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15 Photography Ideas to Boost Your Creativity

21 Mar

Doing photography exercises brings forth new opportunities to improve your skills, hone in on your craft and who knows, even guide you in the direction of finding a new genre that you love more than anything in the world! Here are 15 creative ideas to take you out of your comfort zone, and guide you in your quest to boost your creativity.

Get out there and put your own spin to each of these prompts. Bonus points if you have never tried any of these before. When you push yourself to get comfortable being uncomfortable, to step outside your comfort zone, to try new things, and to give yourself the permission to fail – you also give yourself the chance to figure out who you want to be when you grow up!

#1 – Add emotion to your images

15 Photography Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

I absolutely adore this image. There’s nothing like laughing with unabashed happiness on your wedding day!

Choose to evoke emotion in your images – either in the eyes of the beholder or in the eyes of the beheld (a.k.a your subjects). When you want emotion from your subjects, ask for it. There is nothing more uncomfortable for your clients than a photographer who is silent behind the camera while continuously clicking the shutter.

Most clients are not professional models and generally, they are quite camera shy and self-conscious. It is our responsibility as the photographer to direct, educate, and interact with our clients to make them comfortable in front of our lens.

If you are shooting landscapes or still lifes, aim to create emotion in your images that move your audience to feel something. Be it a serious case of wanderlust viewing a travel photo from an exotic locale, or insane hunger when looking at your food images!

Sometimes staged photos take a turn of their own and present opportunities for different perspectives!

#2 – Try some motion blur

There are many different ways to achieve motion blur. I associate motion blur with the effect of capturing movement in a frame. You can either capture movement in your subject or by moving yourself or the camera (e.g. panning). For me, the easiest way to achieve motion blur is to slow the shutter speed and show some movement of the subject. Motion blur adds an interesting artistic element in your images if done right. One tip, use a tripod for optimal effect.

When fog was our constant companion on a beach camping trip in the pacific northwest, I chose to use it to my advantage to create an eerie effect with motion blur – in the waves and the people walking along the beach!

Panning image courtesy of dPS Editor, Darlene.

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#3 – Go macro

Traditionally macro photography has been associated with floral and fauna. But resist the urge to get out into the garden to find the smallest ant to photograph. Instead, think of macro as a great way to isolate details in an image.

As a wedding photographer, I love using my macro lens to capture unique ring shots for my couples. And of course, nothing like highlighting the snow (I live in Chicago!).

#4 – Find reflections

As the name suggests, try and find mirror images or reflections, either with mirrors or with water, of your subject and shoot creatively.

Reflections of people in water image - 15 Photography Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

It really helps if your subjects are great sports and willing to get into the water for a shot like this!!

#5 – Shoot out of focus

Whether it’s an unlucky accident or intentional, I love out of focus images. Remember these creative exercises are simply an attempt to create something you are proud of. There are no right or wrongs, they are all just ways to stimulate your creative juices.

#6 – Wabi-sabi – embracing imperfection

As per Wikipedia, wabi-sabi represents Japanese aesthetics and a Japanese world view centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of beauty that is “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete”.

There is something innately beautiful in imperfections. That feeling of being alive and being human and living life to the fullest, versus living in the proverbial glass house where nothing is out of order. The best way to think of wabi-sabi is to look for imperfections in your everyday.

I love everything old and vintage. They always tell me stories of a different, more interesting time and place!

15 Photography Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

#7 – Double exposures

Ding a double exposure is a carry-over from the old film days and it is a super creative way to take your images from boring to wow! In its simplest form, it is a way to superimpose two images onto a single frame. The good news is that you don’t need a film camera to create double exposures. Some of

Some newer DSLRs have a multiple exposure setting as a tool for creative photography. It takes a little bit of reading but once you get the hang of it, I promise, you will be hooked. We also have a great article in the DPS archives that talks about the techniques of multiple exposures How to do Multiple Exposures In-Camera.

15 Photography Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

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#8 Diptych

A diptych is a concept of placing two images side by side so that they add context to each other and tell a complete story. When choosing images to form a diptych, pay close attention to light, tones, and exposures. Typically I compose my diptychs to include a big picture image and a detail shot of an element of that image.

My focus with dyptics is to dig deeper into my stories…focus on the details along with the big picture.

#9 – Triptych

Similar to diptych, a triptych is a concept of placing three images side by side so that they collectively tell a story.

Especially with tryptics, pay special attention to the order and orientation of the images. At times this might limit the placement of the images in a certain order.

#10 – Shooting through objects

I love shooting through objects, it adds an element of interest and depth in the foreground. You can really take this up a notch by using every day elements like leaves, branches, fabric pieces and ever glass to create some cool artistic effects in your images.

15 Photography Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

#11 – Different perspective

The next time you find yourself shooting the same subject the same way, take a step back and rethink your strategy. Are you a 100% vertical shooter like me? Then force yourself to take a horizontal frame. Are you always looking at details? Then use a wide-angle lens and force yourself to take in the big picture. Do you always shoot at a narrow aperture so as to get everything in focus? Then dial down your aperture and shoot at the widest possible setting (based on your lens) to focus in on one detail of the whole image.

Personally, I tend to shoot closeup and focus on the details a lot more than I do the big picture. So I have been forcing myself to do just that…and I love when I get diversity of 50-50 in my vertical and horizontal orientation shots! Bonus point to you if you can spot the subject here!!

#12 – Burst of color

It’s a beautiful, colorful world out there. Get out and photograph it. Don’t be afraid of the bold bright colors, but definitely be aware of which colors work and which ones don’t quite translate well in imagery. Train your mind to look for certain colors and patterns and before you know it, you will have a collection of colorful images that make you happy.

I just loved the pop of color from my husband’s red jacket as he walked along the lakeshore with the Olympic mountains in the background.

#13 – Monochromatic

This is the exact opposite of #12 where your challenge is to look for and shoot a black and white image. You can either convert the image to B&W in post-processing or change the setting on your camera (depending on the make and model) to shoot monochromatic in-camera.

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The key here is to look for patterns and compositions that work well in black and white. A point to note is that processing is very subjective, as is black and white imagery. There are no right or wrong images, but here are a few articles to help you take great monochrome images.

How to Create Good Black and White Portraits
6 Tips to Help You Make Better Black and White Landscape Photos
Avoid These 5 Common Mistakes in Black and White Photography
A Guide to Black and White Conversion in Photoshop
A Guide to Black and White Conversion in Lightroom
Improve Your Middle of the Day Photos By Doing Black and White

15 Photography Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

#14 – Pattern play

Take the time to look around and see if you are able to find any natural patterns around you. These can be either man-made or natural. Facades of buildings, windows, parking lots, and landscapes all provide many opportunities to capture repeating patterns. Capture them in an interesting way to highlight those patterns.

