Completely Uninspired

[FDSA]

So I haven't shot in at least two months and I have no idea what to take pictures of. The last couple of times i have taken the camera out i have ended up with no keepers. I'm kind of a at a point where I can critique my pictures better than i can take them so i delete everything. So how do you guys keep shooting and finding good shots?

 

[CSR Studio]

How long have you been shooting?

I have gone through something similar. I had to find something that inspired me. At the time it was the beach so I took a trip in the middle of winter to the beach and all I did was photograph. Three solid days. I just got lost in the photography.

You need to find what inspires you. What makes you want to shoot? Do you have a passion for a place or sport or activity? Find one of those and go shoot it, it should help you to get lost in the shooting and find your creative self again.

 

[beni_hung]

I just love photography. But if you're having "photographers-block" pick up a few photography magazines. They can be full of inspiration.

 

[Dagwood56]

Take a walk through a local cemetery. The statues found in some can be quite thought provoking and beautiful. Also because most are white, they can provide quite a challenge for proper lighting. I recently went to a very large cemetery that had lots of large statues, some were more than 12 feet tall; getting unique angles plus fighting lots of sky [blue or overcast] or statues that were up in the trees made for a very interesting afternoon.

 

[KmH]

So I haven't shot in at least two months and I have no idea what to take pictures of. The last couple of times i have taken the camera out i have ended up with no keepers. I'm kind of a at a point where I can critique my pictures better than i can take them so i delete everything. So how do you guys keep shooting and finding good shots?

Just move the critique of your images from the computer to the viewfinder before you release the shutter.

It's hard to be productive if you don't have a plan or a shot list when you go out to shoot.

 

[Antithesis]

So I haven't shot in at least two months and I have no idea what to take pictures of. The last couple of times i have taken the camera out i have ended up with no keepers. I'm kind of a at a point where I can critique my pictures better than i can take them so i delete everything. So how do you guys keep shooting and finding good shots?

Just move the critique of your images from the computer to the viewfinder before you release the shutter.

It's hard to be productive if you don't have a plan or a shot list when you go out to shoot.

I totally agree with this. If you don't know what you want to shoot, you end up with a lot of snap-shot looking images and very few keepers. I tend to see a lot of images I want to take (especially now that I'm between cameras) when I'm either walking or driving around. I also like just walking around the city and shooting, but you do end up with a lot of bad photos. I definitely find that my favorite photos I've taken usually have a lot of thought behind them. It's also good to write down your ideas and maybe throw sketches together of the composition.

You can also find inspiration in other peoples images. Browse flickr, find what photos are really compelling, figure out why, then try and replicate it. You don't necessarily have to copy someone else, but if it allows you to actually get out and shoot.... then by all means, I'm sure nobody would be offended.

 

[Randall Ellis]

I tend to agree with the others on a couple of points. 1) looking at the work of others can be good for getting new ideas and 2) having nothing new to look at tends to exaggerate the problem rather than give your vision a break.

In the past, I got burned out when I was not doing anything that I wanted to do. I was just repeating what others had done because I though that it was what I should be doing. Only after I abandon that and began to explore my own ideas with no regard what so ever to what others might think of them did I really get back into photography.

Even now I have difficulty if I can't get to the places that I want to photograph (which is often), and that's when looking at the work of others really helps. It may sound contrary to what I posted above, but when I see what others have done it occasionally gives me an idea for a new way to approach something that I've been thinking about for a while but have not found the right way to approach.

This does not help me in the least, but some people seem to have good results when they try to follow set subject assignments. Try going to the local photo club web site to see where they are going or what they have chosen for subject matter. If it sounds interesting try going on one of their trips, or if you're like me and don't do a lot socially in this regard, try assigning yourself their subjects for the month. Like I said, this does nothing for me, but some people do find it helpful.

Regardless of what you do, don't not do. Get out and photograph whatever you think might be interesting. Then come back and browse what you've done. Before you dump everything and write it off as a loss, go through each and every image and think about it for a couple of minutes. Try to figure out what you don't like about it now. Think about what you thought would be interesting when you tripped the shutter. Think about what would make that interesting if you could go back and shoot it again.

Activity is the key here, at least for me. When I'm idle I'm stalled, but when I'm active, even if I don't get anything that I like, I'm still moving forward, even if the pace is slow

- Randy

 

[beverchakus]

i had this happen to me a while ago. but now that i'm in photography school, i'm forced to look at photography, and forced to be inspired, which is a good thing. above all, magazines, and just looking at online gallery's is a great way to find inspiration.

 

[Enough Already]

Been through it too, almost to the point of selling everything. Just dont force yourself. Dont try to make nice images out of nothing objects, even though some people have a knack for doing it. I take far less photos these days than 6 months ago because I wait til I find that nice scene or subject first. Taking photos of everything and getting bad results is only going to make things worse. Pick your battles behind the camera. I know practice makes perfect, but sometimes it can have an adverse effect. The desire will come back, and when it does, slow down, take your time.

