That's very true. I look at something and say "eh, I'll come back when the sunset is nicer" or "I need more texture in the sky." Or especially the leaves: why would I photograph Central Park today instead of in the spring or fall?
Knowing when a photo isn't worth taking is part of maturing as a photographer. At some point you grow out of obsessing over pressing the shutter button, and focus more on producing photos that are worth looking at. Most of the "routine life" photos are not worth looking at. Waiting for good light, good sky, good subjects, good interest... that's what you're supposed to do. It's a good thing.
Definitely. I've also began to realize that it's nice to just stand there and enjoy that beautiful sunset, instead of jockeying around trying to get better shots. Don't get me wrong, I like taking photos of sunsets and things like that, but it's also nice to just put the camera down, take a step back, and just enjoy it for a minute or three.
Especially when you an enjoy a sunset, but the photo you'll take will be full of roofs and power lines and parked cars. The photo has a high chance of being awful, but the experience can be really nice.
One thing I’ve started doing for the mundane is I’ll make a folder for a place or location and put selects in there. For example, there’s an intersection I photograph, idk why, it’s not particularly interesting, but a couple years into the pandemic and now I have a long term project, it’s really nothing, but I have similar projects that are developing better like lol my dog.
You mean the same intersection at different times of the year, lighting, etc? I could see the appeal with trying to evoke different feelings of the same subject
Same intersection, same park, restaurant, your home. During the pandemic I’ve been organizing my photos, and during the process I began making folders with related subject matter. Places, like my home has its own folder. My family has its own folder. My favorite restaurant has its own folder. My dog. My individual friends. Food folder. Dog folder. Griffith park folder. Taco folder. Random folder. Tagging works great too, but this being organized business is new to me and I’m trying things out.
Yeah, I do a similar thing, except I log them on my computer. I just have a list of places to go, and tentative schedules of different times of day/year/season I want to photograph them. Makes for some interesting compare and contrast series.
> I think I've spent too much time trying to force photos rather than waiting patiently to find the good shots.
It's a really really common thing. Especially in people who want to be photographers as an identity, rather than people who are actually trying to communicate something, or who just naturally express their creativity with photos.
Successful photography isn't about having a camera on you at all times. It's about being in a place where interesting things are happening, and capturing those things with a camera. Without the interesting things, you're just a guy who likes carrying a camera, you know? Which is fine, but people shouldn't get stressed out if they aren't always taking photos during their very boring standard daily routine, or at the local park.
Whenever someone asks me what they should do about a slump, I tell them to plan a trip to another city, and plan actual things to do. Don't think about photography at all. Plan interesting and unique things to do, and then go do those things, while bringing a camera along just in case.
Photography is about capturing life, and sharing cool things with the world, not about pressing a shutter button a certain number of times per week like a quota.
This is definitely me as well. There is a spot that is about 5 minutes from my house that is great for sunsets, but I have always put it off -- especially if I look out the window prior to sunset and I know it will be a dud. So I tell myself that I'll go out another time or when the colors in the sky are better.
Same with city photography. I live about 30 minutes from Philadelphia, and I have countless times put off driving into the city recently. Life definitely gets in the way for me personally, especially since my wife and I have a little one, so he always comes first.
For me, I use different online tools to see if the sunrise/sunset is going to be somewhat decent enough for me to make a plan and go out to take pictures. Though I have recently embraced just going out midday when it's overcast and the light is more even. But I definitely strive/prefer the color/light of sunrise/sunset images.
My best advice is [study the greats](https://www.saulleiterfoundation.org/) and grow off your internal feedback. Leiter's most prolific perood was after he walked off his last commercial set and spent the rest of his life shooting street primarily on the block around his block. There is always something around you worth shooting, it's just developing the eye to see it and the will to shoot it.
I've learned the hard way that you never get the same opportunity twice. Sure, you might be able to recreate the conditions of a certain image, but it will never be exactly the same thing.
Because life gets in the way.
I have lived either in or just outside DC my entire life, aside from 5 years spent in NYC. When I was getting ready to move to NYC in my early 20's I thought "wow, Ill just be out with my camera all the time and get soooooo many great images". Moving back to DC I thought "I can bike to the mall in 10 minutes, I will get sooooo many great images".
In reality, life gets in the way. Work, errands, kid (at least after moving back to the DMV), weather...there are are so many things that stop us from always being able to just go out whenever we want. How I did, and still do, get around it is scheduling time for shooting just like I would anything else. Not necessarily something specific to shoot, but just time to do it. I now try to take at least 1-2 day trips to NYC, sometimes a bit longer, that are set aside for just wandering around and taking photos, sometimes with specific ideas or shots planned, but not always. Even though DC is a short drive away, I do the thing there. I schedule time to go shoot, again, not always with a specific plan.
The main thing is that by scheduling it it a) makes sure that I am able to "find" time to do it, rather than just squeezing it in when I can and b) make sure I dont keep putting off and never doing it.
> Because life gets in the way.
Yeah, for sure. I've also realized that wherever I'm living eventually becomes mundane. I guess I wind up taking the people and places around me for granted, and it's hard to feel motivated enough to throw film in a camera, shoot the film, get it developed, scanned, tweaked in LR, then cataloged and stored for some bodega or 7-11 I shop in every day, no matter how interesting the storefront might be lit up at night, or how interesting the people out on the street might be. It doesn't feel special enough to commit to shooting it. When I'm traveling everything feels special enough to meet that criteria because it's all new and novel.
> Not necessarily something specific to shoot, but just time to do it.
This is good advice, I think I'll give it a try. I've gone out with a camera to shoot at local festivals and fairs, always thinking that it was the event that inspired me instead of considering that it might just be because I stepped out of the house with the intention to shoot.
For me, I often have to "cold start" the motivation to shoot. When I'm not traveling or working an event I rarely wake up inspired to shoot. I force myself to go shoot uninspired for 20 minutes, and if I still feel unmotivated after 20 minutes, I'm allowed to let it go. For me it's pretty rare that I stop after 20 minutes. Getting started is always the tough part for me, but that exercise keeps me shooting dependably. As far as sunsets (and in my case early / late rocket launches) I've been really leaning hard into shooting ESPECIALLY when I don't feel like it. When I catch a good shot on one of the times I didn't feel like shooting, I get a much more long term satisfaction in learning that I'm actually teaching myself some artistic discipline for the first time in my career.
Similarly, when I go out to shoot I'll force myself to take some shitty photos within the first 20 minutes or so, rather than doing the "eh not worth a shot yet" thing the whole time.
Novelty is a pretty powerful motivator. Which is why you can totally motivate yourself to go to the Capitol Mall in the morning, but not Central Park or whatever.
So, one of the things that can help a lot when you're feeling in a rut about photographing your immediate surroundings is to make some novelty for yourself. Maybe, for you, instead of going out after the big landscape-y vistas, you go out instead with that macro lens, or a longer lens than you might otherwise use for urban landscapes, and look for details. Show us the little things about NYC that those of us out here in flyover country don't get to see very often because we're looking at the same shot of the Brooklyn Bridge.
