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How to create inspirational and creative photos

AlanKlein

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Equipment, methods and craft only get you so far. How do you try to get to the next step of creating meaningful, inspirational and creative photos?
 
I have yet to figure it out. It'll be a life long battle... for sure.
 
*insert cliche, generic quip about photography here*

Seriously though, I don't know. Most of my photos aren't even very good and the ones that are are 70% chance or accident.

Welcome to the world of self-limitation that you don't know how to overcome.
 
Equipment, methods and craft only get you so far. How do you try to get to the next step of creating meaningful, inspirational and creative photos?

Essentially you have raised a question about the nature of art.

To create meaningful objects of art (in our case a photograph) that would be able to inspire other people, first and foremost you must have something meaningful to say to them and then to find an inspirational way to deliver your message.

In many ways it is akin of a speech. What most people do with their cameras is mumbling trivial phrases that have no or very little meaning and nothing new or interesting. Some can at least pronounce words properly ( they have learned the exposure triangle), some make grammatical mistakes all the time. Very few people are able to put several words together and say something meaningful, never mind important, original and inspirational, that makes people stand and listen.

If you are a speaker, it is obvious that you must have something important for them to say to make people interested. It is not enough to be eloquent/skilful.

It is not that obvious with visual art, as it is with a speech or a book, but essentially it is the same.
 
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Creativity isn't magic.
The way I see it, creativity can be divided into two things: Interpretation of the world and the ability to divide and merge methods.

Let's use cooking as an analogy. If you want to be a good cook, you gotta know your ingredients and your recipes, you need to know what every thing tastes like, also in relation to every other thing. You nail skill, but you want to be more than a good cook, you want to be a creative cook, to make unique art. Luckily, since you know not only your recipes, but also your ingredients, you can combine these ingredients to make something new. you'll know what each thing you add and each choice you make does to your final dish. Now, you must develop ideas for new dishes or new interpretations of old dishes.

This is the core creative part. This is where you need to experience. You need to go out and taste a lot of food, but not only that. You also need to go out and see the world, to interpret it. Inspiration comes from your interpretation of what your senses deliver to your brain. If you do not see or experience new things, you'll run out of ideas. Go for a walk. Take a train to somewhere you've never been before.. Go dining at a new place. Try something new. The keyword is new things, try new things, got it? Not only will new experiences develop your art, they'll make you develop as a person. Now when you have seen and interpreted all these new things, you'll be able to use them, combine them, develop them. Now you want to express this. You know what each ingredient does, so you know what ingredients will help in the expression of your ideas, and how to combine different ingredients or parts of recipes to make further your expression.

Now I shouldn't need to explain how this applies to photography, but oh well, the ingredients are methods and styles in photography, the recipes are types of photography. Know not only your types of photography, but also each method within them and what different methods will do to the photo you're taking. This applies to every part of the photography skill-set. Then go out and get inspired by new things. Don't bring your camera. Without experiences, you'll run out of creativity. So go experience things before you take more photos.

If you want to try being more creative, my best advice is this: Keep a small book where you put in your ideas, concepts, drawings, symbols, styles, whatever, EVERYTHING! When looking for something to make, look in this book! When something interesting goes on in your head, put it in the book!

And now I just spent an hour thinking about what being creative means. Sorry for the textwall of cliché, generic quips about photography.
 