15 Photography Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

#15 – Shadow play

Shadow play is most prevalent in situations when the sun is high in the sky creating harsh shadows on the ground, on buildings and directly unto the subject. But magic with light also happens indoors. Learn to embrace this high contrast between shadow and sun and try to capture some creative angles.

Dramatic light Images Shadow play - 15 Photography Exercises to Boost Your Creativity

Conclusion

I hope these exercises have proven to you that there isn’t any lack of creativity prompts in and around you. You just have to look for them anytime you feel stuck or find yourself creating the same or similar images again and again. Keep these prompts in the back of your mind, use them, combine them, mix them up – the possibilities are endless!

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The post 15 Photography Ideas to Boost Your Creativity by Karthika Gupta appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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4 Refraction Ideas to Use Your Creativity

23 Feb

The application of science to photography is a great way of getting creative results with your work. The camera itself is, of course, a product of scientific endeavor. One that brings everyone here to learn more about it. Inside the camera are a series of optics that use refraction to render the image onto your camera sensor, though refraction can be used even more creatively in photography.

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To take refraction photographs you will need to find an object that produces this effect, such as a glass ball. The effect happens when light passes through an object of denser mass, and the light is bent as it goes through.

$4 Refraction Ideas to Use Your Creativity$

Flags such as the Union Jack make great subjects for refraction.

Objects that cause refraction

Any transparent object that has a different mass to air will cause refraction. The most useful objects that refract are those which are spherical. While it’s possible to get refraction through transparent plastic objects, for the best image quality you’ll want to be shooting through glass.

As you can read in my previous article: 7 Tips for Doing Crystal Ball Refraction Photography, glass balls are a favorite for this type of effect, though not everyone has one on hand. There are other objects that you can use for refraction such as; wine glasses, marbles, and water drops.

$7 Tips for Doing Crystal Ball Refraction Photography$

This photo was taken through the bottom of a drinking glass. The bobbles at the bottom refracted the light.

1 – Refraction using a glass ball

The glass ball is probably the most popular item used in refraction and is what you immediately think of if someone says refraction photography. This is a great piece of extra kit to have in your camera bag and can do wonders for creating a unique looking landscape photo.

The ball can also be good for architecture and even portrait photos if you now how to use it properly. You need to think of the ball as an external fish-eye lens. The ball then needs to be carefully placed on a wall, so it’s elevated to the same level as the object you’re shooting.

$7 Tips for Doing Crystal Ball Refraction Photography$

The ferris wheel is refracted inside this glass ball, the bokeh shapes compliment the scene well.

2 – Marbles are small glass balls, great for refraction!

A smaller alternative to a glass ball is the marble. Photographing a marble is in many ways the same as photographing its larger counterpart. The key difference is that it’s much smaller, and using a macro lens becomes important. There are a few key points you need to consider when photographing a marble versus a glass ball.

The glass may not be as good quality, leading to a poorer image inside the marble.
There will be more distortion and a smaller sweet spot where the image is clear.
The weight is significantly less making them much easier to carry around.
The small size often makes them easier to place on a surface without falling off, they sit in smaller divots.
You will need a lens capable of macro photography to best photograph with marbles.

$7 Tips for Doing Crystal Ball Refraction Photography$

The much smaller size of a marble enables you to place it in otherwise inaccessible locations.

3 – Make a splash with water droplets

A glass ball is not the only medium you can use to create refraction, water makes a great alternative. The key to using water in this way is photographing it as a droplet. There are a few ways to do this, you could try all of them!

Water droplet photography – If you’ve never tried this type of photography before I highly recommend it, it’s a lot of fun. Introducing a background image such as a flag will lead to that object being refracted inside the water drop!
Tap droplet photography – This is almost identical to the first example, this time you capture the droplet mid-flight. Once again you will want to have a background image behind the water drop. Follow the steps recommended in the water droplet article, and replace the water bag with a tap and voila. Here are some great examples of this type of photo.

$7 Tips for Doing Crystal Ball Refraction Photography$

These water droplets were placed on glass using a syringe, with the flag of Malaysia is behind them.

Naturally occurring water drops – Water drops on spider webs, or on flower petals are spherical, and will therefore refract. So get out there after it’s rained, or if you’re not patient there is always the not so natural watering can or syringe to create your own.
CDs and water drops – Placing water drops onto a CD using a syringe will create a great effect. Think of all those mini rainbows! To take this type of image you will need to place water droplets on a CD. Then compose your image, and turn the lights off. Finally, move a flashlight around the CD during a long exposure, doing light painting.
Water droplets on glass – This is similar to placing water drops on a CD, but you will use a strobe to light up the scene. Place your water drops onto a glass pane, with your image in the background below it.

$7 Tips for Doing Crystal Ball Refraction Photography$

The drop of water from a tap is caught mid-flight.

4 – Make that wine glass multi-task!

The real reason wine glasses are round is because they can be used for refraction photography! Okay, they are for wine, but that doesn’t mean photographers can’t use them as well.

The spherical nature of this type of glass means filling them with water will allow you to see a refracted image inside the glass. The wine glass is, of course, better than the glass ball for placing on a flat surface, as it’s not going to roll off. You can use a wine glass in portrait photos as well. In that scenario, the wine glass acts as a great prop, which also shows the refracted image in the background.

$7 Tips for Doing Crystal Ball Refraction Photography$

This wine glass filled with water shows the effect of refraction.

Get out and give refraction a try

There are multiple ways you can go about starting a series of refraction photos, and this type of photography makes a very interesting project. Let’s see your work if you have taken these types of photos before.

Are there any other refraction type photos you can recommend? Those who have never tried this technique before, give it a go! The community looks forward to seeing your photos, and it could become your project for the year!

The light is refracted through these water droplets when placed on a CD.

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An Apple a Day Keeps Creativity Awake

17 Feb

Do you find yourself lacking inspiration? Without new ideas? Or just unsatisfied with your average looking images? Pablo Picasso – the famous and talented artist – once said, “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.” This exercise is designed to help you achieve exactly that, and awaken your creativity.

An old English proverb says, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”. So following this principle I came up with a routine for your photographic health. Something to keep you busy so that inspiration can find you working, as Picasso suggested.

Step 1: Photograph an apple

An Apple a Day Keeps Creativity Awake

Why an apple? Well, because I found that many times the excuses that we use are linked to the idea that we don’t have an interesting subject, or a nice-looking one, or an expensive one, in other words something worthy of photographing. So don’t procrastinate at the market looking for the perfect red shiny apple that looks like one from a fairy tale, just get an apple. An apple is something we all have access to. It’s not particularly expensive, and as you will see, also very versatile.