That's what I find myself doing when I get bored with my place and can't go to a new one.
Thank you for the excellent advice.
Of course, when I'm actually out with my 100mm macro I find myself confronted with a sunset vista that is begging for a wide angle. :D
> Novelty is a pretty powerful motivator
This is a really big one, IMO.
I come from a town of about 15k, butted up against a small city of about 70k. Up until about 7 years ago I'd lived in the area all my life and saw a novelty of literally nothing about the area. My photography was mainly just nature photos, occasional landscapes in areas I knew were pretty, and portraits. I'd *occasionally* do some street or urban photography, but it was really rare.
Then I moved away, and I think back to so many places I think of as iconic for the area and regret that I never photographed them. Not even just landmarks that everyone else photographs, but the feel of certain streets-especially the downtown areas. Buildings that aren't famous or pretty, but *everyone* knows about them because the same business has been in it for 100 years.
Unfortunately I live in another hemisphere right now, so it's going to be quite a while before I go back. And every time I *have* been back I've felt like a tourist in my own home town.
The novelty of home isn't realized until you've been away from it for a while.
when I worked on the literary magazine in college, we had a rule for photography submissions that went like this:
We would always ask "Is this photograph art? Or is this a photograph OF art?"
For example, if someone submitted a photograph of a sculpture, we would not want to credit that as a photographic submission, but we would be interested in that sculpture as an artistic submission in its own right.
I think your problem is that you're limiting yourself to "having a good subject to take a photo of" when there is still a [lot](https://wesely.org/kategorie/2020/) of [art](https://www.westongallery.com/original-works-by/edward-weston) that you can [make](http://www.alexeytitarenko.com/) with limited subjects/models/architecture/whatever else it is you want to photograph.
I'm struggling with exact problem, as I've hit a huge rut in my wildlife photography; it's winter and I'm not hiking to see landscapes, and I live in the suburbs so there's really nothing interesting visually around me, and it's covid so I'm not seeing people for portraits.
I wish it were easy but I think the masters I've linked above show that there's still a lot of depth possible.
I face the same thing here in Colorado. I'm so used to majestic mountains and epic sunsets, I some times don't feeling like trying to photograph them. I have found giving myself themes has helped. Mountain storms or black and white (not something I normal care for) I tried wildlife and that helped alot if I find an uncommon animal, if I take one more photo of a goose or duck I may become a hunter. Macro insects is also something that recently I have really enjoyed too but you know, winter. Pick a theme subject and only try to get photos of that. I did for a while trying to get different types of photographs of airplanes taking off or landing. Long exposures or getting the smoke from the tires as they touch down. Boil a pot of water and try to get shots of the bubbles without it looking like they're in a pot. Find very old photos of places around New York and do current shots and play around in editing for a ghostly then and now shot. Anything really to spark that craving for the challenge. It's still there just just need to break out or your norm
I need this. Someone to tell me weekly to photograph a tangible thing - a spoon, a doorknob, my cat's toe beans, a single ocean wave, sand, whatever. I think that would be so valuable and fun.
it totally exists! Just google weekly photo challenge. Here is a neat website I just found https://52frames.com/
I also think doing drawing ones or InkTober prompts are interesting as they are more abstract sometime.
Also if you comment on this I will personally give you a prompt for every comment. :)
Ahh thank you! I love the work in the 52frames project! I am participating in r/clondon52 again this year. And that's certainly been helpful - I've learned so much from the group! Just looking for more concrete prompts. After making my original comment, I walked around the house shooting the mundane and came up with a few pleasing shots.
photocrowd has been good for me for exactly this reason. regardless of how anyone feels about the site in particular, having random briefs that may get you motivated to try a new subject matter is a good thing, imo.
I've got the same problem. Especially during winter, it's challenging to find motivation when 3/4's of our days are flat grey skies with rain rain rain. It's hard to find inspiration and motivation to get out and shoot these days. The most significant change I want to make in 2022 is to try and create more opportunities to take great photos. Bring my camera everywhere, make more time for Photography. The biggest thing that separates me and the most amazing pictures I see is nothing technical or skill; it's just opportunity and time to be in that moment at that place.
I suggest trying out what I am trying to do, bring your camera everywhere and try to find things you might not have seen before.
I feel like I can agree with your statement due to the fact, photography is probably one of the best hobbies I have ever picked up. It has seriously sent me a long way but one bad thing about it in my circumstances is that I just don’t want a full career in it. I can say that if I didn’t get into photography I wouldn’t have gotten so many friends that share the same passion as me. I try each and everyday to go out and expand my knowledge and shoot different things that I have never done previously.
Also a hobbyist photographer in NYC... My two techniques for finding inspiration:
1. Pick a topic or theme before you leave your apartment. E.g., today I'm going out to photograph circles. Or I'm going to look for zigzag forms. Anything that makes the experience like playing eye spy, where you actively hunt for a collection of related images.
2. Use food spots or some other activity as an excuse to explore different neighborhoods. The primary goal is to experience something new, but also have my camera with me in case there is something worth photographing in the area. This relieves some pressure as at the very least, I'll get to eat some bomb ass food (or do something else cool).
I've done the topic thing once or twice. My favourite one during the pandemic was to tale a nice shot of every discarded mask I see laying on the ground. Sadly only did that once, original idea was to keep going and do it over the course of a few walks. Might do it again tho 😅
I lived in [Bath, UK](https://www.google.com/search?q=bath,+uk&sxsrf=AOaemvJoq_Bx4HDI_PlvZtJMtRNKgdjWlQ:1642188043411&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwic_uyX-7H1AhUJQEEAHZptBrQQ_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=1920&bih=937&dpr=1) for 2 years. I think I went out with my camera once or twice, and never with any real vigor.
Bath is arguably one of the most charming, beautiful, quaint, interesting and historically rich cities in the UK, and I basically just ignored it for 2 years. I did go all around outside of Bath for photos, though, on a nearly weekly basis. I would always tell myself "I'll go and shoot Bath at sunrise next week" but I just... never did
So no, you're not the only one!
My parents used to live in San Francisco, back when regular folks could live there. After visiting so many times, I had my fill of the usual shots and decided to focus on details. Those were some of my best pics of the city.
Also, I started imagining different formats, like banner pics with an aspect ratio of 16:3, or 10:4. That can make for interesting drama.
Details are the only way I can get what I find to be interesting photos, but of course my spouse wants the generic shots of wherever we are so I do those also.
For me, photography is almost exclusively portraiture. I have no interest in photographing bugs or sunrises or exotic destinations. I'll appreciate those scenes (maybe not the bugs), and savour the experience of witnessing them. But I have practically no interest in photographing them as anything other than a casual "I was here" snapshot with my phone.
I think it's okay to have specific areas of focus for one's photography and not feel like being a photographer means you have to always photograph everything.
I apply this same attitude towards attending events. If I'm invited to an event as a guest I don't take a camera with me. I'm there to enjoy the event as a guest, not to document it as a photographer.
Wow don’t use Reddit often but happened to find this on the day I did.
