1. Just shoot. Set a timer. Shoot what you see.
A short daily practice of shooting for five minutes or less will give you the opportunity to focus on a specific scene and find various ways to interpret it. An alternative to setting a timer would be to give yourself a set number of frames within which you need to capture your “keeper” image. Limits give structure to your time use and within those restrictions you will often find yourself pushing your creativity in order to capture the image you had envisioned or hoped to create. To this end, a 365 project is one of the best (and cheapest!) things you can do for your photography. The simple act of spending time everyday on your craft allows all of the technical decisions to become second nature and gives you reason to try new approaches and photograph things you might normally overlook.
I never would have captured the image below if I wasn’t doing a 365. 3 minutes outside at 11pm at night turned out to be worthwhile.
2. Take a look back. Rework some of your earlier images.
We all have those images that speak to us, yet bug the heck out of us at the same time due to some “flaw” that we didn’t know was less than desirable at the time. Try to take the idea/mood/ theme of one of those images and recreate it in the present time. It needn’t be a literal interpretation, but use what draws you into the original image and allow it to inspire a new image that gives you the same sort of reaction.
3. Keep a journal of ideas.
Ideas for images, locations, sets, themes, poses all come to me at inopportune times. They fly into my head and then fly on out, if I don’t write them down. Keep a small journal in which you can record your ideas and any other inspiration that you have for photographs you would like to create.
4. Do something different.
Usually focus on portraits? Try macro. Love landscapes? Try food photography. Getting yourself out of the safety of what you are comfortable with forces you to find new ways to look at the world around you. One of my favorite things about photography is that it has changed the way I see when the camera isn’t in front of me. I am learning to appreciate beauty that is normally overlooked and see the amazing qualities of light, texture, line, etc that are omnipresent everywhere. Each time I add a new genre of photography to my repertoire I open up a whole new world of interpretation and expand my view of beauty from which to draw inspiration.
5. Try to tell a story through a portrait.
How can you make a simple portrait tell a story? Think of how different angles, depths of field, processing, connection (both between subjects and with the camera), use of color and other visual elements can contribute to an image that does more than simply record someone. There is nothing wrong with using a portrait to capture a stage in life or a moment in time. However, when you can allow the viewer to connect to the image in a way that transcends “beautiful eyes” or “cute outfit” you will be taking your creativity to a new level.
6. Do a study on emotion.
Personally, I love images that show true emotion. All ranges of emotion are interesting and evocative to look at. Sometimes photographers seem to get caught up in always capturing “the perfect smile” to the exclusion of other relevant and beautiful displays of feeling. Challenge yourself to take pictures of something other than a smiling subject. It might make you uncomfortable to do so, but that is a good thing! It means you are growing.
Finally, if you are looking for inspiration or a push to expand your creativity, ClickinMoms has may wonderful opportunities. The “Contests, Challenges and Exercises” section of the forum has something that will interest everyone. Also, I have absolutely loved the creative workshops on CM. Participating with a like-minded group of women in an intensive study on ways to challenge my creativity has done wonderful things for my photography.
Great tutorial Megan! Loved it!
Excellent points, Megan. I, too, feel like I'm seeing the world differently since taking the time to learn about photography and light, and I love my increased awareness. Inspiration is everywhere!
Thanks! I agree–a Project 365 is an amazing way to challenge yourself creatively and take your photos to the next level.
Thanks for the inspiration, Megan. Your words really resonate with me. I've been doing a 365 and I can't begin to tell you how much I've learned by trying different ways of shooting. And I'm capturing images I otherwise wouldn't take the time to capture. Your images are beautiful.
Very good advice, Megan! 🙂
Megan, this is fantastic! Thanks for all the useful ideas! I love that photo of you and your little one! Great idea to keep an idea journal (never thought of it!!)
I'm totally with you, Kathryn! Thank you, Megan, for some great thoughts on how to get some creativity going!
Great post, thanks for sharing.
Fabulous 🙂
This was wonderful. I know I have a creative brain, but my right brain seems to step in front of my left brain on more occasions than not. Thanks for giving me another way to look at it.
Wow. Very inspiring Megan. Thanks for that. The moon and the colours are so vibrant and dramatic 🙂 I love it! Slightly different from your normally serene and peaceful pictures which I love too.
my mind want to do so much I get frustrated on which one to start with… I always for get my journal idea book gotta make that a habit… I love the flower shot..<3