inspiration, where are you finding it ?

[jtk]

Inspiration can be the result of work. Failure can also be the result of work.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Inspiration can be the result of work. Failure can also be the result of work.

Failure can be used for learning.

 

[LeftCoastKid]

Same places as I've always found it - light, colour, texture, people.

+ visits to the VAG, frequent thumbing through my old Queen's art history textbooks (especially 19th century), and, of course, my city itself. I hold the opinion that if you can't make meaningful images in Vancouver, it's time to find a new pastime...

 

[Rick A]

Failure can be used for learning.

Failure SHOULD be used for learning. If we don't learn from our mistakes we are doomed to repeat them.

 

[jtk]

I don't "find" inspiration, I make it. That's usually hard work.

 

[removed account4]

thanks for your comments and additions to this thread.
thanks nedL .. im trying
and im doing my best to not watch the news or read
anything tha thas to do with national or global events ..
i know its important to focus on the little things around me
so im doing just that
its not ez though ... ever day i go out and see another car wreck.

 

[blockend]

I don't analyse before taking a picture any more. Looking back over decades, my favourite shots are the ones I didn't give much thought to. They're the last photographs on a film, or throwaway images, not the stuff I thought was important at the time. My inspiration is turning these old shots into books, combined with keeping a steady output now.

 

[faberryman]

I don't analyse before taking a picture any more. Looking back over decades, my favourite shots are the ones I didn't give much thought to. They're the last photographs on a film, or throwaway images, not the stuff I thought was important at the time. My inspiration is turning these old shots into books, combined with keeping a steady output now.

What type of photography do you do?

 

[blockend]

What type of photography do you do?

Messy photography. People in environments, mostly. I used to document situations, and carefully compose the shot, but found in hindsight the images bored me. I still record places and events, but without an element of chaos or complexity in the shot I don't relate to the image as a photograph.

 

[jtk]

I've recently found success (not "inspiration") by poring through old negatives and files, figuring out what it was that rang my bell but didn't result in prints at the time.

This is resulting in satisfying prints, plus realizations about about my locale (desert southwest), race, financial situation, and the ongoing total destruction of old "interesting" stuff, including depressed subcultural neighborhoods.

NIK software opens remarkable visual possibilities quickly... I still pre-visualize in B&W (even when shooting color) but I'm in love with Photoshop...augmented by NIK.

 

[Black Dog]

I seem to be having a different sort of issue the past 6 months or so. I've been getting out on adventures and I always bring a camera with me. I keep finding these great scenes, but rather than taking the photo, I often just put the camera down and sit and enjoy the moment and keep it to myself.

That's good though-you don't always have to get your camera out. Enjoying the moment and not rushing around madly are good...contemplate more and maybe produce less. Also I totally agree with what Eric says about taking the long view and stepping back a bit to ask what really matters. It's so easy to get caught up in the day to day rush and stress out about really little things , especially with smartphones, 24 hour news and the net life can feel like BAM BAM BAM all the time.

 

[removed account4]

ive been finding it in russian constructavist paintings and the work of arshile gorkey and others from that time

 

[Black Dog]

ive been finding it in russian constructavist paintings and the work of arshile gorkey and others from that time

Yes, as it's important to look at lots of different art forms ...it can be too easy to just stay in your visual comfort zone.

 

[guangong]

The worst thing is encountering the opportunity for an inspired shot (composition, point of view, lighting...all perfect), but being without a camera at the time.

 

[Black Dog]

The worst thing is encountering the opportunity for an inspired shot (composition, point of view, lighting...all perfect), but being without a camera at the time.

I know the feeling only too well!

 

[removed account4]

not much outside my little bubble of a life to be inspired by these days ..
but inside my bubble i am becoming inspired with my MEphone ... and
also inspired by this jar of chemicals i mixed 5 months ago that has now turned black
and a laundry scoop i use to dump it out into a tray. THAT and listening to teenagers
groan on about how terrible everything is. its given me hope that it either can't be that bad
or that i need to more green tea and hope it will all be alright ... and that one of these days
i will look at the palms of my hands and wake up from this surreal reality ..

 

[Wallendo]

Listening to teenagers complain can be de-inspirational.
Much of what you are describing sounds like anhedonia (lack of enjoyment of life) which can be a symptom of depression. If you feel this may be an issue, discuss this with a healthcare provider.
I personally find that I lose inspiration this time of year because it is dark when I go to work, and dark when I get home.
If, after all that, you still think the world is going to hell in a handbasket, then photograph that. Make the decline of Western Civilization the target of your photography.