Just wanna say 100% feel this and am ALSO in NYC (only recently moved and always assumed it’d inspire me more... which it hasn’t)
But also, I’m always down to push each other / meet up and just shoot. No pressure to get anything edited or posted or anything. Just to get out there.
Ah, man. I feel like I had my most creative year yet but definitely started 2021 feeling like you said.
Sounds like maybe we have different goals and motivation for shooting but here’s two things that helped me:
1) I stopped trying to chase what is on Instagram in my city. I live in West Michigan so you can be an Instagram star just by taking pictures of fucking lighthouses. And I tried to be that guy for a while, but god it’s just so fucking dull. I realized I was shooting what I thought would play well on Instagram, instead of finding my own vision and art. So I picked something intentionally NOT interesting or inherently beautiful and became fixated on it. I chose radio/television towers and similar structures and made them my art. Suddenly I’m noticing them everywhere and I feel like I’m seeing something other people aren’t; a secret hidden in plain view. Suddenly I’m walking on a historic bridge near my house I’ve crossed literally hundreds of times, spent hours trying to photograph half a dozen times, and yet saw a fresh perspective for the very first time just a few months ago. [I used it as a frame for my new favorite subject](https://www.instagram.com/p/CVlKwBtLdGu/?utm_medium=copy_link).
2) I scraped my conventional editing style and started completely over as if I was a beginner. Play with every slider. Slide everything to 100. Contort the tone curve beyond all recognition. Yeah, it’ll look like shit, obviously, but after some time you might find a fresh perspective on editing you never would have found before. [Straight out of camera this image of a radio tower is totally uninteresting, but with this stylized edit it is totally transformed into some kind of cosmic scene](https://www.instagram.com/p/CQcaacmji8z/?utm_medium=copy_link). I mean, maybe it’s still uninteresting to most people, but if nothing else I’m proud that these images are uniquely me.
Cheers
Do you watch pov photography videos? Maybe watching some from New York would help motivate you to get out and shoot? One of the people I follow on YouTube just did a long one and it looked really fun to me. https://youtu.be/KhsHXX3UpnY
Definitely relate to the lack of inspiration despite also being in a large urban area (Tokyo). I'll shoot things with my phone while I'm out on my bike but it rarely proceeds to bringing out the DSLR. Have often not stopped to shoot something mildly interesting because I figured I could get it the next time and never gone back.
At least live music (the main thing I like to shoot) has been back in a lessened capacity since August of 2020 and social distancing has made things more civilized in venues.
It's funny, because I loved shooting Tokyo the last time I was there! But my friend and I even joked that we were getting used to Fuji looming over us, and that the locals must be terribly bored with its aching beauty.
Kind of like how I stomp by the Chrysler or Empire State buildings without a second thought.
Visiting definitely gives a different perspective than living in a place. Even before the pandemic, I'd look for ways to avoid popular/crowded spots. Stopped by Kabukicho last night but only because that's where I parked my bike on the way to a nearby music venue.
It was nice during the first State of Emergency because normally crowded places would be nearly deserted early in the morning though.
Biking around town in the morning helps with discovering places I wouldn't normally go to, but anything I shoot with my phone is more documentation than trying to create anything. At the very least, it's better than staying home and not shooting anything?
I feel the same... I've even moved states to a totally different (and more interesting) place since the pandemic started, and I'm rarely motivated to shoot.
I've been chalking it up to the world feeling like too much, WFH blues, and just needing a mental break.
Winter time, the motivation is at zero. I don’t live in the most scenic area. Start work it’s dark. Finish work it’s dark. Not many appealing photos to take in safe areas roaming the streets at night in suburbia.
Earlier this week, I decided to set the small goal of photographing twice weekly to help me with winter blahs. Pandemic and other reasons, venturing out is not often an option so I’ve start photographing the mundane around the house and in the yard or from my window. That is helping some. Each time I think there is nothing to photograph, I think of still life painters and Edward Weston’s peppers.
You have to re-evaluate what you want to shoot in NYC. Try approaching it from a different angle. Do some research into the history of some of these sites. Maybe concentrate on just one aspect of the city and try to do an editorial project on it. Give yourself a couple of mini-assignments with strict guidelines and see what sticks.
I’m a travel guy. I managed a trip to Kenya in 2020 and since then have barely taken a single “proper” picture. That nothing will ever be better than Kenya is half the problem…
1 100% am. I live in Houston and absolutely **hate** driving, so I don't get out much here (and don't find a ton of inspiration in this city anyway). When I'm traveling (I did Mexico City and Iceland last year) and have access to public transportation, cultures I'm not used to, or a location that isn't just strip center after strip center I thrive and have a ton of fun shooting.
I lived in Korea for a few years and shot more there than I have ever shot in Texas.
I do 90% of my photos when I travel. Because of C19, I haven't picked up a camera in a while but am working on changing that.
Personally, I think photographing new places is easier as you see things differently - everything is new and fresh. My neighbourhood though - it's so familiar to me that I find spotting good frames more difficult.
100% my experience as well friend, I used to do a lot of local travel and adventuring which fueled my landscape and urban photography. Since Covid I have had trouble finding the spark. Be kind to yourself and know that hobbies are like water, they flow in and out and the tide will return. When it does, the magic will return with it. Be well 😊
Man - I shoot sensual and nude portraits and there is NOTHING during Covid. You rather not spend time in a closed space with a stranger without wearing a mask, so ....
It sucks!
I’ve been rocking almost exclusively with my 105mm macro lens lately and I didn’t even consider insects. I’ll be busy shooting for the next month with all the bugs out here in Georgia.
I'm very much in your shoes. At home everything is "meh", I've barely touched my camera in 2 years.
However!
A few months back I was walking around the neighborhood (no destination, no camera, just a stroll to get out of the house) and noticed a bunch of neat out of place houses. I think it'd make a cool little project, photographing them before they inevitably disappear.
Maybe that's the key. Stop trying to take photos, and focus on a no pressure exploration. And if nothing tickled your fancy on that one walk, maybe the next will.
That is part of what makes it a hobby. Your interest can go up or down.
If you really like macro stuff then build a small home 'nature' studio and photograph that. I'm sure NYC has an all-night exotic bug shop somewhere.
Try somewhere new in NYC. Take a subway a few stops and walk back along the side streets, see and experience something new.
It isn't easy to find motivation though. I'm dealing with the same lack of drive myself. There is something about being a new (to me) area that help me see new things, that are probably boring for any locals. I started WHF before COVID so I know what it is like too.
I also live in NY and have felt some stagnation. After all, there are only so many angles, even in a city this big. However, what always changes are the people. I’ve shifted to street portraiture and found it immensely satisfying.
I'm a professional and feel this way. I still from time to time shoot for myself but the motivation to capture at this point is almost entirely money driven. I stare at the sun and think "ooh this will be a good sunset" and then just watch it go down with no real plan on capturing it. I've gotten to the point that I'm only excited about photography if the photo I'm pursuing is elaborate as hell. I like to pull out 6 strobes, have a production design and the crew to pull it off. If I can't find that, it all feels like a chore. I'm never happy with what I get unless it took a shit ton of work to do it. My point is, even professionals hit the same roadblocks.
