Where do you go for Inspiration? - Project ideas

[Nicole]

What happens when you run out of ideas, or just hit a mental brick wall for things to take pictures of? How do you get back into it? How do you find things that you haven't photographed 1,000 times before?

I'm currently going through old Utata Projects (http://www.utata.org/project/projects.php) to get ideas and inspiration.

Where do you go for inspiration?

[hitkaiser]

I would be lieing if I gave you a straight answer, if im not inspired I simply don't shoot because no matter how hard I try, later on Im never completely satisfied with the shots, whereas when im in the right "mood" it just comes naturally

I would say check the flickr interesigness (http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/) category and have a look there

Actually come to think of it, reading case studies is more inspiring than anything else, seeing what makes other photograhers tick and looking into their way of seeing thinks and thinking does actually help

[photonoob]

If no inspiration is presenting itself, I like a 'random' assignment; I tell myself I'm going to go to some place or other and not come home until I've taken a good pic - or at least done my best to.

If not that, then the old 'within 20 metres of your front door, there's a good photo just waiting to be taken' strategy - it makes you look at things in odd or new ways, I find.

[googlit]

Sometimes it's fun to come up with a photo scavenger hunt for yourself and just walk or drive around, trying to get them all.

I like to go to the zoo and take pictures there. I always come back with something new, and I've been there loads of times. Parks and cemeteries are good for this, too. Besides getting new pictures, you never know what you might learn. :)

[ChristianJames]

just start taking random picts, even if it's just your bookcases in your room. Play around w the composition, or aperture, or shutter speed to make it artistic. And if that doesn't work, get drunk and start shooting, guaranteed to get you out of a rut.

[beckywithasmile]

There is a park that my family goes to almost every spring. I always come back with a few new shots of things I've never noticed before.

Boquets of flowers are always inspiring too. My roommates have watched me move my cameara and play for hours taking pictures of boquets that have been left.

Otherwise a lot of times the way light hits something or the shadows something creates inspires me to take pictures.

[RainPacket]

Since I don't have the time to go traveling much lately, I just try to watch for opportunities in my neighborhood. A shop window that had an entire wall of little golden waving 'maneki neko' (fortune cat) statues, the way a sunset looked through the branches of a tree growing alongside a bridge, the Space Needle seen from across the Cut.

If I don't feel immediately inspired, I come up with a challenge to myself. Experimenting with depth of field, etc. Not a shot to inspire me, but a challenge to get me thinking.

One of my more recent challenges to myself was to come up with a good way to shoot a macro of a little clockwork piece I had. I finally affixed it to a piece of standard HP printer paper, then propped it (with the paper behind it) up against my writing notebook on my desk. Took the macro shot, and had a lovely background and texture with the clock.

[andy206uk]

I jump in my car (http://www.pug-cc.com/images/andy206uk/pug4.jpg), put the roof down (if the weathers good) and drive out in a random direction, until I find somewhere or something to take photos of. When I'm done I'll keep driving.

[Nicole]

I jump in my car (http://www.pug-cc.com/images/andy206uk/pug4.jpg), put the roof down (if the weathers good) and drive out in a random direction, until I find somewhere or something to take photos of. When I'm done I'll keep driving.

Who could fault you for that theory ;) I know if I had a car like that (or a car at all) that would be my ideal day :)

[henryscat]

I drive north a few miles to the lower part of the Scottish Highlands.
There's always inspiration there!

[Fraggleroxer]

what i have been doin for the last 2 years is, everytime i see a photo that inspires me, i cut it out and put it in a little pocket sized journal. that way i always have a little bit of inspireation in my pocket to feed off of when i have photo-block. also, i like to write my ideas down in there when they hit me, so i dont forget. its a great littlle device.

[Darren Rowse]

Fantastic question Nicole and great suggestions all. I've featured this discussion on the blog (http://digital-photography-school.com/blog/where-do-you-go-for-inspiration-for-your-photography/) because I think it's one a lot could learn from and contribute to. Great stuff.

[Saralonde]

I try to challenge myself by limiting myself. Try just using only 1 lens, like a 50 1.4, or 1 setting on a zoom. Or spend the day using one camera setting such as AV on everything. I also have a notebook with lists of places to go (cemetary), things to try (water droplets), or words to inspire (simplicity, curiosity, opposites, reflections). Last, challenge yourself to try something new. If you always shoot landscapes, try macro. If portraits are your thing, maybe a trip into the city and some urban shots will get your creative juices flowing. Try shooting things from a completely unexpected angle. If it doesn't work, so what? It's digital, not film!

