Some may think that it is the subject of photography that has to do all the work. This is where the photographer’s success lies. This was my way of thinking until I reached a stumbling block in my photography hobby.
I indeed had no difficulty finding subjects to capture with my camera. But neither did anyone else, which meant that although my subjects may be unique as they were one of a kind, they were still like so many others. For example, a rose is a rose, and a tulip is a tulip.
So What Can Make A Difference?
I finally figured out what all this meant. I didn’t have any creativity. Instead of taking the time to find that perfect flower or finding a very common subject and determining what was unique about it, I wasn’t giving it any thought.
Photography Had Become Common Place
It had got to the point that I was taking my photography skills for granted. I thought I had lost my passion for it. But yet, every time I picked up my camera, a thrill of excitement ran through me.
Getting Back To Basics
I knew what I had to do, which got back to basics. So here are the steps I took to recharge my creativity.
Looked After My Health
One of the things I realized was that I was tired and had no energy when I set out on my photography adventures. If my body wasn’t working at its best, how could I expect the creative section of my mind to function at its best? After just a few hours of seeking out a subject to catch on film, I realized that I was just too plain tired. To solve this problem, I set a strict schedule for myself for sleeping, meaning I went to bed every night at the same time. Instead of skipping breakfast and lunch and eating a big dinner, I ate three healthy meals a day. I would pack a lunch to take with me while out and about doing my photography instead of eating a couple of chocolate bars.
These two steps alone made a big difference, and I was once again excited about finding new things to photograph because I had the energy to do so.
Losing Sight Of the hobby
Someday perhaps I would like to become a professional photographer, but this will wait till my retirement years. I had been trying to prepare for this day now, so I was no longer looking at this as a hobby. Instead, I perceived it as a non-paying job. This, too, affected my creativity. So my next task was getting this back into perspective. If I didn’t feel like photographing on a particular day, I no longer forced myself to do it.
Always On The Lookout
Whenever I was out and about, I was always looking for subjects to photograph. I changed my way of thinking. When something of interest stood out for me, I knew it was the right subject. If it caught my eye, I am sure it will catch those who get to see my finished work.
Learning From My Peers
My next revelation was that I still had a lot of learning to do. In my early years of photography, I wild study other photographer’s work. For the past few years, I had not been doing that. I began to see photographs in a new way.
These few steps have made a big difference, and I can clearly see the value of these changes in my latest work.
Appreciation For My Subjects
One of my favorite subjects to photograph is flowers. Now I see these in a different way. I study the way the petals are stretching out as they soak in the morning sun. I see the slightest changes in colors as they begin to age. To me, each and every flower has a story to tell. This is the most important thing that I had begun to miss in my photographs. Now with the new me I once again was capturing this through the lens of my camera. This new awakening has created such a renewed enthusiasm in me that I am grateful for what it is now allowing me to do.
