Photographers are a very special breed of people. We lug our heavy equipment around, we ignore the backaches and body pain, we stand to the side to capture the moment instead of joining the fun, we deal with uncomfortable conditions, and we happily watch all of our money float away while we attempt to better our work. We do ridiculous things simply because we love life too much to let it slip past unnoticed.
I think most of us can agree that we first picked up our cameras in an effort to immortalize the important moments in our lives. Every photographers’ journey starts with a single snapshot and from there it spirals into a irrevocable obsession. It starts with the desire to freeze certain special things in time and eventually, for many of us, it turns into an art-form.
Of course these days photography has become so accessible and so constant it is easy to forget why we shoot in the first place. When our heads are clouded with the beautiful work of others and we are spurred on my our own competitive natures, we forget that we started this journey, not to impress others but to capture memories, to record adventures, and to immortalize those we love.
So whenever I find myself at a loss for inspiration, or heavy-headed with photographers block, I look around for the things I love. Whether it’s a concept like aviation or pirates, or something more tangible like family or friends (or pets), searching for love and passion in the world is what keeps my photography fresh. When you spend time shooting the things you love you will never regret a single image you take (even if its blurry or poorly composed). When you shoot the important things in your life you are leaving behind a story for the rest of us.
So shoot what you love and show us your story.
This speaks to me much so much Jenny. Yes. Shoot what you love. x
Welcome Jenny. Lovely post.
Perfect post. I see you’ll pick up right where I left off with this attitude since shooting what I love is very much where I am “stuck!” Nicely written too!
This is so true Jenny! Thanks for sharing how to pull ourselves back into our creative centers. I know I need to remember to do this time and time again. So happy to have you here too!
Man, I SERIOUSLY need this reminder all the time when school is in session. It’s so easy for me to get bogged down in the “I have to make this work before my next critique” mindset that I often forget why I became a photographer in the first place…thank you, Jenny!!! PS – Love the photo of your cat in the sink!
“we love life too much to let it slip past unnoticed” – that is it exactly. Awesome post Jenny!!
So much YES! And welcome, Jenny!!
I needed to hear this today, you have no idea. Thank you!
Perfectly wonderful first post, btw.