[Floris]

Always look 360 degrees around myself..
I always see new things.. When i dont see anything, i step on my bike cycle 1000 meters and i see new things :)

[Krimo]

I look down, or up. I noticed that plenty of people look right in front of them 90% of the time. So I guess changing that habit when shooting can be rewarding. That's only my point though, and I am far away from being an expert photographer !

[NaturesPixel]

I am never out of inspiration as i mainly do nature shots and this whole world is just one big nature park...lol there is always a bird or a shroom or some sort of life just waiting to be photographed...
the only time i lost inspiration was when i had my minolta Z5 and i couldn't take the shots i was after... now i have my macro, my telephoto and my portrait /landscape lenses I'm never short of things to photograph :)

[beckywithasmile]

I try to challenge myself by limiting myself. Try just using only 1 lens, like a 50 1.4, or 1 setting on a zoom. Or spend the day using one camera setting such as AV on everything. I also have a notebook with lists of places to go (cemetary), things to try (water droplets), or words to inspire (simplicity, curiosity, opposites, reflections). Last, challenge yourself to try something new. If you always shoot landscapes, try macro. If portraits are your thing, maybe a trip into the city and some urban shots will get your creative juices flowing. Try shooting things from a completely unexpected angle. If it doesn't work, so what? It's digital, not film!

I really like this idea. I need to start a photography journal that is small enough to tuck in with me.

[Seltzer]

Hey, one of the (many) web-comics I read had this link as a way to get over artists block. http://danidraws.com/2007/02/21/101-projects-for-artists-and-illustrators/
This was specifically written for Artists and Illustrators but a lot of the points can easily apply to photography.
Another question on this being, what helps you get new ideas? I know we have the assignments and such and that helps a ton but what else gets you to pick up the camera when you just feel that you don't have anything new left to take pictures of (like that would ever really happen).

[Nicole]

Where do you go for inspiration? (http://digital-photography-school.com/forum/showthread.php?t=25) ;)

Good list on that site by the way, a lot of those could definitely be applied to photography.

[Seltzer]

whoops, yes, that thread had gotten buried, about time to bring it back since we have a LOT more users now.. I merged the threads and deleted the one I had created.. ;)

[Nicole]

*bump*

I'm so in a photography funk because of the miserable and cold weather :p I think my creativity has gone into hibernation ;)

[Saralonde]

I know how you feel. I'm tired of taking shots indoors, it's cold and rainy outside and I feel like I have no new ideas anymore. I take some pictures, look at them and delete them. Need to jump start myself.

[wyndhydra]

Odd idea... but I have gained inspiration in the past from shooting the undersides of furniture... I'm not sure why. But makes you look at familiar objects in a whole new light.

[StormRider]

Nowadays I do some geocaching, which helps me discover things in my neighborhood I never noticed before.
http://www.geocaching.com for more info :)

[Saralonde]

Odd idea... but I have gained inspiration in the past from shooting the undersides of furniture... I'm not sure why. But makes you look at familiar objects in a whole new light.

Already tried something along those lines :) .

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/23733128@N00/405921925/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/162/405921925_6e704ec762.jpg" width="480" height="320" alt="Drunken cat" /></a>

[PnwGuy]

I feel the pain. We've had one of the roughest winters ever here in the Seattle area.

While I'm stuck indoors I try to improve on my workflow and post processing skills. I'm currently working with the trial version of Adobe LightRoom which is pretty awesome so far.

I've also read through my camera manual again which sometimes gives me new things to try.

Another thing I've done is to read through a couple of the better photography books again. I always catch something that didn't stick with me the first time through.

I've also recruited my girlfriends collection of figurines (penguins, The Beatles, etc) to practice product and creative shots. That can be a time-consuming process getting it all set up, but hey, at least I'm getting to shoot something.

Another thing I do is look outside at the rain and dark skies and whine. It doesn't really do much, but for some reason sometimes I feel a little better after a little whining.

But, warmer weather and bluer skies are right around the corner. At least it's not November still. :-)

[PnwGuy]

I've also bought flowers and set them up and practiced lighting and flower shots.

