We all get stuck in a creative rut from time to time, and it’s perfectly normal. But if you want to push yourself out of it, there surely are tricks to do it starting today. In this video, Marc Silber gives you three simple, but very efficient ways to awaken your creativity if it’s been asleep for a while. But more than that, these “creative hacks” will help you to improve your creativity over time.
This fun quiz from Adobe will tell you what creative type you are
What do you think of personality tests? I am a fan of them and I’ve done quite a few for fun. If you like them too and you’re a creative, then you’ll love this fun and simple test Adobe has just released. Through a series of slightly abstract questions, you’ll get to reveal what kind of a creative you are. Ready?
Gear really doesn’t matter, its all about the story
Photography is a wonderfully dynamic form of expression. It is technical, artistic, timeless, evolved. We are in a phase in the industry where cameras and lenses are being designed to take images of mind-blowing quality. They are getting sharper and producing better color than ever before. Autofocus systems are to a point where you can tell the camera which eye to track. The focus of the industry has undoubtedly shifted toward technical perfection.
However, amidst the ever-improving image quality, we often lose the emotional connection that images from generations past have. The more we focus on how sharp the lens is and what settings someone used, the more we forget about why we started taking photos in the first place.
Limit yourself to get out of a creative rut
Getting stuck in a creative rut has happened to us all. It’s frustrating and it sometimes looks like it will never end. Fortunately, there are ways to make yourself inspired and start creating and enjoying the process again. Rachel and Daniel from Mango Street propose one of the ways in their latest video: restrain yourself.
It may sound contradictory: you already feel restrained, and now you need to add even more limitations. But, the truth is that this can push your creativity forward and actually make you more creative. Have a look how Daniel and Rachel applied this method.
Poetry and Photography: How Rainer Maria Rilke Is Relevant To Being A Photographer
“Have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don’t search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now.” – Rainer Maria Rilke
Next to all the technical aspects that come along with photography, creativity is the force that makes you use the tools at hand to make a photograph your photograph and display your view at the world, to share with others how you experience life. Sometimes those technical aspects tend to take over and you forget that what makes a photo special is you. It’s good to be reminded that creativity is not a constant stream, but more like a river: sometimes it’s overflowing and at other moments it’s hardly there.
Tip: Shooting Fewer Frames Will Make You A Better Photographer
How many frames do you take per shoot? One? Two? Fifty? Back in the days, film and developing was expensive so there was a price to each click. In today’s world clicks are cheap and a single frame no longer costs any money. This is why it is refreshing to see this tip coming from Hasselblad master Roman Jehanno.
It is a very simple advice: “shooting fewer frames will make you a better photographer“.
Roman says that the amount of pictures taken is counterproductive.
Approach A Photoshoot With An Open Mind To Boost Your Creativity
The creative process can sometimes be one of the most difficult aspects of a photoshoot. Think of all the time we spend mulling over ideas and concepts, trying to come up with up with a new project, until finally one sticks, only to be shelved even longer as we spend more time planning every last detail out. It can be a lengthy process, but it’s also really important. As Corey Rich explains in the clip below, the creative process needs to be nourished and encouraged to evolve, even after the shoot has started.
Unique Photography Project Takes ‘Self Portrait’ To All New Levels
In a world that is so obsessed with selfies, it’s hard to stand out from the crowd, but the unusual technique adopted by American photographer, Brigette Bloom, may just steal the show. Bloom, an advocate for film photography, soaks rolls of film in her own urine before exposing it. Yes, you read that correctly, she pees on unprocessed film.
10 Habits of Highly Creative People
While creativity will mean different things to different people, I believe there are certain traits that are shared by highly creative people and personalities. Regardless of whether we’re talking about photographers, writers, painters, musicians, sculptors, designers, or poets, the creative process affects us all in similar ways. We may each see the world around us through vastly different lenses, but how we approach those visions can’t help but share certain similarities. Obviously, there are no hard and fast rules when it comes to this stuff. While I’m only speaking for myself here, I’m betting that at least a few of these apply to you.
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