 

[Antithesis]

Been through it too, almost to the point of selling everything. Just dont force yourself. Dont try to make nice images out of nothing objects, even though some people have a knack for doing it. I take far less photos these days than 6 months ago because I wait til I find that nice scene or subject first. Taking photos of everything and getting bad results is only going to make things worse. Pick your battles behind the camera. I know practice makes perfect, but sometimes it can have an adverse effect. The desire will come back, and when it does, slow down, take your time.

You can take "effect" lenses, like ultra-wides or lenses with really large apertures and make interesting looking images out of nothing. It can actually be a crutch in my opinion, but can help you at least become more confident. It's a lot of fun, but certainly not a good way to fill up a portfolio with anything worthwhile.

In that sense, I agree with you. Overly forced work is always missing something.

 

[FDSA]

You can take "effect" lenses, like ultra-wides or lenses with really large apertures and make interesting looking images out of nothing. It can actually be a crutch in my opinion, but can help you at least become more confident. It's a lot of fun, but certainly not a good way to fill up a portfolio with anything worthwhile.

In that sense, I agree with you. Overly forced work is always missing something.

i was seconds away from buying a fisheye or a macro but figured it would be fun for a month and then i would be out of subjects again

i want to take some really good photographs from my kit lens to prove to myself that i have some photographic and compostional skill, and then spend more money on gear and such

does that make sense?

 

[Joves]

Well I can pretty much find something to shoot, unless you are staying in your own neighborhood. Actually my fisheye has helped alot I forgot how much fun they are to shoot with. There are times I soot the same things I have shot before but at different times of the day and, during different conditions. Are you shooting one specific thing or are you trying different subjects? SHooting something you dont normally shoot is good too.

 

[craig]

It happens to every photographer at some point. KMH (as always) offers the best advice. Having direction such as shot lists and mood boards or whatever is very helpful. They are actually mandatory in high end commercial/editorial photography.

Finding said direction can be a problem. Personally I visit art museums. Seeing art in person and understanding it's role in history immediately inspires my work and I.

This is a journey only you can take. Advice from us may not work.

Love & Bass

 

[Overread]

So I haven't shot in at least two months and I have no idea what to take pictures of. The last couple of times i have taken the camera out i have ended up with no keepers. I'm kind of a at a point where I can critique my pictures better than i can take them so i delete everything. So how do you guys keep shooting and finding good shots?

It is a tricky thing that ones abiltity to be critical (and we are often the most harsh critics of our own work) often develops a lot faster than our skill with the camera itself. My advice is not to delete anything - keep the shots as long as you possibly can and don't be afraid to walk away and come back to them in a month/week/year.
I have often gone out and had a "good day" only to find that many of my shots are poorer than I would like - big things or small. But I have found that a week or a month later I can come back and see some keepers which are not so bad as I felt they were right after taking them; when all I could have/should have done is fresh in my mind - thus I can see the image more as an image itself rather than as a list of things I forgot to do at the time

As for getting that willingness to shoot back - I have little to add to the advice given above; look at the works of others - perhaps give some time to studying one particular photographer (they don't have to be "one of the greats" just anyone who's works you like and would desire to emulate) - heck you might even be able to exchange some correspondance with them if you give it a try. After that planned shoots with objectives - a challenge/task for your to achive and direct your skills and time towards.

This will be different for what your interests are - as an example - for myself I might try to find one specific animal/insect/flower subject or maybe just focus on one groupe of them (say butterflies or dragons) and develop my skill in that area.
As you can see not highly specific objectives - start things simple and build from there

 

[Bevel Heaven]

I used to be one of the people that took my ZERO box with my gear in it EVERYWHERE. I would be driving along and see something out of the corner of my eye, slam on the brakes, back up and jump out.... no matter what we were doing at the time, no matter where we were going or how important it was to get there.

I just didn;t matter.

I dunno, maybe 15 or so years ago I just stopped doing this. My camera/gear started staying at home. I just let it go and only brought my stuff if I were heading to Yosemite etc, and had something or somewhere to go that I knew would inspire me.

It was nice.

OK maybe 7 years ago [?] I got a little point and shoot, well, it was a nikon coolpix 5700 not exactly a small digi, but I wanted to see if I still had it in me.........................

That started going everywhere with me... Next thing I know I am buying a D40, then a D80, then a D300 and a small investment in a complete and well rounded gear bag, and am shooting and being paid for [some of] my shots.

My camera and a couple/few bits go everywhere again... But I do have times that I just take that coolpix 5700 - it still takes pretty good snaps.

My advice: let it go for awhile. Go do something else that you enjoy, leave your stuff at home or just take a tiny P&S for snaps.

You will either come back to photography or not. Either way, it doesn;t really matter, you had your time in the saddle so to speak, move on or move deeper at a later time.