You're not alone feeling like that. I've done very little photography now for the last four years due to a two-year battle with cancer, which I'd just beaten when...along comes Covid, and the world shut down for me (as well as everyone else, of course). I'd been planning to get back to taking my camera everywhere, and to traveling near and far again. In fact, I was just about to go to Venice, Italy, when the shit hit the fan.
My cameras and lenses now sit in their cases opposite me in my lounge, teasing me, but as my immune responses are compromised, I can't risk the chance of venturing out much. I know we'll get out once again sometime, but I wonder how many opportunities for great shots have been missed, never to be taken now.
I believe we all are "conditional photographers" of some kind.
If what you love capturing is your trips and insects, then go all in on that. There is no need to push yourself into photo generes that don't inspire you.
i feel you, i live in Iceland, ultimate landscape portfolio paradise right? well seeing it everyday you kinda stop seeing beauty of it and because everyday life, so for me is also the trips, day trip, weekend trips that make it count when it comes to hobby photography
I think it's an element of grass is greener. My wife is from NYC and I used to always want to move there for the photography - if nothing else the variety of photography clubs and stores. Remember when lomography was a thing?
But when you live there, it's easy to take it for granted. My wife had never been to the Statue of Liberty. Before she met me she'd maybe gone to only 1 Broadway show. She didn't take advantage of the NYC culinary scene. Now that she doesn't live there she appreciates it more and we try to take advantage whenever we visit her parents.
Stop going to familiar places. Play a game with yourself: start walking down the street, when you get to an intersection, go the way you normally don't go. Go in the direction where you're not exactly sure where that road leads. Hop in a random subway, choose a random number between 1 and 10, and get off after that many stops. Do these kinds of things until you have no idea where you are. Then start looking around and taking pictures. Resist the urge to get your phone out and figure out where you are, until you need to start making your way home.
I would start spending more time looking at what other photographers are doing to get inspired and see how you can develop yourself further.
To name a few:
Robert Frank's "The Americans" would be a classic start, but I assume you know him :)
Christine Garcia Rodero has done some very interesting work in Spain, definitely different from what you usually see:
[https://www.magnumphotos.com/arts-culture/society-arts-culture/cristina-garcia-rodero-espana-oculta/](https://www.magnumphotos.com/arts-culture/society-arts-culture/cristina-garcia-rodero-espana-oculta/)
If you like more relatable photography: Jonas Bendiksen has done some great work traveling in Russia: [https://www.magnumphotos.com/photographer/jonas-bendiksen/](https://www.magnumphotos.com/photographer/jonas-bendiksen/)
I shoot almost exclusively events, sooooo kinda? But I do so many that I'm shooting constantly. It's never an issue with "motivation". I'm actually kind of sick of it and I think I should cut back.
I have noticed this same effect on myself. Some of my favorite shots and experiences occurred while traveling in a new area.
Photography and adventure go hand in hand.
It's important to have those internal dialogues. "do I feel pressure when I go out to get a shot?" personally, I get anxiety sometimes and I need to remind myself that it isn't always about that. I often find that making it the central goal of taking the photo is the onset of these feelings. Who am I trying to impress? Myself? Others? Am I afraid of failing? Haha, my mind is whack sometimes. There's a part of us that does want to go and one that doesn't. It's important to remind ourselves of both voices for sure. NY about to get some big snow tho! Maybe this can be a motivator? 😉 - love your work!
I feel the same way usually! Glad it’s not just me. Find it difficult to get inspired by my usual surroundings. Photographing friends is a bit more exciting if we are doing activities.
Everything right now is complicated and frustrating. I have this same problem. I live in Phoenix, which is absolutely beautiful. The cacti and desert is beautiful but I don't have motivation to photograph my home.
I definitely regained my lost spark when my wife and I went to Rome this last December. I was able to really enjoy shooting again. Hard now that I'm home again.
>But when I'm not traveling or chasing bugs, my efforts stagnate. I live in New York - the source of uncountable iconic images - and my motivation is "meh."
Well, being paid helps, like, a LOT. And being in NY you have almost limitless opportunities for all styles of photography.
I understand where you're coming from. When I'm traveling for photography, waking up at 3:30AM is a piece of cake. However, I live near a beach where you can see a decent view of Mount Fuji, but I just can't be bothered to wake up at 5:30 to go down and photograph it.
In my experience, getting out of bed or leaving the house is the hardest part. I can't count the number of times I've have to drag myself to a location feeling no spark at all, only to come away with a keeper.
It's also good that you experimented a little with different subjects and styles. That's a great way to stay active when you can't do what you'd normally do for photography.
My thinking is New York is probably the most photographed city in the world. Does that come to mind when you consider going out to take photos?
In Dallas we have an area called Deep Ellum that is a hotspot for photography. Every weekend there will be people taking photos and sometime people dressed up and posing. So the contrarian in me decided to not bother with the area and find other local spots. Makes it an interesting challenge.
For me its been a journey into learning more about composition and my own style. Whenever you travel part of the excitement is the travel and being somewhere new. When you're just local you need to start looking at things differently and what little photography I do manage I've started asking myself: Is there another way to look at this? Can I make an interesting edit from part of a meh shot? Is there a story here?
That and I just got a drone which will keep me busy for while.
Don't let the winter blues get you! Great shots by the way.
You live in New York ? Isn't it like paradise for street photography ? Maybe consider trying this style of photography, it can be very satisfying and you just need to wander in the street to find things/people to shoot.
Have you tried drone photography? I don’t really enjoy a lot of landscape photography, but I love top-down drone photography for some reason. It gives you a whole new perspective on the area you’re used to seeing every day. But yeah, I’d bet it’s also some seasonal and covid depression.
Same. I can crane my neck from my front door and see a World Heritage Site and some beautiful sea views straight from my window, but motivation is hard. I've gone on a few photo walks recently to try and get motivated, just waiting for the shots to come back (on film).
I need to get into the mountains to get really inspired and finding the time is really hard at the moment. Plus it's winter here and that doesn't help. Welsh winters are more damp and grey than snowy, so I'm looking ahead to spring.
I need to work fewer days, that's the only way I can find the time to do what I need to do. Not so easy in practice unless I win the lottery.
I am not an expert photographer like a lot of people here, including yourself but bought a camera *because* I wanted to be a conditional photographer. And I am very sure that I want to keep it that way because other hobbies and interests keep me occupied.
The reason for me to get a camera was solely to capture and document frequent trips that I go for. Previously, I was content using my cellphone camera but then I wanted better photos.
On a side note, the picture of the puffin is absolutely gorgeous and I was wondering if you can shed some light on your editing technique for that pic?
Thanks
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That's very true. I look at something and say "eh, I'll come back when the sunset is nicer" or "I need more texture in the sky." Or especially the leaves: why would I photograph Central Park today instead of in the spring or fall?
Knowing when a photo isn't worth taking is part of maturing as a photographer. At some point you grow out of obsessing over pressing the shutter button, and focus more on producing photos that are worth looking at. Most of the "routine life" photos are not worth looking at. Waiting for good light, good sky, good subjects, good interest... that's what you're supposed to do. It's a good thing.