 

[removed account4]

IDK wallendo .. im not wearing my rose colored glasses much these days, i guess i ate the blue pill
listening to throbbing gristle once in a while ( 20 jazz funk greats is a pretty good album >>> https://www.allmusic.com/album/20-jazz-funk-greats-mw0000674783 )
and im drinking a lot of municipal water its pretty phar-out stuff.
i'd rather not photograph the decline of western civilization** to be honest, i've watched the film though, it has a great soundtrack if you are into la in the 70s...!
im already having a good time doing what im doing.
but thanks for the suggestions !

** the closest i get is photographing infrastructure, brutalist architecture, buildigs being demolished, industrial architecture from
the 1800s, and free standing commercial blocks buildt between ww1 and ww2 .. not to mention movers and shakers.
its as close as i will get to be honest

 

[Black Dog]

IDK wallendo .. im not wearing my rose colored glasses much these days, i guess i ate the blue pill
listening to throbbing gristle once in a while ( 20 jazz funk greats is a pretty good album >>> https://www.allmusic.com/album/20-jazz-funk-greats-mw0000674783 )
and im drinking a lot of municipal water its pretty phar-out stuff.
i'd rather not photograph the decline of western civilization** to be honest, i've watched the film though, it has a great soundtrack if you are into la in the 70s...!
im already having a good time doing what im doing.
but thanks for the suggestions !

** the closest i get is photographing infrastructure, brutalist architecture, buildigs being demolished, industrial architecture from
the 1800s, and free standing commercial blocks buildt between ww1 and ww2 .. not to mention movers and shakers.
its as close as i will get to be honest

This is a cracking listen as well- a boss tune by the mighty Bunnymen!

 

[Fritzthecat]

Sounds like Seasonal Affective Disorder, take mega doses of vitamin D, wash it down with a good bourbon, whilst enjoying a fatty. We call it a "fugitol".

 

[71M]

I'm not worrying about inspiration too much at present. To approach the question from another direction, i'm trying to avoid demotivation. The demotivation/fatigue that can happen from editing and processing too much, which prevents me from 'always carrying a camera' and being out there shooting frames. I'm concentrating on capturing as much as possible for now, for a good while, and not editing at all. Rather than feeling weighed down by having a lot of raw material, i think that instead it will allow me to edit more decisively in the end, after a lot time has past this year and combine pictures in more interesting sets.

 

[eddie]

how do you stay positive, focused ( or unfocused ) and inspired to make whatever kind of photographs you want to make?

Forget about the "kind of photographs you want to make". Sometimes (at least for me) having a preconceived idea of what I want to do interferes with whatever I find myself doing. Often it's quite different than my original intent. I think the majority of the most satisfying work I've done, over the last few years, has been stuff which in no way resembled what I had planned. I'm learning to fight the inclination to remain focused on my original project. Just roll with it...

The truth is, though, creativity isn't always "on". There will be lulls. You can't force it- it will come back when it's ready. I think the best thing to do is step back, while still being productive in other areas. For me, it's usually housework and household organization, two things which tend to be put aside when I do find myself in creative bursts.

 

[MattKing]

I'm going to disagree a little bit with eddie.
I think it is great to have projects - "photographs you want to make". Going out there with a purpose is energizing, even if only to the extent that it gets you out there with a camera at the ready.
It is important though to always be open to that which you discover by happenstance - to be able to shift gears at an instance when something inspires you.
Maybe the best argument there is for carrying an extra camera or camera body (and lots of film!).

 

[Black Dog]

I'm going to disagree a little bit with eddie.
I think it is great to have projects - "photographs you want to make". Going out there with a purpose is energizing, even if only to the extent that it gets you out there with a camera at the ready.
It is important though to always be open to that which you discover by happenstance - to be able to shift gears at an instance when something inspires you.
Maybe the best argument there is for carrying an extra camera or camera body (and lots of film!).

That's true, and I've made many a good picture just through having my trusty Trip with me. Also never forget to be open to the unexpected.

 

[removed account4]

Forget about the "kind of photographs you want to make".

yeah i know .. to be honest im on autopilot most of the time, i expose film and don't process it for weeks or months .. just had the urge
to push the button or remove the lens cap.. and then 1 or 3 years later i'll find myself in the darkroom tidying things up and fine
a film box full of film that i decide on the spot to print or do somethng else with .. but i have a feeling a lot of people who
are here on photrio or other places really have more of an aim / focus and say " i want to do this" .. they go
someplace, (maybe take notes) go to the darkroom get their negatives and begin their task of
making a print just they want. or at leat that is the gist of what i see and read of people posting stuff in the gallery or forum ..
or if they do color or b/w and don't have a darkroom they send it to whomever or wherever and they develop and print &c ..