Creativity isn't magic. The way I see it, creativity can be divided into two things: Interpretation of the world and the ability to divide and merge methods. Let's use cooking as an analogy. If you want to be a good cook, you gotta know your ingredients and your recipes, you need to know what every thing tastes like, also in relation to every other thing. You nail skill, but you want to be more than a good cook, you want to be a creative cook, to make unique art. Luckily, since you know not only your recipes, but also your ingredients, you can combine these ingredients to make something new. you'll know what each thing you add and each choice you make does to your final dish. Now, you must develop ideas for new dishes or new interpretations of old dishes. This is the core creative part. This is where you need to experience. You need to go out and taste a lot of food, but not only that. You also need to go out and see the world, to interpret it. Inspiration comes from your interpretation of what your senses deliver to your brain. If you do not see or experience new things, you'll run out of ideas. Go for a walk. Take a train to somewhere you've never been before.. Go dining at a new place. Try something new. The keyword is new things, try new things, got it? Not only will new experiences develop your art, they'll make you develop as a person. Now when you have seen and interpreted all these new things, you'll be able to use them, combine them, develop them. Now you want to express this. You know what each ingredient does, so you know what ingredients will help in the expression of your ideas, and how to combine different ingredients or parts of recipes to make further your expression. Now I shouldn't need to explain how this applies to photography, but oh well, the ingredients are methods and styles in photography, the recipes are types of photography. Know not only your types of photography, but also each method within them and what different methods will do to the photo you're taking. This applies to every part of the photography skill-set. Then go out and get inspired by new things. Don't bring your camera. Without experiences, you'll run out of creativity. So go experience things before you take more photos. If you want to try being more creative, my best advice is this: Keep a small book where you put in your ideas, concepts, drawings, symbols, styles, whatever, EVERYTHING! When looking for something to make, look in this book! When something interesting goes on in your head, put it in the book! And now I just spent an hour thinking about what being creative means. Sorry for the textwall of cliché, generic quips about photography.

Thanks for sharing, you explained it very well. At least in my opinion anyway. :-)
 
Dont copy what other people do.

Rule of thirds - what is that
exposure triangle - very limiting
really expensive camera and lens - buy a point and shoot or use your phone
straight out of the camera - process pics to the point they are just blurry colours without Adobe

I organise a day to take pics but limit myself to one shutter activation or a day with only my phone camera or pick a setting before I leave the house or only take pics for tone mapping and bracketing.

Point is that by changing something fundamental you have to get creative to make up for the limitation.
 
Don't rush things. We all develop at different rates however we all started out at the same place.

First, we get a camera and have to focus on the mechanics of getting a good exposure, good focus, and good depth of field. After a while we all get to the point where that becomes second nature and can mentally move on.

Next we start to understand the basics of composition. The so-called Rule of Thirds and other compositional guidelines; when to use them and when to break them. After a while we get to a point where that becomes second nature and can mentally move on.

Third we get to the point where we start to see subject matter. An interesting landscape or person, and we are able to combine our knowledge of exposure and composition with our newfound knowledge of vision and create something approaching "Good". After a while we get to a point where that becomes second nature and can mentally move on.

Fourth we start to actually see light. The play of shadows and how they can enhance or ruin a photograph. We are able to combine our knowledge of exposure, composition, subject matter, and our newfound knowledge of being able to see light to create something that really is "Good".

These phases take time, and there are no shortcuts between them. Everyone develops these abilities at different rates but eventually we all will get to that point. This is why I have a problem with new photographers who have barely started to learn the mechanics yet are ready to "Go Pro". Most have no idea of the road that they have not yet explored yet are of the opinion that they have mastered everything.
 
Equipment, methods and craft only get you so far. How do you try to get to the next step of creating meaningful, inspirational and creative photos?

"A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera."
--Dorothea Lange

Start first by recognizing that a photo that is meaningful (such as the bodies of the raped and executed Maryknoll nuns in El Salvador) may not be inspirational and creative. And a photo that is inspirational (such as a blind runner crossing a marathon finish line) may not be meaningful or creative. And a photo that is creative (such as a macro shot that contains the reflections shown in a drop of water) may not be meaningful and inspirational, it's just a creative shot. Recognize the possibilities within an opportunity, don't force it into some kind of imposed standard and end up walking away from a beautiful and creative possibility b/c it isn't meaningful...or ignoring a powerful statement b/c it is a downer rather than inspirational. And for that matter, why did you choose the words "meaningful," "Inspirational" and "creative"? You could have just as easily said: "clever" and "tells a story" and "distinctive." Or "eye-catching" and "personal" and "emotive." Perspective is everything and you seem (I say this based only on a short post) to have imposed a very restrictive paradigm on yourself as to what constitutes a great photo (gotta be meaningful, inspirational and creative).