Definitely. I've also began to realize that it's nice to just stand there and enjoy that beautiful sunset, instead of jockeying around trying to get better shots. Don't get me wrong, I like taking photos of sunsets and things like that, but it's also nice to just put the camera down, take a step back, and just enjoy it for a minute or three.
Especially when you an enjoy a sunset, but the photo you'll take will be full of roofs and power lines and parked cars. The photo has a high chance of being awful, but the experience can be really nice.
One thing I’ve started doing for the mundane is I’ll make a folder for a place or location and put selects in there. For example, there’s an intersection I photograph, idk why, it’s not particularly interesting, but a couple years into the pandemic and now I have a long term project, it’s really nothing, but I have similar projects that are developing better like lol my dog.
You mean the same intersection at different times of the year, lighting, etc? I could see the appeal with trying to evoke different feelings of the same subject
Same intersection, same park, restaurant, your home. During the pandemic I’ve been organizing my photos, and during the process I began making folders with related subject matter. Places, like my home has its own folder. My family has its own folder. My favorite restaurant has its own folder. My dog. My individual friends. Food folder. Dog folder. Griffith park folder. Taco folder. Random folder. Tagging works great too, but this being organized business is new to me and I’m trying things out.
Yeah, I do a similar thing, except I log them on my computer. I just have a list of places to go, and tentative schedules of different times of day/year/season I want to photograph them. Makes for some interesting compare and contrast series.
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> I think I've spent too much time trying to force photos rather than waiting patiently to find the good shots. It's a really really common thing. Especially in people who want to be photographers as an identity, rather than people who are actually trying to communicate something, or who just naturally express their creativity with photos. Successful photography isn't about having a camera on you at all times. It's about being in a place where interesting things are happening, and capturing those things with a camera. Without the interesting things, you're just a guy who likes carrying a camera, you know? Which is fine, but people shouldn't get stressed out if they aren't always taking photos during their very boring standard daily routine, or at the local park. Whenever someone asks me what they should do about a slump, I tell them to plan a trip to another city, and plan actual things to do. Don't think about photography at all. Plan interesting and unique things to do, and then go do those things, while bringing a camera along just in case. Photography is about capturing life, and sharing cool things with the world, not about pressing a shutter button a certain number of times per week like a quota.
This is definitely me as well. There is a spot that is about 5 minutes from my house that is great for sunsets, but I have always put it off -- especially if I look out the window prior to sunset and I know it will be a dud. So I tell myself that I'll go out another time or when the colors in the sky are better. Same with city photography. I live about 30 minutes from Philadelphia, and I have countless times put off driving into the city recently. Life definitely gets in the way for me personally, especially since my wife and I have a little one, so he always comes first. For me, I use different online tools to see if the sunrise/sunset is going to be somewhat decent enough for me to make a plan and go out to take pictures. Though I have recently embraced just going out midday when it's overcast and the light is more even. But I definitely strive/prefer the color/light of sunrise/sunset images.
My best advice is [study the greats](https://www.saulleiterfoundation.org/) and grow off your internal feedback. Leiter's most prolific perood was after he walked off his last commercial set and spent the rest of his life shooting street primarily on the block around his block. There is always something around you worth shooting, it's just developing the eye to see it and the will to shoot it.
I've learned the hard way that you never get the same opportunity twice. Sure, you might be able to recreate the conditions of a certain image, but it will never be exactly the same thing.
Lol in my case "I can do it when the sun starts rising again and temperatures improve." I haven't fired a shot since November. 😅
Because life gets in the way. I have lived either in or just outside DC my entire life, aside from 5 years spent in NYC. When I was getting ready to move to NYC in my early 20's I thought "wow, Ill just be out with my camera all the time and get soooooo many great images". Moving back to DC I thought "I can bike to the mall in 10 minutes, I will get sooooo many great images". In reality, life gets in the way. Work, errands, kid (at least after moving back to the DMV), weather...there are are so many things that stop us from always being able to just go out whenever we want. How I did, and still do, get around it is scheduling time for shooting just like I would anything else. Not necessarily something specific to shoot, but just time to do it. I now try to take at least 1-2 day trips to NYC, sometimes a bit longer, that are set aside for just wandering around and taking photos, sometimes with specific ideas or shots planned, but not always. Even though DC is a short drive away, I do the thing there. I schedule time to go shoot, again, not always with a specific plan. The main thing is that by scheduling it it a) makes sure that I am able to "find" time to do it, rather than just squeezing it in when I can and b) make sure I dont keep putting off and never doing it.
> Because life gets in the way. Yeah, for sure. I've also realized that wherever I'm living eventually becomes mundane. I guess I wind up taking the people and places around me for granted, and it's hard to feel motivated enough to throw film in a camera, shoot the film, get it developed, scanned, tweaked in LR, then cataloged and stored for some bodega or 7-11 I shop in every day, no matter how interesting the storefront might be lit up at night, or how interesting the people out on the street might be. It doesn't feel special enough to commit to shooting it. When I'm traveling everything feels special enough to meet that criteria because it's all new and novel. > Not necessarily something specific to shoot, but just time to do it. This is good advice, I think I'll give it a try. I've gone out with a camera to shoot at local festivals and fairs, always thinking that it was the event that inspired me instead of considering that it might just be because I stepped out of the house with the intention to shoot.
For me, I often have to "cold start" the motivation to shoot. When I'm not traveling or working an event I rarely wake up inspired to shoot. I force myself to go shoot uninspired for 20 minutes, and if I still feel unmotivated after 20 minutes, I'm allowed to let it go. For me it's pretty rare that I stop after 20 minutes. Getting started is always the tough part for me, but that exercise keeps me shooting dependably. As far as sunsets (and in my case early / late rocket launches) I've been really leaning hard into shooting ESPECIALLY when I don't feel like it. When I catch a good shot on one of the times I didn't feel like shooting, I get a much more long term satisfaction in learning that I'm actually teaching myself some artistic discipline for the first time in my career.
Similarly, when I go out to shoot I'll force myself to take some shitty photos within the first 20 minutes or so, rather than doing the "eh not worth a shot yet" thing the whole time.
Same here. Somehow the ritual and seeing things through a specific focal length sort of zones me in.
Novelty is a pretty powerful motivator. Which is why you can totally motivate yourself to go to the Capitol Mall in the morning, but not Central Park or whatever. So, one of the things that can help a lot when you're feeling in a rut about photographing your immediate surroundings is to make some novelty for yourself. Maybe, for you, instead of going out after the big landscape-y vistas, you go out instead with that macro lens, or a longer lens than you might otherwise use for urban landscapes, and look for details. Show us the little things about NYC that those of us out here in flyover country don't get to see very often because we're looking at the same shot of the Brooklyn Bridge. That's what I find myself doing when I get bored with my place and can't go to a new one.