The first part of the exercise is to photograph your subject, in this case the apple without altering it. In other words, you are the one who is going to adapt in order to get the most out of it. For now you don’t have to worry about the technical part, so you can just leave your camera on automatic mode and shoot away. Photograph your apple from the top and from the bottom; from afar and in macro; with a wide-angle lens and a telephoto – anything you can think of.

Once you have done this and you can’t think of any other ways to photograph the apple, push yourself to do at least two more. Yes, it may take some time to come up with them, but trust me, those will be the best ones! Why? Because photograph has been around for almost two centuries, and lately thousands of images are done everyday, so most likely the first images you can come up with, are also the same ones everybody thinks about. That is why you need to come out of your comfort zone and exercise your photographic mind and eye.

An Apple a Day Keeps Creativity Awake

As you can see, the color and exposure on each one is different. This is because the camera was set on automatic mode. This way the settings adjust to the information it’s receiving. If most of the frame is covered by the warm colors of the apple it sends different information than a frame mostly covered by the white background. This is why the next step is very important.

Step 2: Put your technique to good use

Now that you have found the best angle for photographing your apple, you can move on to the next level – make it professional!

When you had your camera on auto mode it made the decisions by itself. Let’s be honest, with the cameras that exist on the market today, it’s very easy to get a well-exposed photo. However, what I always say to my students is, “We learn photography not to make it good, but to make it our own.”

If you use the automatic mode of your camera, it might come out a good photo, but it won’t be your photo, because you didn’t make any of the decisions. In this part of the exercise you need to put your photographic knowledge – no matter how much that is – to good use.

If you know about bracketing (the process of making the same photo with different exposures) then do that.

Underexposed

Correctly exposed

Overexposed

If you know about lighting, then play with your lights. Use a direct flash to create a hard shadow for one image, then use a flash and a reflector to soften the shadow, and so on. Even if you don’t have a professional set of lighting gear you can always play with artificial light from lamps and natural light from windows. The point is to use your tools and techniques to make your photo the way you want it to be and not just another snapshot.

Step 3: Get creative

Now it’s all about the finishing touches. It’s always important that you are able to produce a technically good and unique photo of an object/subject. But how about getting a bit more creative? Try to tell a story, to set a mood, or to use the apple as a metaphor, anything goes! (Image basket.jpg)

An Apple a Day Keeps Creativity Awake

Once you have your best angle and your light and settings selected, it’s time to decide what you want to say with your photo. Do you want your photo to be yummy and inviting? Maybe cut the apple and plate it on a beautiful table. Do you want it to be about health and nutrition? Maybe add some other fruits to the set.

If you want to push yourself a little bit more then try to tell a story, maybe make a photographic series. Think about Snow White or Adam and Eve, in both cases the apple plays an important role. Do you want it to be conceptual? Think about life and death for example using a fresh and a rotten apple. You can do anything you want just by adding some elements, add some context, and get creative!

Today for me it was a healthy, ready-to-eat snack!

An Apple a Day Keeps Creativity Awake

Conclusion and what’s next

Great work! I hope you enjoyed your apple for today. Tomorrow maybe go with an orange, or a dog, or a self-portrait. You can apply this three steps to everything, or stay with the apples and see how far you can get, the important thing is to exercise every day.

The post An Apple a Day Keeps Creativity Awake by Ana Mireles appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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7 Ideas to Inspire Your Creativity

06 Sep

When I’m stuck in a rut and not feeling like my photos are that amazing, it usually just takes going to a beautiful new place or going out when the light is incredible to get my back on the path of being excited about taking photos. But not always. Sometimes I need some added inspiration for my creativity. Can you relate?

Inspire Your Creativity - red tred

Sometimes I think all the busyness of my mind, the client who wants something yesterday, the endless emails that needs answering, the toilet that needs fixing in my studio, take over that part of my brain that is flowing and waiting to take photos. It’s almost like these tasks put a huge stopper on my creative flow.

When this happens I like to turn to minds wiser than my own. Over the years I’ve come across ideas that have sparked something in me, helping me to look at the world in new and different ways. Just remembering these ideas when I am down in the depths of not-creating, usually helps to jumpstart my mind and get me back into creating again.

Inspire Your Creativity night shot

I love hearing advice about creativity from all sources, because it is an act regardless the medium. From singers (“Sometimes you have to play a long time to be able to play like yourself.” Miles Davis) to painters (“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” Picasso), everyone has something illuminating to share about the creative act.

Here are some of my favourite ideas to inspire creativity:

1. Look for indirect inspiration (via Ernst Haas)

I love looking at other photographers’ work. I like to put myself into a place where I am inspired by other people’s creative visions. But when I am stuck in my own photography, looking at other photographer’s work is probably the worst thing to do.

Funny enough, my favourite photographer of all time – Ernst Haas – agreed! He warned against seeking too much direct inspiration, as it:

“leads too quickly to repetitions of what inspired you,” and instead he recommends you should: “refine your senses through the great masters of music, painting, and poetry. In short, try indirect inspirations, and everything will come by itself.”

So fill your life with beautiful, joyful, and interesting things. Things that make the hair on the back of your neck tingle.

2. Beware the barrenness of a busy life (via Socrates)

Let’s just assume something: our work and your life responsibilities are an endless flow of stuff, and you will never get it all done. Ever. It’s impossible. So stop trying, and give yourself permission to just wander, percolate, get bored. Day dream and do all those awesome things that eventually lead to creativity.

So given that it’s endless, how about deciding that in order to have a happy life, one that is rich with fulfilment and fun and adventure, you have to break free occasionally. Because it’s so satisfying.

Socrates said: “Beware the barrenness of a busy life.”

Think about the things that really make you feel fulfilled and inspired. Things that nourish you deep down, that make you feel happy to be alive. You need more of that and less of the constant emails – right?

Turn off the faucet of tasks and prioritize being creative.

Inspire Your Creativity square image

3. Kill perfectionism (via Anne Lamott)

When I start a photo project I am visited by that evil force – perfectionism. (It visits me towards the end too, and usually in the middle, in that vast sea when I am unanchored and often unsure of where to go next. It always catches me when I am feeling most vulnerable). I start to worry – “What if my best shot is behind me, what if I’ll never shoot anything amazing again, what if, what if…!?”

