Get Stuck – Focusing Your Passion

A Post By: Elizabeth Halford

I’m feeling particularly inspired as I’ve had such a beautiful day of shooting in the park and it reminded me of a tip I wanted to share with my fellow photographers – get stuck.

It’s so easy to sometimes feel lethargic or a lack of inspiration and drive. I have a few subjects on which I am ‘stuck’. I look for these particular things everywhere I go and when I see them, I am immediately alive and excited to shoot.

One of those things is Converse shoes. High-tops to be exact.

I don’t know what it is about them but when I see them, I just can’t help myself no matter who is wearing them. I really feel challenged when photographing feet because you have to be very creative for photos of feet to tell a story or even say one little word to it’s viewer.

Going back to the subject from last week of photographing out in public (see my post “I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist“) I feel confident when I have a target and I’m not just strolling around snapping photos willy nilly.

When I’m focused in on something, my brain totally zooms in and blocks out the rest of the world and my fear goes away instantly. People might look at me a bit strangely, but most people would agree to you taking a photo of their (or their child’s) shoes.

Another thing I’m stuck on is playground obscenity.

Hmm…don’t think I can post those photos on this site. But basically, I search the playground for the most obscene school-boy marker pen graffiti and from there, my goal is to photograph the contrast between the innocence of the children playing and the harshness of the obscenities all around them.

I am always up for the challenge and will someday release a series of these photos which gives me a further goal to obtain.

Getting stuck on things has added such an exciting factor to my (already very exciting) life. I wonder each morning if I will have the chance to catch a Converse walking by and when it happens, I fall asleep with a little smile on my face at the end of the day.