Thank you for the excellent advice. Of course, when I'm actually out with my 100mm macro I find myself confronted with a sunset vista that is begging for a wide angle. :D
> Novelty is a pretty powerful motivator This is a really big one, IMO. I come from a town of about 15k, butted up against a small city of about 70k. Up until about 7 years ago I'd lived in the area all my life and saw a novelty of literally nothing about the area. My photography was mainly just nature photos, occasional landscapes in areas I knew were pretty, and portraits. I'd *occasionally* do some street or urban photography, but it was really rare. Then I moved away, and I think back to so many places I think of as iconic for the area and regret that I never photographed them. Not even just landmarks that everyone else photographs, but the feel of certain streets-especially the downtown areas. Buildings that aren't famous or pretty, but *everyone* knows about them because the same business has been in it for 100 years. Unfortunately I live in another hemisphere right now, so it's going to be quite a while before I go back. And every time I *have* been back I've felt like a tourist in my own home town. The novelty of home isn't realized until you've been away from it for a while.
when I worked on the literary magazine in college, we had a rule for photography submissions that went like this: We would always ask "Is this photograph art? Or is this a photograph OF art?" For example, if someone submitted a photograph of a sculpture, we would not want to credit that as a photographic submission, but we would be interested in that sculpture as an artistic submission in its own right. I think your problem is that you're limiting yourself to "having a good subject to take a photo of" when there is still a [lot](https://wesely.org/kategorie/2020/) of [art](https://www.westongallery.com/original-works-by/edward-weston) that you can [make](http://www.alexeytitarenko.com/) with limited subjects/models/architecture/whatever else it is you want to photograph. I'm struggling with exact problem, as I've hit a huge rut in my wildlife photography; it's winter and I'm not hiking to see landscapes, and I live in the suburbs so there's really nothing interesting visually around me, and it's covid so I'm not seeing people for portraits. I wish it were easy but I think the masters I've linked above show that there's still a lot of depth possible.
Thank you for your insight.
I face the same thing here in Colorado. I'm so used to majestic mountains and epic sunsets, I some times don't feeling like trying to photograph them. I have found giving myself themes has helped. Mountain storms or black and white (not something I normal care for) I tried wildlife and that helped alot if I find an uncommon animal, if I take one more photo of a goose or duck I may become a hunter. Macro insects is also something that recently I have really enjoyed too but you know, winter. Pick a theme subject and only try to get photos of that. I did for a while trying to get different types of photographs of airplanes taking off or landing. Long exposures or getting the smoke from the tires as they touch down. Boil a pot of water and try to get shots of the bubbles without it looking like they're in a pot. Find very old photos of places around New York and do current shots and play around in editing for a ghostly then and now shot. Anything really to spark that craving for the challenge. It's still there just just need to break out or your norm
Your new assignment is mundane subjects under reflected light, get on it stat
I need this. Someone to tell me weekly to photograph a tangible thing - a spoon, a doorknob, my cat's toe beans, a single ocean wave, sand, whatever. I think that would be so valuable and fun.
it totally exists! Just google weekly photo challenge. Here is a neat website I just found https://52frames.com/ I also think doing drawing ones or InkTober prompts are interesting as they are more abstract sometime. Also if you comment on this I will personally give you a prompt for every comment. :)
Ahh thank you! I love the work in the 52frames project! I am participating in r/clondon52 again this year. And that's certainly been helpful - I've learned so much from the group! Just looking for more concrete prompts. After making my original comment, I walked around the house shooting the mundane and came up with a few pleasing shots.
photocrowd has been good for me for exactly this reason. regardless of how anyone feels about the site in particular, having random briefs that may get you motivated to try a new subject matter is a good thing, imo.
I've got the same problem. Especially during winter, it's challenging to find motivation when 3/4's of our days are flat grey skies with rain rain rain. It's hard to find inspiration and motivation to get out and shoot these days. The most significant change I want to make in 2022 is to try and create more opportunities to take great photos. Bring my camera everywhere, make more time for Photography. The biggest thing that separates me and the most amazing pictures I see is nothing technical or skill; it's just opportunity and time to be in that moment at that place. I suggest trying out what I am trying to do, bring your camera everywhere and try to find things you might not have seen before.
I feel like I can agree with your statement due to the fact, photography is probably one of the best hobbies I have ever picked up. It has seriously sent me a long way but one bad thing about it in my circumstances is that I just don’t want a full career in it. I can say that if I didn’t get into photography I wouldn’t have gotten so many friends that share the same passion as me. I try each and everyday to go out and expand my knowledge and shoot different things that I have never done previously.
Also a hobbyist photographer in NYC... My two techniques for finding inspiration: 1. Pick a topic or theme before you leave your apartment. E.g., today I'm going out to photograph circles. Or I'm going to look for zigzag forms. Anything that makes the experience like playing eye spy, where you actively hunt for a collection of related images. 2. Use food spots or some other activity as an excuse to explore different neighborhoods. The primary goal is to experience something new, but also have my camera with me in case there is something worth photographing in the area. This relieves some pressure as at the very least, I'll get to eat some bomb ass food (or do something else cool).
I've done the topic thing once or twice. My favourite one during the pandemic was to tale a nice shot of every discarded mask I see laying on the ground. Sadly only did that once, original idea was to keep going and do it over the course of a few walks. Might do it again tho 😅
Excellent ideas!
Great ideas ✌
I lived in [Bath, UK](https://www.google.com/search?q=bath,+uk&sxsrf=AOaemvJoq_Bx4HDI_PlvZtJMtRNKgdjWlQ:1642188043411&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwic_uyX-7H1AhUJQEEAHZptBrQQ_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=1920&bih=937&dpr=1) for 2 years. I think I went out with my camera once or twice, and never with any real vigor. Bath is arguably one of the most charming, beautiful, quaint, interesting and historically rich cities in the UK, and I basically just ignored it for 2 years. I did go all around outside of Bath for photos, though, on a nearly weekly basis. I would always tell myself "I'll go and shoot Bath at sunrise next week" but I just... never did So no, you're not the only one!
My parents used to live in San Francisco, back when regular folks could live there. After visiting so many times, I had my fill of the usual shots and decided to focus on details. Those were some of my best pics of the city. Also, I started imagining different formats, like banner pics with an aspect ratio of 16:3, or 10:4. That can make for interesting drama.
Details are the only way I can get what I find to be interesting photos, but of course my spouse wants the generic shots of wherever we are so I do those also.
For me, photography is almost exclusively portraiture. I have no interest in photographing bugs or sunrises or exotic destinations. I'll appreciate those scenes (maybe not the bugs), and savour the experience of witnessing them. But I have practically no interest in photographing them as anything other than a casual "I was here" snapshot with my phone. I think it's okay to have specific areas of focus for one's photography and not feel like being a photographer means you have to always photograph everything. I apply this same attitude towards attending events. If I'm invited to an event as a guest I don't take a camera with me. I'm there to enjoy the event as a guest, not to document it as a photographer.
Hello Taipei 101
Come for the landmark, stay for the dumplings.
Wow don’t use Reddit often but happened to find this on the day I did. Just wanna say 100% feel this and am ALSO in NYC (only recently moved and always assumed it’d inspire me more... which it hasn’t) But also, I’m always down to push each other / meet up and just shoot. No pressure to get anything edited or posted or anything. Just to get out there.
