and might be just the kind of suggestions you need too when you have photographer's block.
A project. Set yourself a challenging project. One that is ambitious and challenging yet something you want to do. One that you can pick up (and put down) from time to time to explore and approach from different angles. One that might result in a recognizable body of work.
A website. Set up a website to display your best work. Check the internet for tons of examples, like the Shards of Photography photo portfolio.
A city tour. Pick a city, book a weekend trip there and shoot there with the purpose of coming up with a set of photos that could be (self)published as a book.
A local tour. Take the bus (metro, tram, whathaveyou) to a random place in your hometown. Get off and walk around and shoot for 2-3-5 hours. Go nowhere in particular, seek nothing. Embrace whatever you encounter.
Another local tour. Take a look every morning to your city's events agenda. Take note of the interesting public events taking place. Then select the one(s) that seems most interesting, or just the one(s) in a district you'd like to visit anyway, just in case the event is not that worth. Or just pick a random one. Not only do you have a reason to go out (shooting the event) but you still have the option to walk around for 5 hours.
An adventurous trip. Plan and book that adventurous trip you've been thinking of for all those years: a road trip along Route 66, a cycling trip across the Pyrenees, a safari in Kenia, or take the Transsiberia Express to Mongolia.
An exhibtion. Use the photos you already have to put together an exhibition, even just for family and friends. Select the photos, get them printed to a high standard, arrange a venue (like a local cafe), and make it happen.
A 100 prints project. Either go through your old photos or shoot and pick 1 photo every day or week. Print it and keep it stored. After 100 days/weeks, evaluate your photos. If you're lucky you might have enough good prints to do a book or an exhibition.
A self portrait. Not a simple snap in the mirror but a real one. In any style you want. And not necessarily just the outside. Impressionist or Surreal is good too.
A course. Book a photography course in a line that you usually would not pursue, like nude photography with professional models. Don't forget to shoot the horny Newton-wannabees as well as the models. :)
A different kind of photography. Try your hand at table-top photography, macro, pinhole or infrared if that is not your usual kind of shooting. Otherwise try landscape photography, or street or soft focus portraits.
A different kind of gear. Do not buy a new camera or other gear! Instead try to rent or borrow gear that you normally don't use, like panorama, medium format, large format, B&W film, or colour, or digital. Explore its uses, its quirks, its benefits.
Revisit your old work. Revisit your old work, not to put together an exhibition but as a history lesson. How did you improve? Did you change style or methods? Are you now shooting different subjects and scenes? Learn from your mistakes. Perhaps find a line of shooting you abandoned long ago.
Make cards. Use your photos to make postcards, and post them to friends and family. Drop by your local shops and see whether they are interested in selling them.
And if all of this fails, Sell all of your cameras. It sounds rash but what good are they if you Original article: In a photographic rut