And, wow, is perfectionism easy to get sucked into. It’s something on which we believe, that we’re just being super focused. When in fact:

“At its root, perfectionism isn’t really about a deep love of being meticulous. It’s about fear. Fear of making a mistake. Fear of disappointing others. Fear of failure. Fear of success.” – Michael Law

Inspire Your Creativity people photo

That’s why you have to kill it, because perfectionism will stop you in your tracks. It will stop you before you even get started.

Perfectionism often appears when you’ve cleared everything out of the way and are ready to get down to it. You’ve turned off your phone, cleared the diary, extracted yourself from the ever flowing font of responsibilities. When you are faced with the actually doing.

But what happens if you give into it, and keep giving in to it and never get started?

“Oh my God, what if you wake up some day, and you’re 65, or 75, and you never got your memoir or novel written; or you didn’t go swimming in warm pools and oceans all those years because your thighs were jiggly and you had a nice big comfortable tummy; or you were just so strung out on perfectionism and people-pleasing that you forgot to have a big juicy creative life, of imagination and radical silliness and staring off into space like when you were a kid? It’s going to break your heart. Don’t let this happen.” – Anne Lamott

Inspire Your Creativity street scene

So how do we deal with this beast? Weirdly what seems to work the best for me, is to say to myself, “It doesn’t matter if what you do is terrible, just do it.” In fact I slightly encourage myself to be terrible, so that I have removed all that pressure to achieve something amazing. Therefore I’ve killed perfectionism at the root (because perfectionism is a desire to either be perfect or pretty amazing).

Then once I’m out the door and taking photos, I’ll fall into the flow and forget all about that horrible perfectionism. Most of the time I’ll even end up with some pretty good shots! Getting started is better than never striking out. Or as Seneca said:

“It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that they are difficult.” – Seneca

4. Make creativity a habit (via Maya Angelou)

I read this quote to my 10 year old son the other day because he had started writing a story. After an initial burst of enthusiasm he said his inspiration had disappeared and he didn’t want to carry on.

“In writing, habit seems to be a much stronger force than either willpower or inspiration.” – John Steinbeck.

Although this may be about writing, it is totally true of any creative pursuit. That is because:

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” – Maya Angelou

I love that quote because it shows that making an active effort to be be creative on a regular basis (whether it’s every Sunday afternoon, each morning for an hour at 6am, or Wednesday evenings) will guarantee that you will generate more creativity. It’s all about making the time to do it. Because, by the way, there is never the right time, or enough time for everything else. Even professional photographers, like me, need to literally carve out time to be creative.

Inspire Your Creativity London at night

5. But on the other hand….destroy your other habits (via Henry van Dyke)

“As long as habit and routine dictate the pattern of living, new dimensions of the soul will not emerge” – Henry van Dyke

Because our brain is a very helpful entity, wanting to make our lives as simple as possible (thank you brain), it creates habits very quickly. Although that makes it easy to get up in the morning, make breakfast, get ready for work, get to work and do your job without actually thinking about it too hard, or making any huge decisions – this is terrible for your creativity.

Why?

Because most of the activities you do are by habit. That includes 70-80% of the thoughts you have today, you had yesterday (and will have tomorrow. Scary!) Which means you are for the most part living your life on autopilot. So if you want to create something new, in fact just the act of creating is by nature doing something new, you have to abandon those habits that keep you thinking and living the same way over and over again.

To be aware is to not be locked in habit, or lost in a sea of your ever-revolving thoughts. So take a new route to work, change your morning routine, take a walk in the evening – anything that wakes up that mind of yours and gets you doing and thinking in new ways.

Inspire Your Creativity rainbow

6. Your mind is made of play-doh (via Gandhi)

On my workshops many people come with preconceived ideas of what they are good at, and most definitely what they are not good at. Although I agree we all have predispositions to being naturally good at certain things, what science is now learning about the brain, is that it can continue to learn, change, adapt and evolve throughout your whole life.

“New research shows many aspects of the brain remain changeable (or “plastic”) even into adulthood.” – Wikipedia

How exciting is that? So when Gandhi said this:

“Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end by really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.” – Gandhi

Inspire Your Creativity night shot

Not only was he totally right, but he was showing us that when we put our minds to something, and really focus and concentrate, we can learn and create whatever we want. As Thomas Edison said:

“If we all did the things we are really capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.”

So not being good at something now, or not being a very technical or creative person should not limit you. If you want to be more creative – go out there and work at being creative. If you want to become a technically adept person – do it! Everything is possible if you believe (that’s science saying that, not me).

When I get stuck with the things I struggle with photographically, I remember that I need to not give in to that thought, and instead push through with what I want my photography to be.

Inspire Your Creativity sunset

7. Dreaming with your eyes wide open (via Ernst Haas)

Being open and creative is something that all children excel at, but it is often squeezed out of us as we grow up. Children are amazing at making connections between disparate ideas; they have an openness and freedom to look at things without thinking, “I can’t think that, I can’t do that, I can’t try that, I’m not good at that.”

So as you were creative as a child, you can be creative again!

It’s about opening yourself up to the wondrous magic that is in the world all the time. Take a walk with a three year old, and it won’t be in a straight line. It will take four or five times longer, or more! Children are not goal-orientated, they are all about noticing that beautiful flower or funny face in the shop, a piece of colourful glass on the floor, or a ladybird!

Inspire Your Creativity canal

Haas calls it “dreaming with your eyes wide open”. I love that it’s about shaking off the shackles of that adult training. So just look, wander, get lost, daydream. That’s when you start seeing things that you’ve blocked out in your ordinary day to day life.

Finally, I think many of us have become a culture aimed towards being too goal-orientated, so used to spending our time achieving things, and exchanging our time for achievement. But while it’s important to regularly take time to be creative, it doesn’t always have to lead to an outcome. Just the act of being creative, or looking, is fuel for the fire, even if it never leads anywhere. In fact let’s just throw outcomes out of the window, and get involved in taking photos for the sake of taking photos.

I think being creative is an incredible way to live, because it’s not just being locked into doing stuff, achieving stuff, focused on outcomes. It’s about being in wonder and awe of life.

Inspire Your Creativity quote fog

I think Henry Miller summoned it up perfectly when he wrote:

“The aim of life is to live, and to live means to be aware, joyously, drunkenly, serenely, divinely aware.”

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How Having a Play Camera Can Boost Your Creativity

23 Aug

In 2001, after many years as a film photographer, I bought my first digital camera. It was a Nikon Coolpix 995, and I still remember how excited I was when I opened the box and took my first pictures with it. I was really amazed with what those three megapixels were able to do. Since then, I followed the digital road, and never looked back.

I took really good care of that camera, bought all the accessories and lens adapters for it, and took it everywhere with me. For a while it was my pet or play camera.

