When we are bored of photography, does it mean we are bored of our photos, ourselves, or bored of our lives?
And what can cure this boredom? Buying a new camera, iPhone or lens? Traveling? Stopping photography for a while? Studying things outside of photography?
And is it a bad thing to get bored with photography? If so, how long?
Photo ideas; from A to Z:
A: Anything: Anything of personal interest to you should and can be photographed.
B: Birth: Photograph the birth of new things. New life, new children, new growth of plants. New life is the foundation of life.
C: Crop: As a photographer, you decide what to include and what to not include in the frame. To improve your compositional skills, don't crop your photos. However ultimately, cropping is fine! If you crop, crop creatively.
D: Distance: How far or close should you photograph? When you are shooting a scene, get closer, but also... learn how to take a few steps backwards.
E: ERIC KIM says you're not just a photographer, but a visual artist. This means, don't constrain yourself to a small field of creativity. Embrace all the visual arts!
F: Depth of (F)ield: Experiment with different depths of field. Don't just try to shoot everything 'wide open'. Often your photos are more interesting if you shoot with a deeper depth-of-field (f8-f16).
G: Good vs Great: Certainly we all strive to become Great photographers. But on the road to becoming great, let us be satisfied with 'good' progress. Study the great photographic masters of the past, steal their ideas, but make sure to add more to their contributions than just taking. Super-additive is the goal.
H: Hype: Avoid hypes and trends in photography. Best to stay focused and centered in your own creative activity. Creative isolation is hugely useful to develop yourself into a more unique and special photographer and visionary.
I: Intuition and Insight: One cannot predict the future by studying the past. Furthermore, there is no rationality to your intuition. Follow and obey your creative intuition to see where it takes you!
J: Joke: Many memorable photographs are funny! Elliott Erwitt as one of the masters of this. Don't let the misery of the world get you down; there is much wisdom to laughter.
K: Static(k) vs dynamic: If you desire to make more interesting photos, opt for a more dynamic(k) lifestyle. The more movement, happenings, and activities you do in your daily life ... the more photo opportunities you will experience, witness, and make!
L: Likes: Likes are overrated. The most important question for yourself as a photographer: "Do I like my own photos?" If yes, that is enough!
M: Monochrome: Strive to master monochrome. To see deeply in monochrome makes the world and reality richer, more interesting, more mysterious, and more beautiful.
N: Never stop shooting. The goal is to photograph until you are 120 years old. Photography and life is a marathon. Cultivate and nurture your passion in photography so the deep embers will continue to burn steadily your whole life!
O: Opportunity. Every opportunity is a photo opportunity. This means don't wait for the exotic and extra-ordinary before you shoot. Just shoot at home, photograph your loved ones, and photograph the beauty of your everyday life!
P: Photography: Painting with light. The photographer as a painter of embodied reality. And as we have learned via painting ... your paintings don't need to be 'photo-realistic'. Which means the best type of artistic photographic self-expression is abstract.
Q: Questions: The best photos suggest questions instead of providing answers.
R: Embodied (R)eality: The best reality is embodied. Embodied reality means for us as photographers, we can make our art work!
S: Satisfaction: Cycle between satisfaction and dissatisfaction in life and your artistry, in order to always stay creatively motivated. We find satisfaction and gratification in our past art work, but we are always hungrier for more!
T: Thoughts: Share your own thoughts on your own website and blog. Blogging as great because we can create a hybrid of both photos and our own thought! Or just share your own photographic thoughts on your own YouTube channel or podcast.
U: Underdog: You might be an under-dog, but harness that energy and power in an optimistic way. You might not have the best platform, the best equipment, etc, but perhaps the best thought is knowing and thinking that the best equipment as the equipment you already have!
V: V as a triangle shape. When I look at the shape of 'V', I think of a triangle. This means add more diagonals to your photographic compositions.
W: Whenever: Wherever and whenever you are, always be shooting. Never delay your photography to be somewhere else. Shoot where you are now.
X: E(x)ceptional: You are exceptional. Don't let nobody else talk you down. Harness your life experiences, your skills, and your creative vision!
Y: Why? Why do you make photos? If you can, think and meditate or write on why you photograph. The more you can explain your intuitive love of photography, the more motivation you will have!
Z: The beginning is the end. When you think you got things figured out, take it back to A!
Written by Eric Kim