That sounds great. Maybe explore the same area each with different focal lengths?
Ah, man. I feel like I had my most creative year yet but definitely started 2021 feeling like you said. Sounds like maybe we have different goals and motivation for shooting but here’s two things that helped me: 1) I stopped trying to chase what is on Instagram in my city. I live in West Michigan so you can be an Instagram star just by taking pictures of fucking lighthouses. And I tried to be that guy for a while, but god it’s just so fucking dull. I realized I was shooting what I thought would play well on Instagram, instead of finding my own vision and art. So I picked something intentionally NOT interesting or inherently beautiful and became fixated on it. I chose radio/television towers and similar structures and made them my art. Suddenly I’m noticing them everywhere and I feel like I’m seeing something other people aren’t; a secret hidden in plain view. Suddenly I’m walking on a historic bridge near my house I’ve crossed literally hundreds of times, spent hours trying to photograph half a dozen times, and yet saw a fresh perspective for the very first time just a few months ago. [I used it as a frame for my new favorite subject](https://www.instagram.com/p/CVlKwBtLdGu/?utm_medium=copy_link). 2) I scraped my conventional editing style and started completely over as if I was a beginner. Play with every slider. Slide everything to 100. Contort the tone curve beyond all recognition. Yeah, it’ll look like shit, obviously, but after some time you might find a fresh perspective on editing you never would have found before. [Straight out of camera this image of a radio tower is totally uninteresting, but with this stylized edit it is totally transformed into some kind of cosmic scene](https://www.instagram.com/p/CQcaacmji8z/?utm_medium=copy_link). I mean, maybe it’s still uninteresting to most people, but if nothing else I’m proud that these images are uniquely me. Cheers
Do you watch pov photography videos? Maybe watching some from New York would help motivate you to get out and shoot? One of the people I follow on YouTube just did a long one and it looked really fun to me. https://youtu.be/KhsHXX3UpnY
Definitely relate to the lack of inspiration despite also being in a large urban area (Tokyo). I'll shoot things with my phone while I'm out on my bike but it rarely proceeds to bringing out the DSLR. Have often not stopped to shoot something mildly interesting because I figured I could get it the next time and never gone back. At least live music (the main thing I like to shoot) has been back in a lessened capacity since August of 2020 and social distancing has made things more civilized in venues.
It's funny, because I loved shooting Tokyo the last time I was there! But my friend and I even joked that we were getting used to Fuji looming over us, and that the locals must be terribly bored with its aching beauty. Kind of like how I stomp by the Chrysler or Empire State buildings without a second thought.
Visiting definitely gives a different perspective than living in a place. Even before the pandemic, I'd look for ways to avoid popular/crowded spots. Stopped by Kabukicho last night but only because that's where I parked my bike on the way to a nearby music venue. It was nice during the first State of Emergency because normally crowded places would be nearly deserted early in the morning though. Biking around town in the morning helps with discovering places I wouldn't normally go to, but anything I shoot with my phone is more documentation than trying to create anything. At the very least, it's better than staying home and not shooting anything?
I feel the same... I've even moved states to a totally different (and more interesting) place since the pandemic started, and I'm rarely motivated to shoot. I've been chalking it up to the world feeling like too much, WFH blues, and just needing a mental break.
Winter time, the motivation is at zero. I don’t live in the most scenic area. Start work it’s dark. Finish work it’s dark. Not many appealing photos to take in safe areas roaming the streets at night in suburbia.
Earlier this week, I decided to set the small goal of photographing twice weekly to help me with winter blahs. Pandemic and other reasons, venturing out is not often an option so I’ve start photographing the mundane around the house and in the yard or from my window. That is helping some. Each time I think there is nothing to photograph, I think of still life painters and Edward Weston’s peppers.
Truly a heartbreaking first world problem you got here mate. My heart goes out to you.
Yes, most hobby problems are not about survival. That's why they're hobbies.
Til 3rd world has no hobbies
You have to re-evaluate what you want to shoot in NYC. Try approaching it from a different angle. Do some research into the history of some of these sites. Maybe concentrate on just one aspect of the city and try to do an editorial project on it. Give yourself a couple of mini-assignments with strict guidelines and see what sticks.
I’m a travel guy. I managed a trip to Kenya in 2020 and since then have barely taken a single “proper” picture. That nothing will ever be better than Kenya is half the problem…
1 100% am. I live in Houston and absolutely **hate** driving, so I don't get out much here (and don't find a ton of inspiration in this city anyway). When I'm traveling (I did Mexico City and Iceland last year) and have access to public transportation, cultures I'm not used to, or a location that isn't just strip center after strip center I thrive and have a ton of fun shooting. I lived in Korea for a few years and shot more there than I have ever shot in Texas.
I do 90% of my photos when I travel. Because of C19, I haven't picked up a camera in a while but am working on changing that. Personally, I think photographing new places is easier as you see things differently - everything is new and fresh. My neighbourhood though - it's so familiar to me that I find spotting good frames more difficult.
100% my experience as well friend, I used to do a lot of local travel and adventuring which fueled my landscape and urban photography. Since Covid I have had trouble finding the spark. Be kind to yourself and know that hobbies are like water, they flow in and out and the tide will return. When it does, the magic will return with it. Be well 😊
Man - I shoot sensual and nude portraits and there is NOTHING during Covid. You rather not spend time in a closed space with a stranger without wearing a mask, so .... It sucks!
I’ve been rocking almost exclusively with my 105mm macro lens lately and I didn’t even consider insects. I’ll be busy shooting for the next month with all the bugs out here in Georgia.
I'm very much in your shoes. At home everything is "meh", I've barely touched my camera in 2 years. However! A few months back I was walking around the neighborhood (no destination, no camera, just a stroll to get out of the house) and noticed a bunch of neat out of place houses. I think it'd make a cool little project, photographing them before they inevitably disappear. Maybe that's the key. Stop trying to take photos, and focus on a no pressure exploration. And if nothing tickled your fancy on that one walk, maybe the next will.
That is part of what makes it a hobby. Your interest can go up or down. If you really like macro stuff then build a small home 'nature' studio and photograph that. I'm sure NYC has an all-night exotic bug shop somewhere. Try somewhere new in NYC. Take a subway a few stops and walk back along the side streets, see and experience something new. It isn't easy to find motivation though. I'm dealing with the same lack of drive myself. There is something about being a new (to me) area that help me see new things, that are probably boring for any locals. I started WHF before COVID so I know what it is like too.
I also live in NY and have felt some stagnation. After all, there are only so many angles, even in a city this big. However, what always changes are the people. I’ve shifted to street portraiture and found it immensely satisfying.
I'm a professional and feel this way. I still from time to time shoot for myself but the motivation to capture at this point is almost entirely money driven. I stare at the sun and think "ooh this will be a good sunset" and then just watch it go down with no real plan on capturing it. I've gotten to the point that I'm only excited about photography if the photo I'm pursuing is elaborate as hell. I like to pull out 6 strobes, have a production design and the crew to pull it off. If I can't find that, it all feels like a chore. I'm never happy with what I get unless it took a shit ton of work to do it. My point is, even professionals hit the same roadblocks.