Nikon Coolpix 995 – By Chung Chu

I remember the feeling of falling in love with photography all over again, and I believe that some of the best pictures in my portfolio were made with that camera.

Advances in technology

After that, the first decent resolution DSLRs came on the market, and I decided to invest in one to keep up with the professional photography market demand. My Coolpix started being used less and less, in no time those three megapixels were just ridiculous compared to what DSLRs could do, and my play camera just got stored on the back of my equipment closet, never to be used again.

I had a lot of compact cameras after that, but none of them replaced my play camera, the fact is that each time I downloaded the pictures and looked at them in a computer screen, they all just seemed to have a really poor quality compared to the files I was getting with my DSLRs. Sadly I had become a pixel peeper.

One more try at having a play camera

Recently my wife bought me a Canon EOS-M as a gift, which was the first attempt by Canon on the mirrorless market. Well, if you are into photo equipment at all, then you likely know that this camera was the biggest flop on the market of recent digital camera history. Besides having really bad focusing issues, it was no competition for what other brands had already launched, which is my wife was able to buy the kit for about $ 300, as everyone was dumping their inventory of it.

I would never have bought this camera myself, but it was a present, so I decided to give it a try.

I opened the box and it reminded me of my beloved Coolpix 995. The EOS-M is a really good looking camera, with a great design, and the fact that it was just not a simple compact camera got me a lot more interested on it. The test shots I made after a firmware update fixed some focussing issues, got me back to that loving feeling all over again.

Those were great images, and the pixel peeper inside me was happy with the image quality when I looked at them on the computer screen. The fact that everybody was considering this camera Canon’s ugly duckling, made me love it even more, because it had some kind of “misfit” attitude amongst all the other mirrorless camera out there.

Why have a play camera?

Pretty soon I was buying accessories, and taking it everywhere with me. At last I had a new play camera – the point of which is to have it and use it all the time! A grip and a thumb rest were the obvious first things to buy, as the camera seemed so small in my hands and it made me feel like I was going to drop it every time I photographed.

An added LCD loupe helps block the ambient light on the LCD, and gave me a better sense of the exposure and focus.

The fact that it didn’t cost a lot of money, made me comfortable using this camera in situations I would never use my expensive DSLRs, like underwater with a cheap protective bag.

There were no limits for what I could do with this camera, and even when I had a lot of commercial work, I made an effort to find some time to get back to my personal photography projects.

I must say that my favorite feature on this camera, is the fact that it is able to use not only the dedicated EF-M series lenses Canon launched with it, but with a special adapter it is also able to use EF or EF-S lenses also, keeping all the automatic features.

Over all these years as a Canon DSLRs user, I have collected some serious L-glass along the way, so the fact that I could use all those lenses on this tiny mirrorless body was a huge plus in my book. I must admit though, that it looks a bit ridiculous to see this camera together with an L-series lens, but the fact is that it works.

Try new and whacky things

It even got me carried away experimenting with some crazy extender combination with my EF 70-200 2.8L coupled with the Canon 2x extender and the Kenko 2x Teleplus Pro 300, giving me some serious telephoto ability for wildlife pictures.

200mm X (APS-C 1.6 crop factor) X (Canon extender 2x) X (Kenko 2x converter) = 1280mm equivalent.

This telephoto ability also got me into moon photography, as it is the perfect focal length to capture great pictures from my bedroom window.

Another great thing is that you can even take it beyond EF lenses. With third party adapters you can make the camera body work with almost any lens you want, even though you lose autofocus ability. To me it’s great to again use old lenses I totally forgot I had, like this M42 50mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar that has a really fantastic image quality, and makes me go back to when I was a young kid using my old Pentax with a split prism focusing screen.

Bottom line

So, the bottom line is that even though this camera was released in 2012 and the EOS-M2 and the EOS-M3 were released after that, I still have great fun with it and don’t feel any need to upgrade to a newer model.

I guess I just feel really free experimenting with this camera without being worried about damaging it, or being bothered to carry it around. For me this is what a pet camera means despite of brand, model or type of camera.

Photography is about taking pictures, and the best camera is the one you feel more comfortable with, for what you want to shoot.

Do you have a play camera? One you take with you everywhere, one that you don’t worry about losing or damaging? Do you feel you are more creative with it than your regular camera? Share your experience in the comments below.

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How to Boost Your Creativity by Including Props in Your Photography

31 Jul

Props: are they a blessing or a curse? In photography, props can often make or destroy a photo, and because of this some people try to avoid them, some are afraid to use them, and other people love to use them.

I moved from being afraid to loving props because I found they are amazing tools to unlock creativity.

Freshly squeezed coffee. A different way to prepare a fresh cup of coffee.

Why use props?

Usually, the role of the props in photography is to help add character and interest to a photo, or to add context to the scene.

Some kinds of photography, such as conceptual photography, cannot exist without props, as they are needed to translate the abstract concept or message into an image.

Musical scores.

Props in commercial photography

In tabletop photography (product, food photography, and still life), props are used to build the scenography of the photo you are crafting.

The teapot, the plate, and tea leaves are all elements of the scenography used for the pile of chocolate biscuits in this a classic food photograph.

Props in landscape photography

Props are sometimes present even in landscape photography, usually with the task to add interest to the foreground. A classic example would be to photograph a camp site in the wilderness, with a lit tent under a starry sky.

This tent is, indeed, just a prop. I brought it along with me solely with the intent to add interest to this nocturnal landscape.

Props and portrait photography

Using props will also help you to create more interesting portraits. Are you into self-portraiture? Cool, but there is only so much you can do with your face, and after a while you will probably feel the need to start using props, The more creatively you can use them, the better and more interesting your portrait will be.

A simple ball thrown in the air with a bit of timing can make for a dynamic, “It’s a kind of magic” portrait.

So, props are all those objects that photographers add into the scene they’re photographing that are not the main subject of the image. I don’t consider hats, jewelry, wristwatches, and all those accessories your model wears for a portrait, to be props.

Another plus with props, especially in portraiture, is that they can help your model to be more comfortable in front the camera by giving him/her something to do or to focus on, thus forgetting about you and your camera.

A prop in the hands of a 3 year old toddler (my son in this case) can lead to interesting results without making a fuss.

Things to look out for using props

So where is the problem with the use of props? Why people can be negative about them? My guess is because they are so widely used in photography that the risk of fall into photographic clichés is quite high.

Below are five tips to help you be creative with props, instead to fear them.

Before you continue allow me a final word. While it is true that many things can be do inside editing software, to really exercise your creativity don’t be a lazy photographer, craft your images for real as much as possible.

I consider the flame and the smoke in this photo of a hot pepper to be props. The fun in crafting the image with real fire and smoke was unbelievable.

