A quick post this week as I just returned from a business trip and had a ton to do, along with my day job.
I’ve picked up on an interesting trend in myself I thought I’d share. Going about my usual days I am photographically observant; I notice the direction and quality of light, look for interesting patterns, textures anything else that would make an interesting photograph. That’s one of the gifts photography has given me, the ability to see the world around me differently. It’s now so ingrained in me to “see creatively” I don’t even think about it anymore, it’s just the way I see the world. Seeing creatively is different than actually being creative and taking photographs though.
This seeing and observing is sort of a passive activity, where the act of photography is an engaging and active activity. I usually have to be in a creative space or zone, and, have my camera and tripod around in order to create some images. In the past I’ve been very focused about “making images” with my full camera rig, being very present and engaged in this conscious effort. If I didn’t have my camera with me, I could see a nice image, but wouldn’t take the shot with whatever camera (read phone) I had on me.
What I’ve noticed about myself in the past couple months is that barrier isn’t as strong for me and I’m more inclined to try and make interesting or compelling images with my phone, or a point and shoot if I have it. True the quality of the images aren’t up to the level of my Fuji system, but most of the images end up on Facebook, Flickr or 500px anyways, so ultimate quality isn’t required. Nor is the quiet contemplative process quite as important to me as it once was. I still crave and enjoy the full photographic process with my full rig, however, I’m now learning to be more fluid and using the tools available to me to create some nice images.
I’m not sure if this is a passing thing for me or is something that is lasting. Right now I’m in a very energized creative space working on many aspects of my photography and social media platforms and that might mean I’m hyper-focused on photography and willing to push my bounds and when I settle back to a more normalized level, I may not take creative images with the iphone. Only time will tell I guess.
Having self-awareness and being able to observe trends in yourself is a wonderful thing to have. I think it fosters continual growth and evolution and should be a benefit in many aspects of life, not just photography. What have you observed about yourself as you’ve travelled this photographic journey?
Here are some sample images from a quick 2 day trip to Los Angeles (for a nature photographer, going to the concrete jungle shouldn’t offer too many opportunities, but I was wrong)
Bouquet of flowers in the Ivy restaurant
Underneath the Santa Monica Pier in the morning
Textures and patterns in the clouds on the flight home
Plant along the beach pathway. Processed on iPhone
Textures and colors in the Converse store in Santa Monica
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