[Nicole]

But, warmer weather and bluer skies are right around the corner. At least it's not November still. :-)

Unless you're in the southern hemisphere, in which case it's just starting *whine* :(

[Nicole]

*bump* for any of the new people here ;)

Or maybe because I'm still having problems finding the inspiration to take photographs. I want to set myself a project, but I'm plum out of ideas. It shouldn't be this hard :p

I did come across this interesting blog post though on 5 sources of inspiration for photography (http://blog.epicedits.com/2007/05/08/my-top-5-sources-of-inspiration-in-photography/)...

[Jargon]

I love the photos I take when I'm focusing on something other than photography. I spend time with friends and I take pictures. I upgrade my PC's video card and I take pictures. I go on a missions trip and I take pictures. I play my guitar and... well, you know the drill. I try to enrich my life with many inspiring and educational activities. The various things that occupy my time give me plenty of subjects to photograph. And the photos chronicle my own life's journey.

[wulf]

There are always the DPS Assignments (http://digital-photography-school.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=22) ;) . I am trying to get into the habit of shooting a new picture for each assignment rather than just relying on photos I have taken in the past - that makes it more of a challenge and more of a learning experience.

I also find it useful to have a camera to hand - for example, I spent three hours yesterday afternoon learning how to cut a small hole through a piece of stone (see my blog (http://www.web-den.org.uk/cgi-bin/wulfblosxom/2007/06/08#stone.20070608) for details) but at least I got some interesting photos from the experience, like this one:

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/wulf/534874488/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1272/534874488_5efd94042d_m.jpg" width="240" height="159" alt="Stonework #6" /></a>

Since I was working on a circular stone, I also tried to get some shots that might allow me to make another entry for the squared circle (http://www.flickr.com/groups/circle/) group on Flickr (another example of motivation from having somewhere to share new pictures). I was particularly pleased with this one:

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/wulf/534874464/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1403/534874464_4f2bad07c2.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="Stonework #8" /></a>

It has not been trimmed down to fit the requirements of the group yet but the patterns and colours suggest a mosaic to me... and I'm off with another idea to riff on next time my camera is to hand :)

Wulf

[jiminyClickit]

Last week our trees were blooming anew, and in the hour that I spent in a 20' x 30' area, I found more than 70 different plants/insect life. The photos of DPS kept reminding me how many different ways there are to see the same thing. Although I do envy world travelers the sights they see, it is possible to "travel ' a part of your world at home, as if seeing it for the first time. Remembering the wonders of chidhood, when everything was new and exciting, can bring life back to world-weary eyes.

[Nicole]

Wow wulf, looks like you had some hard work with that. Well done getting it all worked out how you wanted :)

[sybren]

I know how you feel. I'm tired of taking shots indoors, it's cold and rainy outside and I feel like I have no new ideas anymore. I take some pictures, look at them and delete them. Need to jump start myself.
I always love cold & rainy, it makes for excellent pictures.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sybrenstuvel/503202613/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/207/503202613_796db1bf14_m.jpg" width="240" height="168" alt="Man in tram" /></a> <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sybrenstuvel/520365620/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm1.static.flickr.com/205/520365620_477efed541_m.jpg" width="240" height="187" alt="The road due west" /></a>

It's been nice weather here for quite a while, though.

[windrider86]

I walk a lot. My dog and I hike int he back cuntry where i find a lot of wild flowers and mountain scenes. Otherwise, it's just whatever catches my eye or if I see an awsome looking photo on a web site i go out and try to duplicate it in my own way

[zeffery]

Every time i run into a situation where I lack creativity, and nothing seems to jolt it; I re-arrange the furniture in my house. I know it doesn't seem rational but it changes the perspective of what you see every day. Don't get me wrong before I go through the pain of moving everything around I do look elsewhere. IE flickr. old images. a walk... etc..

last resort seems to work every time HEHE.

[prince]

I usually run out of ideas. I guess I haven't yet got the eye to see things differently.. I look at others' work mainly to practice.. Flickr is a good resource too.. Reading different articles on DPS blog and surfing around helps too..

[sarahdavis]

Sometimes if I know I want to get in the mood to try to take some really good portraits, I'll go find some clothes for my kids that they've never worn or I have no good pictures in, or a cute hat or prop and usually I get really into it. Also, putting a blanket behind them in the high chair or bouncy seat and doing a close-up can completely change the look of the picture.