Tip #1: Use a classic prop in a fresh way

Old film cameras are classic props in portraiture, and the ways to use them are variations of my son’s portrait you saw above.

Among those cameras, the most photogenic ones are, in my opinion, the TLR (twin lens reflex) cameras, such as Rolleiflex, Rolleicord and Yashica. Because these cameras have a huge focusing screen you have to look into from above, the usual way to use these props is to have your model look down into the camera.

A less common way to use those TLR cameras as props is to take advantage of their massive focusing screen, which is many time larger than any SLR camera viewfinder, and to photograph the scene the TLR camera is seeing.

Once you get the setup right, don’t stop after the first shot, but experiment with poses and props.

Trapped!

To reveal the child inside us.

Tip #2: Build your own props

Another way to get creative with props is to craft them yourself. This will not only ensure you have unique props to work with, but the whole process of making the props will make you think more creatively about how to use them.

A one meter long, origami paper boat, and a yellow balloon are good props to make one of my son’s fantasy and childish adventures come to life.

A fantasy childhood adventure gets real in this photo.

If you are into origami, and tired of taking the usual portraits of your children, you could try to create adventures for them by folding big paper planes or animals, or whatever you know how to do with a piece of paper. Plus, you can find plenty of origami tutorials waiting for you online.

Once again, it is true you could easily compose the adventurous portrait of your child by adding elements to the photo later in Photoshop. But, again, what fun would that be for both of you?

Tip #3: Break the physical laws and go surreal

One of my favorite prop to work with are helium balloons, those you usually buy for parties. They are colorful, cheap, long lasting and very versatile.

Inspiration for their use is everywhere; have you watch the animation movie Up recently? Cool, wouldn’t it be fun to fly away holding tight to a bunch of balloons?

Up, up we go. Here the low key really helped a lot to make the pose believable.

What about breaking the physical law by playing “tug of war” with those balloons, instead?

Up and Down are quite arbitrary in this kind of photos. Here I was lying down on the floor but I tried to keep my shoulder off the ground, so that once I turned the photo 90 degrees counterclockwise, the pose was still believable. The low key helped by getting rid of the floor.

Tip #4: Prep your props

Sometimes, you can obtain something original just by prepping up a classic prop, such as the omnipresent book. Books are often used to fill a still life scene, or to get more interesting portraits.

A funny contrast between the surprised grown up, rude, and bearded man, and the book of one of Winnie the Pooh adventures.

To make things more interesting, dynamic and less cliché, you can prep a book by sprinkling body powder on its pages and then have your model to blow the dust off while you take the photo. Or have him slam the book shut just before you fire the shutter, so to record of white powder flying out the book creating clouds.

By adding body powder to the mix, you can obtain much stronger and dynamic portrait.

Powder makes things much more interesting, and the only limit is your creativity (or the absence of a working vacuum cleaner to clean up after the mess). You can sprinkled some body powder on a ball (another common prop) and make your model hit it with the hands just before taking the photo. You will capture great puffs of powder, helping to convey a feeling of action and power.

Basketball and body powder mix in interesting ways.

Tip #5: Go crazy with conceptual photography

While it is challenging per se, I consider conceptual photography to be the best playground to learn to be creative with props.

When you do conceptual photography, your subject will be a concept, and the challenge is to translate it into an image by using props. At first, keep it easy, and don’t be afraid to get inspired by the work of other photographers.

The chicken’s great escape, a concept I saw online and I made it mine by using my personal style, and adding the escaping chicken.

Because you want to convey a message, even with the simplest setup, you have to pay attention on how you place your props into the scene.

In the previous photo, the dark, out-of-focus chicken in the background is there to give the idea of the chicken moving away from the egg. While the broken shell with marks on its inside make the viewer think of it as the chicken prison. Had I placed the chicken in the foreground, in-focus and well lit as the egg’s shell, the message would have lost some strength.

When you do conceptual photography, do not focus on the photography aspect at first, but let your ideas and concepts spawn naturally from your everyday life. Are you cooking your favorite food? In that moment the idea that photography is a bit like cooking could strike you.

In photography, as in cooking, you combine what reality puts in front your lens (the ingredients) to create your vision of such reality (the finished food).

This idea struck me once and this was my personal way to translate it into a photo: the ingredients are the colorful paper rolls in front the lens of an old TLR camera, and those ingredients combine in-camera to reveal an origami nocturnal seascape crafted using the paper from the rolls. Photography magic.

The fun of doing the origami seascape for real and the challenge to frame, focus, and light it, so I could photograph the scene through my old TLR camera, was so much more than just use an editing software to copy/paste, move, rotate, resize and bled all the different elements together.

Once you start this game, you can find concepts everywhere; was your Mexican food too spicy even for a chili lover as you are? Something like that could pop in your mind.

The most useful kit for us chili lovers.

Bonus tip: The hunt for props

Now you know how you can get creative with props in many ways, even using common ones, but it is always good to hunt for more interesting ones.

A good way to hunt for unique and weird props is to visit flea markets and shops selling kitchen supplies, vintage clothes, and such. And then, as usual, once you’ve got your props, use them in a fresh and unconventional way.

A variation of the concept shown in the photo opening this article; the same concept can be photographed in many different and original ways. Creativity is your only limitation.

Once again, the way you use and prep the props is crucial to create a convincing image. The coffee stains on the table and the squeezer, the squashed and broken capsules, and the smoke from a hidden candle, make the viewer understand what the meaning of the photo is, and the reason behind those props.

Conclusions

Don’t be afraid to use props in your photography to add something more. Just remember to use them wisely and creatively to push your photography further, and to avoid falling into photography clichés.

The post How to Boost Your Creativity by Including Props in Your Photography by Andrea Minoia appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Review: Light Painting Brushes – Tools for Creativity

20 Jul

If you enjoy light painting photography, I think this review of tools from Light Painting Brushes (LPB) will interest you. All photographers know that light is essential to taking a successful photograph. At night, when light is limited, light painting can be a fun and artistic form of photography that may stretch a shutter-bug’s creativity by creating light, solely for the purpose of photographing light. If you are new to light painting please read my article – Beginner’s Guide to Light Painting for some ideas to get started.

Light-Painting-Brushes-10

Also, Light Painting Brushes has a great online presence, full of ideas, examples and tutorials. Check out this example of the great tutorial video available:

There are two main types of light painting:

Off-camera painting, by which a light source, unseen to the camera’s view, is used to illuminate a scene or objects so as to make them appear out of the dark in an image. Here the light is only showing the subject and is not part of the image.
Secondly, on-camera painting, in which the light source is seen by the camera and is a subject to be photographed. So here the light IS the subject.

