Spinning Wheels
Posted on: August 10, 20114 Comments |
It’s been a year since any of us have posted. A year in which we have all taken less photos, posted even fewer, and have questioned what the camera means to us.
There seems to be a natural progression, a step by step process, that many photographers take. The awe one has when first taking up photography, the gathering of information to learn about specific things, the interacting with others on sites such as Flickr. You find a niche, you develop it, you begin to get more particular, you acquire more gear, and you wake one one day realizing you’re overwhelmed with crap and you’re spinning your wheels.
Sure, you can pull off a kick ass shot of some hot model on a white seamless background. But the photo means nothing to you. There’s no meaning to it. You can take your 275th self-portrait and it’s lacking in emotion.
Ever wonder why so many good, even great, photographers disappear off Flickr and other sites? They get bored. It doesn’t mean anything anymore. Even the stuff they see from their contacts all begins to look the same. And all that fucking gear has become cumbersome.
Are you feeling that way?
Think back when you first picked up that camera. Did every shot have to be great? Did you have 25lb lightstands to hold your VW bug sized softbox?
Probably not.
You were having fun. Now you’re stuck in your car waiting for an endless train to pass.
If you’re bored put the camera down. Go outside, look around. Envision what would make a decent shot. Do that a bit and you’ll start missing your camera.
Tired of seeing the same crap from your Flickr contacts? Delete them. Find new ones.
Sell the gear that holds you back and that you’ve grown to hate.
If you’re meant to be a photographer that camera will call you back eventually. You’ll find a way to pick it up again and enjoy it. Don’t ever get so burdened that it becomes something you hate.
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August 10th, 2011 at 10:13 am
This has been an issue for me for the past year or so. I try to pinpoint what it was or when it happened and it’s tough but I believe it was around when I started the process of moving back to New England. I thought moving home would rejuvenate my interest in photography but it has all but put an end to it. I’ve even thought about selling off my cameras, seriously thought about it.
You’re right saying that everything starts to look the same. All the pictures start to blend together, nothing much is eye popping. In the beginning we all go through that learning process, setting up lights, learning how our cameras work. Once we’ve learned, it becomes easier to see through the images of others. White seamless, black seamless, a tree or some clouds, it’s all the same. There are still good photos out there, a lot of them, you just have to look around.
I haven’t given up just yet. Just need something interesting to pull me back in.
August 11th, 2011 at 8:11 pm
Well said. The transition from finding good light to finding meaning is difficult, if not painful.
August 13th, 2011 at 1:00 am
Yes. And it’s taken me a long while to get back to thinking I want to do this. It helps that Sean and I are finally living together again, and for the first time in a long time, we have an entire day to ourselves this weekend, where our only responsibilities are to walk the dogs and feed them (well, we will probably feed ourselves, too). I’m pretty sure the weather will be shit, which is okay, because we can at least talk about where we want to go explore when the weather is good, and what kind of stuff we want to take with us. It’s good to finally be living in the city where we can walk somewhere and just shoot stuff around the neighborhood. I am happy, and I might be interested enough to be pulled back in myself.
November 15th, 2011 at 10:41 pm
I stopped checking for so long without any updates. I clicked it today thinking it would be the same, but lo, there have been several updates! Great to see something up here again.
I can completely understand taking a break and spinning your wheels. I have gone through it before. Heck, I am going through a slow spell at the moment! Right now it is more due to being busy than anything, but I understand how it goes.
For me, putting down the camera and just watching life go by for a bit is enough to make me want to pick up the camera again!