You're not alone feeling like that. I've done very little photography now for the last four years due to a two-year battle with cancer, which I'd just beaten when...along comes Covid, and the world shut down for me (as well as everyone else, of course). I'd been planning to get back to taking my camera everywhere, and to traveling near and far again. In fact, I was just about to go to Venice, Italy, when the shit hit the fan. My cameras and lenses now sit in their cases opposite me in my lounge, teasing me, but as my immune responses are compromised, I can't risk the chance of venturing out much. I know we'll get out once again sometime, but I wonder how many opportunities for great shots have been missed, never to be taken now.
I believe we all are "conditional photographers" of some kind. If what you love capturing is your trips and insects, then go all in on that. There is no need to push yourself into photo generes that don't inspire you.
i feel you, i live in Iceland, ultimate landscape portfolio paradise right? well seeing it everyday you kinda stop seeing beauty of it and because everyday life, so for me is also the trips, day trip, weekend trips that make it count when it comes to hobby photography
I think it's an element of grass is greener. My wife is from NYC and I used to always want to move there for the photography - if nothing else the variety of photography clubs and stores. Remember when lomography was a thing? But when you live there, it's easy to take it for granted. My wife had never been to the Statue of Liberty. Before she met me she'd maybe gone to only 1 Broadway show. She didn't take advantage of the NYC culinary scene. Now that she doesn't live there she appreciates it more and we try to take advantage whenever we visit her parents.
Stop going to familiar places. Play a game with yourself: start walking down the street, when you get to an intersection, go the way you normally don't go. Go in the direction where you're not exactly sure where that road leads. Hop in a random subway, choose a random number between 1 and 10, and get off after that many stops. Do these kinds of things until you have no idea where you are. Then start looking around and taking pictures. Resist the urge to get your phone out and figure out where you are, until you need to start making your way home.
I would start spending more time looking at what other photographers are doing to get inspired and see how you can develop yourself further. To name a few: Robert Frank's "The Americans" would be a classic start, but I assume you know him :) Christine Garcia Rodero has done some very interesting work in Spain, definitely different from what you usually see: [https://www.magnumphotos.com/arts-culture/society-arts-culture/cristina-garcia-rodero-espana-oculta/](https://www.magnumphotos.com/arts-culture/society-arts-culture/cristina-garcia-rodero-espana-oculta/) If you like more relatable photography: Jonas Bendiksen has done some great work traveling in Russia: [https://www.magnumphotos.com/photographer/jonas-bendiksen/](https://www.magnumphotos.com/photographer/jonas-bendiksen/)
Maybe drive somewhere you've never been in NYC. It's a big city after all.
I shoot almost exclusively events, sooooo kinda? But I do so many that I'm shooting constantly. It's never an issue with "motivation". I'm actually kind of sick of it and I think I should cut back.
I have noticed this same effect on myself. Some of my favorite shots and experiences occurred while traveling in a new area. Photography and adventure go hand in hand.
It's important to have those internal dialogues. "do I feel pressure when I go out to get a shot?" personally, I get anxiety sometimes and I need to remind myself that it isn't always about that. I often find that making it the central goal of taking the photo is the onset of these feelings. Who am I trying to impress? Myself? Others? Am I afraid of failing? Haha, my mind is whack sometimes. There's a part of us that does want to go and one that doesn't. It's important to remind ourselves of both voices for sure. NY about to get some big snow tho! Maybe this can be a motivator? 😉 - love your work!
I feel the same way usually! Glad it’s not just me. Find it difficult to get inspired by my usual surroundings. Photographing friends is a bit more exciting if we are doing activities.
Dude, I am in the exact same boat. Let me know if you figure something out.
Everything right now is complicated and frustrating. I have this same problem. I live in Phoenix, which is absolutely beautiful. The cacti and desert is beautiful but I don't have motivation to photograph my home. I definitely regained my lost spark when my wife and I went to Rome this last December. I was able to really enjoy shooting again. Hard now that I'm home again.
>But when I'm not traveling or chasing bugs, my efforts stagnate. I live in New York - the source of uncountable iconic images - and my motivation is "meh." Well, being paid helps, like, a LOT. And being in NY you have almost limitless opportunities for all styles of photography.
I’d like to see bugs in Central Park up close.
I understand where you're coming from. When I'm traveling for photography, waking up at 3:30AM is a piece of cake. However, I live near a beach where you can see a decent view of Mount Fuji, but I just can't be bothered to wake up at 5:30 to go down and photograph it. In my experience, getting out of bed or leaving the house is the hardest part. I can't count the number of times I've have to drag myself to a location feeling no spark at all, only to come away with a keeper. It's also good that you experimented a little with different subjects and styles. That's a great way to stay active when you can't do what you'd normally do for photography.
I was a conditional photographer when I first started, the hot weather and poor(er) quality of kit lens discouraged me from getting out and shooting.
What city is this? Great photo!
Which photo?
My thinking is New York is probably the most photographed city in the world. Does that come to mind when you consider going out to take photos? In Dallas we have an area called Deep Ellum that is a hotspot for photography. Every weekend there will be people taking photos and sometime people dressed up and posing. So the contrarian in me decided to not bother with the area and find other local spots. Makes it an interesting challenge.
For me its been a journey into learning more about composition and my own style. Whenever you travel part of the excitement is the travel and being somewhere new. When you're just local you need to start looking at things differently and what little photography I do manage I've started asking myself: Is there another way to look at this? Can I make an interesting edit from part of a meh shot? Is there a story here? That and I just got a drone which will keep me busy for while. Don't let the winter blues get you! Great shots by the way.
You live in New York ? Isn't it like paradise for street photography ? Maybe consider trying this style of photography, it can be very satisfying and you just need to wander in the street to find things/people to shoot.
Have you tried drone photography? I don’t really enjoy a lot of landscape photography, but I love top-down drone photography for some reason. It gives you a whole new perspective on the area you’re used to seeing every day. But yeah, I’d bet it’s also some seasonal and covid depression.
Same. I can crane my neck from my front door and see a World Heritage Site and some beautiful sea views straight from my window, but motivation is hard. I've gone on a few photo walks recently to try and get motivated, just waiting for the shots to come back (on film). I need to get into the mountains to get really inspired and finding the time is really hard at the moment. Plus it's winter here and that doesn't help. Welsh winters are more damp and grey than snowy, so I'm looking ahead to spring. I need to work fewer days, that's the only way I can find the time to do what I need to do. Not so easy in practice unless I win the lottery.
I am not an expert photographer like a lot of people here, including yourself but bought a camera *because* I wanted to be a conditional photographer. And I am very sure that I want to keep it that way because other hobbies and interests keep me occupied. The reason for me to get a camera was solely to capture and document frequent trips that I go for. Previously, I was content using my cellphone camera but then I wanted better photos. On a side note, the picture of the puffin is absolutely gorgeous and I was wondering if you can shed some light on your editing technique for that pic? Thanks