The tools I am reviewing in this article are used for on-camera light painting. With Light Painting Brushes, most of the tools are used to add a graffiti-type light to a scene. This can be lots of fun (especially in social situations) and the creative options are endless! Listed here are the items from Light Painting Brushes that I will be reviewing in this article. (Spoiler alert. they are really cool!)

Universal Connectors
Set of 8 Opaque Light Writers
Set of 6 Translucent Light Writers
White Fiber Optic
Black Fiber Optic
Plexiglass Diamond
22″ Light Sword

A. – Light Sword, B. – Universal Connectors, C. – White Fiber Optic, D. – Translucent Light Writers, E. – Plexiglass Diamond, F. Opaque Light Writers

Universal Connectors

The universal connector is the glue that literally holds this whole system together. Made of a durable rubber, the universal connector allows any flashlight with a diameter of .975″ to 1.5″ to connect to any of Light Painting Brushes’ tools. The end of the universal connector appears to be threaded, but don’t try to screw the brushes into the connector. The thread’s function is to just grip the brush and hold it tightly it in place. Light-Painting-Brush-Universal-Connector-2-750px

Flashlights will easily insert into the other end, but never hold the whole thing by just the flashlight, as the brush may slide out. Instead, hold it by the universal connector. The universal connector may also be used to connect a “brush” of one’s own making, such as a pop bottle, to a light source (your flashlight).

Opaque Light Writers (Set of 8)

Use the universal connector to connect these opaque colored lights to your light source. The set is available in eight hues including white, purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, red, and pink. The opaque color makes them excellent tools for light writing, drawing or graffiti, and creative uses limited only by one’s own imagination. Because of the opaque colors of these light brushes, a very crisp drawing or writing source results. After some practice with this tool, I am sure some very detailed light drawings can be captured within a photograph.

Translucent Light Writers (Set of 6)

Light_Painting_Brushes_Translucent_Light_Writer_Set-750px

These attachments are very similar to the opaque light painting brushes, but because they are translucent the lights create a more textured effect than the opaque lights. Another tool for artistic expression lighting up the night!

White Fiber Optic

Spiral design created using the White Fiber Optic brush

The fiber optic brush connected to a light source really makes some awesome wispy lines. The white light has great depth as the whole strand of the brush lights up. This tool really gave me the feeling that I was actually painting with light! The white fiber optics is so much fun to use, creating some great effects and can be used for many light painting applications.

Black Fiber Optic

Light-Painting-Brushes-Black-Fiber-Optic-02-750px

The black fiber optic tool only lights up the ends of the brush, great for use in portraits. However, I feel it has a more limited use for other types of light painting, since it puts out a lesser amount of light.

Plexiglass Diamond

Abstract design created using the Plexiglass Diamond brush

The 9” Plexiglass Diamond shines light out through the cut edges, creating interesting and unique textures when waved about as the image is being shot. This tool is great for light graffiti, portraits, and abstract designs. It is my favorite tool of all the ones I’ve reviewed in this article!

22″ Light Sword

22in-Light-Swords-Illuminated-750px

These tools create a very wide path of light, and are available in 8 different colors: blue, green, orange, pink, purple, red, yellow and white. The colored swords cause some stunning effects, but while the white sword can make some nice strokes of light, in my opinion its results are not as exciting as the colors.

This silhouetted image of a girl was created using the orange 22″ sword brush

Tips:

To remain as invisible as possible when trying to photograph a light painting, wear dark colored clothing, keep moving, and avoid holding the light source too close to your body.
Speed of motion can make a big difference with many of these tools: the slower the motion, the more vibrant and textured the effect; the faster the motion, the smoother but fainter the effect.

First impressions

Light-Painting-Brushes-7

I recently had the privilege to lead a light painting workshop with some local photographers, so I introduced the Light Painting Brush system to them during our course. The following feedback comes from a few of the participants:

“I felt like a kid, amazed and surprised with all the images we shot and with the numerous options we used to create and express ourselves as we played with the Light Painting Brushes. My favorite was the colored ones because they made things and shapes look like I was using chalk, and the colors were great in the pictures! It helped me to express and to imagine numerous things. I just wish we’d had two more hours!”
“Several lighting methods were demonstrated, but my favorite was using light painting brushes to create an angel figure out of a beautiful little girl.”
“My favorite was the white fiber optic, as it made a really pretty effect and I felt I could be more creative with it.”
“I was very impressed with the quality and the different possibilities of the light painting tools! I love that it gives you the ability to add your own personal unique touch to a photo!”

The brushes were easy to use, even for beginners, and cast a new “light” giving night photography a new perspective and dream like world.

Light-Painting-Brushes-13

Conclusion

Whether you are an experienced light painter or just wanting to give this technique a try for the first time, these tools from Light Painting Brushes are a fantastic addition to your accessory arsenal. They are designed by light painters who create and use their products. If you watch their tutorials online you’ll see that they have a passion to create tools that are to be used to create works of art in Light Painting.

Here’s another really cool thing you can do with these tools – make a spirograph!

The Universal Connector is the essential tool for using the actual brushes. I really like the unique textures and shaping possibilities of my two personal favorite brushes, the White Fiber Optics and the Plexiglass Diamond. My previous experience with light painting has mostly been of the off-camera type, but after using these Light Painting Brushes my interest has really been piqued to pursue on-camera light painting.

The post Review: Light Painting Brushes – Tools for Creativity by Bruce Wunderlich appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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26 Unique Special Effects Photos to Spark Your Creativity

19 Mar

This week on dPS we are all about special effects. Check out the others that have already been published here:

How to Photograph the Full Band of the Milky Way
Fire Spinning with Steel Wool – A Special Effects Tutorial
Special Effect – How to Create Multiple Flash Exposures in a Single Frame
Stacking Light Trails for Night Photography Special Effects

Now it’s time to look at some special effects images:

By i am dabe

By Redfishingboat (Mick O)

By Mike Boening Photography

By Neil Howard

By Terry Lawson

By Louish Pixel

By Taichiro Ueki

By Thierry Marysael

By John Watson

By Nick Kenrick

By Martin Heigan

By Mibby23

By Mickaël

By inefekt69

By Knowsphotos

By Disco’s Place

By Dennis Crabtree

By Wayne Stadler

By liz west

By TJ Gehling

By Alex Matravers

By Howard Ignatius

By David Bokeh

By Randy McRoberts

By Manuel Paul

By Alex Matravers

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Like Fine Wine – Creativity Gets Better With Age

11 Mar

As a culture we are constantly encouraged to believe that youth is a magical time – that everything is at our fingertips, easily captured, and that age will only bring a withering of possibilities and opportunities.