Second, acknowledge that perspective is everything. When I worked in Moscow, coming in from the Sheremetyevo airport I'd pass by the giant tank trap at Khimki, often with young Russian couples in their wedding clothing posing in front of it (regardless of the weather). To most westerners, it was just a typical Soviet era sculpture (absent a heroic soldier or Stalin as part of it). To Russians, it was inspirational (the closest that the German advance came to Moscow in the Great Patriotic War) and to the young, it was creative (taking a formal, patriotic statement and adding their own personal and informal element--a quick wedding selfie!). Perspective is everything. I guarantee there are things you look at now and don't notice the creativity. Or don't assign meaning. Or see no inspiration. And yet others do. It's not about right or wrong (or even your limitations--we all have them). It's that we're individuals. And that your perspective changes everything.

Okay, as to your specific question, there are a couple of answers. Now the most important but a key part of the equation is learning yourself as a photographer and knowing your strengths and weaknesses. If you are terrible at capturing real-time action (say...you've tried to shoot sports and you don't anticipate activity well and can't compose quickly) and you have no patience, than you're going to have trouble shooting un-staged, fluid events (as photojournalists do). Which means you're going to miss a lot of meaningful moments. So you don't try for those kinds of photos b/c you're going to do it poorly.

Another element (that others have said more succinctly, including the great Dorothea Lange), is to work on your perspective. There are a gazillion ways to do this. Put a prime lens on your camera and walk around for a week shooting only with that--you'll learn to compose differently. Then go get in a wheel chair and stay there for a week (but still try to live your normal routine) and you'll see the world differently. Shoot only B&W for a week. Work only with f1.8 and wider for a week. These are all samples of ways you can start to enlarge and change your perspective on how you see the world and how you see photo possibilities.

Third, get a better understanding of what you're shooting. All knowledge isn't "the answer." But become more insightful about the circumstances or the society allows you to anticipate and see opportunities that you'd otherwise be completely clueless to. Case in point, I talked to a photojournalist who'd been in Iraq. He learned that insurgents often placed IEDs in the carcasses of dead animals on the road. So every time he was dismounted and saw a military vehicle nearing the carcass of a dead animal, he'd prefocus and compose. And eventually he did get a picture of a command-detonated IED.

Fourth, related to #3 is to have a plan. You aren't going to be able to anticipate every photo. But having something in mind and working towards it helps you create powerful photos. I guarantee you that Ansel Adams, Bob Capa, and Edward Weston didn't just grab a camera and go walking around going "hey, there's a good one--guess I'll take a photo!" Yes, sometimes stuff happens and if you're there and you've got a camera, you capture it. But there's a difference between TAKING a picture and CREATING a photo. To create a photo, you anticipate and you plan and you prepare. Adams hiked and climbed and waited to get the sun shining off the granite face of El Cap in Yosemite. Capa, when he say the intensity of the fire at Omaha Beach, knew there would be single soldiers huddled in the surf trying to minimize themselves as targets and "get small" so he turned away from the fire and looked behind himself creating one of the single most powerful shots of combat to emerge from WW-II. Weston's focus on shapes within nature lead him to identify the possibilities of the human form mimicking a bell pepper and shoot powerful, minimalist nudes. All 3 of these great photographers who produced a bunch of photos that would meet your criteria (and a host of other criteria as well) had a plan before they snapped a shutter. Doesn't mean they didn't improvise but they had something in mind, they anticipated, they staged, and they positioned themselves with a specific result in mind.

Last thought on the matter: the ability to shoot meaningful and/or inspirational and/or creative photos is more about you, your personality and experience than it is anything else. So ask yourself what is it about you (and your experience and your worldview and your perspective) that would allow you to see meaning or inspiration, or creativity in a situation.
 
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Last thought on the matter: the ability to shoot meaningful and/or inspirational and/or creative photos is more about you, your personality and experience than it is anything else. So ask yourself what is it about you (and your experience and your worldview and your perspective) that would allow you to see meaning or inspiration, or creativity in a situation.

This last thought is the most important. That is where the meaning starts. Your every photo is nothing but your own selfie. All the rest can be easily learned.

 

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