It’s been awhile.
A year or so ago (actually 18 months ago) my desktop workstation crapped out on me so I have been without Photoshop and Lightroom until just a couple of weeks ago when I was finally able to replace it.
Because I had no access to my photo editing software (the laptop I was using was old and slow and couldn’t handle the work) I had pretty much put my camera away and was using only my phone for making photos. Yesterday morning, as I was out walking in the yard, I suddenly realized that I had everything I needed to start my craft again!
I began daydreaming and planning all the things I wanted to do now that I have my computer, my software and my camera. I was tumbling through fantasies of making a blog, taking all kinds of beautiful pictures and becoming rich (yeah, a little ahead of myself, but hey! It’s good to have goals) when I suddenly realized:
None of that is going to happen if I don’t do something RIGHT NOW.
How am I going to become better at my art if I don’t practice it? We don’t just start out being great (well, most of us don’t, anyway). In fact, much of the time we suck first. Sometimes we super-suck! But the only way to get where you want to go is to start moving. So I decided to start moving.
I took out my Nikon D5100 and just started taking pictures. Not my best work, for sure (not even good, really, so I’m not going to put any of it up here) but it was just to warm up anyway. I decided that I need to start from scratch and drop all expectations so that I can have the freedom to try new things and make mistakes and learn from them.
Basically I gave myself permission to suck so that one day I can make the images I really want to make.
I also reflected on a project I did a few years ago that really helped me:
In June of 2014 I decided to put myself on a discipline to improve my photography skills. I would use my camera every day for a month and upload one photo a day to a little private blog I had created for myself (the blog, even though it was visible only to me, worked to help keep me accountable). I dutifully spent time every day photographing SOMETHING. Sometimes I was inspired and made lots of pictures. Sometimes I was on my way to bed when I realized “Crap! I need to use my camera before I can sleep” and forced myself to find something to photograph.
The result? I leveled up!
Because I was forcing myself to stick with this discipline I wound up with a lot of images I never would have made–never would even have THOUGHT of making–otherwise. Some of these, of course, were complete crap. But there were others that were actually pretty cool (some even wound up being favorites of mine!). It was an eye-opening experience for me and it broadened my creativity and ability.
Because I was taking pictures I wouldn’t normally take, at times and in places I wouldn’t normally photograph, I was sometimes forced to use camera settings I wasn’t used to (taking an image of a moth on my shelf at 1 am required a high ISO, for example). Other times, I was just compelled to see things in my environment in a different way to make an interesting image.
I learned to focus on on something other than the actual subject, like texture:
Light:
Shadow:
Shape/form:
Color:
Impression/”feel”:
Unusual subjects:
(These ones I just really like!):
If you’re feeling stuck in your current mode of making pictures–or if you just want to create an opportunity of growth for yourself–I highly recommend embarking on a 30-day photography challenge.
Just make the decision to use your camera every day. Whether you are “feeling it” or not, just make some pictures. You might be surprised what you come up with!