DPS creativityAnthonyEpes01

“Aging seems to be the only available way to live a long time.” – composer, Daniel-Francois-Esprit Auber

Creativity is a huge victim of this idea – that aging destroys it rather, than helping us to flourish. Well, I don’t believe that at all. Creativity can wither with age – but it doesn’t have to. What about our huge amount of experience that we gather throughout life? Isn’t that pretty useful for creating?

Here are some ideas on the benefits of keeping creative with your photography as you age, and why you can get more creative, not less, as you get older.

Very few of us can tap the creative genius at a young age

When you are taking photos and being creative, you want to aim to access that wild creative place deep inside you, where pure inspiration flows. Some people call it the creative flow state. For some it’s a zone, but it could be thought of as a well of inspiration. But, that can be a hard place to get to – you’re encouraged in so many ways in life to prioritize your practical skills (getting a job, buying a house, raising children, etc.) over your creative skills. Some people can access their inspirational, creative space when they are young, but for many it takes years. But what’s great about that, is that it’s only a question of getting there, not whether or not you have it.

“Every day we slaughter our finest impulses. That is why we get a heartache when we read those lines written by the hand of a master and recognize them as our own, as the tender shoots which we stifled because we lacked the faith to believe in our own powers, our own criterion of truth and beauty. Every man, when he gets quiet, when he becomes desperately honest with himself, is capable of uttering profound truths. We all derive from the same source. there is no mystery about the origin of things. We are all part of creation, all kings, all poets, all musicians; we have only to open up, only to discover what is already there.” – author, Henry Miller

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I don’t remember my youth being a place of unfettered, wild creativity. I was a pretty good photographer, but I wasn’t one of those types of artists who excelled in their twenties (think Rankin, Bob Marley, or JD Salinger). So unless you’re one of those young creative geniuses, I reckon that you could be on the same path as me – my creativity is building, and improving over the years.

Let it give you permission for freedom

But becoming more creative as you age isn’t a given, it’s a choice. As a culture we are more likely to give into the idea that we can’t be as creative with age, as when we were young.

“No, that is a great fallacy; the wisdom of old men. They do not grow wise. They grow careful.” – author, Ernest Hemingway.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. You can use what you’ve learned, and seen throughout life to make you more cautious, or you can allow it to give you permission to ignore your fears, ignore what others tell you about aging, and just choose freedom.

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You are not who you think you are (unless you want to be)

Our brains are amazing at creating stability and continuity, so that we can live day-to-day, almost on auto-pilot. Neuroscientists now say that 95% of who you are (habits, behaviours, beliefs) is set by the age of 35. And 70% of the thoughts you will have today, you also had yesterday! So if you aren’t in the habit of being creative, it might seem a little hopeless.

But – and this is an awesome but – neuroscientists are now also saying that we can change our brains any time we like. So even if you haven’t lived a creative life, and are only turning to it at 40, 60 or 85 – you can quite easily change your brain’s habits. Becoming super creative is completely possible at any age. You don’t have to be stuck in the same place, doing the same things, and being the same way forever.

Creativity keeps your mind young

“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.” – actress, Sophia Loren

Some kind of creative thinking, is an amazing way to keep your mind young. Because as Edward de Bono says, in order to be creative you have to use your mind in a different way than before. Anything you do that is new to your brain, creates new neural pathways, and engages those dusty grey parts that maybe you hadn’t used before.

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Photography is about communicating feelings and experiences

“Photography for me is not looking, it’s feeling. If you can’t feel what you’re looking at, then you’re never going to get others to feel anything when they look at your pictures.” – photojournalist, Don McCullin

What more do we have as humans as we age, than experiences, and a rich storehouse of memories and feelings? Let’s draw from that to inject our photos with more meaning and feeling. Let’s use that experience to connect with our subjects, to go deeper into the myriad of experiences happening all around us every day.

“Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever… it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” – photographer, Aaron Siskind

Unshackled from expectation – “The man who views the world at 50, the same as he did at 20, has wasted 30 years of his life.” – boxer, Muhammad Ali

I love that now I am in my forties, I care a lot less about what other people expect of me, and my photography. I can go on my own way, and do the things that really inspire me. And you know what, the more inspired I am, the better my photography turns out – so that’s a double win!

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Age can bring freedom from expectation. Many people mind less about what people think as they get older. Use that. Create not for some specific goal, but just for the sheer joy of it, the wonder of discovering new subjects, the beauty of light, the amazing feeling of walking not to get somewhere, but to just see new things.

“We move what we’re learning from our heads to our hearts through our hands. We are born makers, and creativity is the ultimate act of integration – it is how we fold our experiences into our being.” – professor, PhD, author, Brené Brown

Taking photos energizes your mind

Creativity is an amazingly powerful way to smash through lethargy, and that beautiful French word, ennui (a feeling of listlessness and dissatisfaction arising from a lack of occupation or excitement). Maybe your job is boring, maybe your life is a lot of endless tasks that make you feel a bit sludgy, maybe you’ve retired and are thinking – now what?! Well, what better way to greet lethargy, than to meet it with the scintillating excitement of creating something. We are all born to be creative, it’s in our bones, the very fabric of our being. Maybe we hide it under deep layers of other stuff – but it’s still there, burning like a small ember of inspiration.

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Creativity is a journey, not a destination

Creativity is a liberating experience. It will help you discover new parts of yourself, but also help you see the world in a new and refreshing way. Let it liberate you. Let it fill your life with awe at the beauty, craziness, and amazingness of what lies around us in this world.

You are never too old, too set in your ways, too full of habit to embrace the creative journey. Photography has brought amazing, interesting, challenging and awe-inspiring experiences into my life, which make me feel good to be alive.

“Putting things off is the biggest waste of life: it snatches away each day as it comes, and denies us the present by promising the future.” – Seneca

Whatever you do, don’t let age stop you.

Carpe diem! Because if not now, then when?

The post Like Fine Wine – Creativity Gets Better With Age by Anthony Epes appeared first on Digital Photography School.

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Wisdom on Creativity Worth Viewing by John Cleese

17 Apr

Whether you find yourself in a creative rut or you’re looking to improve your creative mojo I highly recommend viewing this presentation on Creativity by John Cleese. I guarantee devoting 36 minutes to view this will be worth your while. Enjoy!

Can’t watch videos where you are?

Here is the transcription of his presentation

Wisdom on Creativity Worth Viewing by John Cleese

The post Wisdom on Creativity Worth Viewing by John Cleese appeared first on JMG-Galleries – Landscape, Nature & Travel Photography.