Lost my way with photography.

[hark]

Sorry to hear your enthusiasm for photograph has waned. Someone came up with a list for the 52 (once-a-week) photos, and perhaps the list will inspire you to see new opportunities. Here it is:

Abandoned, Arches, Architecture, Bark, Black and White, Broken, Chairs and benches, City/Town/Where I live, Close-up, Coiled, Colours, Columns, Crooked, Curves, Damage, Darkness, Depth of Field, Dots / Dashes / Diagonals, Duplicate(s), Entrance, Extreme, Fast (eg fast food/fast cars etc), Fence(s), Fly, Fountains/Waterfall, Gates, Glass, Industrial, Isolated, Landscapes, Leaning, Leaves, Locks, Looking Up, Motion, Neglected, Night, Old, Pairs, Reflection, Repetition, Roadside, Rock(s), Silhouettes or shadows, Stairs/Steps, Still life, Through a window, Unique camera angle, Vehicle, Water, Weather, Window(s)

 

[skater]

Don't overthink it.

It's all good. If you're not feeling it, you're not, and if you're not a pro, no one is demanding pictures from you.

 

[Blacktop]

Sorry to hear your enthusiasm for photograph has waned. Someone came up with a list for the 52 (once-a-week) photos, and perhaps the list will inspire you to see new opportunities. Here it is:

Abandoned, Arches, Architecture, Bark, Black and White, Broken, Chairs and benches, City/Town/Where I live, Close-up, Coiled, Colours, Columns, Crooked, Curves, Damage, Darkness, Depth of Field, Dots / Dashes / Diagonals, Duplicate(s), Entrance, Extreme, Fast (eg fast food/fast cars etc), Fence(s), Fly, Fountains/Waterfall, Gates, Glass, Industrial, Isolated, Landscapes, Leaning, Leaves, Locks, Looking Up, Motion, Neglected, Night, Old, Pairs, Reflection, Repetition, Roadside, Rock(s), Silhouettes or shadows, Stairs/Steps, Still life, Through a window, Unique camera angle, Vehicle, Water, Weather, Window(s)

Or you can make your own fun list. Reminds me, I'm still behind..OOOHH The pressure!!!:excitement:

 

[Blacktop]

I don't understand why anyone would put pressure on themselves to enjoy a hobby.
I can see motivating yourself to get better shots or to pay more attention to your technique, but forcing yourself going out to take shots is self defeating.


There are plenty of times when I'm not feeling it, so I don't pick up a camera. I don't think about or analyze the reasons behind it. I have other stuff that I can do. Don't have to live and breathe photography 24/7
Sometimes I don't shoot anything for a few weeks, then I realize that I actually miss it. That is when I come back with my best shots. I get in a car with MAX (leaving Mrs Blacktop home) and just drive around until we see something that peaks our interest, and before you know it we are back in the swing of things.

This reminds me..I quit playing golf 2 years ago. Does anyone want to buy a set of Clevelands?

 

[Bill16]

Yes, this is my way of thinking too! To just have fun and at my own pace!

I started in photography as a hobby in the 1970s and progressed very fast till I quit my job as a TV engineer and went full time into photography. I made good money and really enjoyed. Then One Hour Photo came out and the thought of joining my electronics background and photography was more than I could stand. Back then it was a highly technical field as well as photographic. I started in that field and progressed from a manager of one store to managing 6 stores and ending up with over 100 stores. Then I bought 2 camera stores/own hour labs. By the time I sold them I was so burned out on photography that I did not pick up a camera for 10 years. I then decided there were a few things I needed to document so I got a little bridge camera. That was pretty much it. I needed more and more till I got back to where I am today. A photoholic. My secret? I only shoot for fun, I really don't care what other people think of my photography (I do like it when other people enjoy it but if you don't like my photos then it does not bother me) Yes, I still hit the wall occasionally photographically but then I get back to just going out and walking and shooting whatever I want. I also like to find long term projects to shoot over time ans those are fun.

JUST HAVE FUN

 

[mikew_RIP]

Every one is different and to some extent motivation will be different,my photography is part pictures and part being out there,the odd occasion i dont feel like taking a camera with me when i go for a walk ends up as a frustrating disaster.Yes i see that once in a life time picture and no camera,so this stops me doing it again for a long time.
Photography does need to be a shared thing somewhere along the line,if not at the taking stage then the results need sharing,thats the beauty of this forum and its different areas,you can just share your images in a fun way or you can ask for advice and critique,I often think i have it easy with my main interest being wildlife,no matter how good a shot i get of a Goldfinch there will always be a better one or one where the bird is doing something different just waiting to be taken.
I did have quiet a few years out of photography before restarting and joining this forum,i dont even know why i stopped it just happened,so my advice is if you do decide to put the camera down for a period of time make it a set time maybe two weeks,then at the end of that time take the camera out again and see if you have missed it.

 

[traceyjj]

Come to Florida next year for the meet and greet if you don't have a great time we'll slap you silly or buy you a beer

When next year? Hubby and I are visiting next May/June, we plan on making it a less "touristy" visit, and start to see more of what life is like there.

 

[Lawrence]

So pleased to see we all go through these periods of doubt - I was beginning to worry that I was unique.

 

[weebee]

I think we all have those days. I get frustrated at times when a shot I really wanted to come out right doesn't. But I just remind myself that this isn't a living, just a hobby.

 

[traceyjj]

I took a break at the end of my Olympus days. I was finding no inspiration, getting frustrated with the amount of editing I had to do due to noise, and the fact that my eyes arent as good as they were made it more difficult to see the shot/settings, then adding the fact that Oly were not going to be making DSLRs made me feel let down by the comapny ... I was simply not enjoying myself any more. After 2 months of not using the gear, I sold it all through the forum I was a regular member at.
After a further couple of months I got bored with my little point and shoot XZ1, and felt I needed to get back into the game... bought myself a 5100 and the family a 3100 (so they would leave my gear alone) and I now find the hobby very relaxing and theraputic... I have no illusions that I will ever sell anything, and many of my photos are of the "snap-shot" variety, but I still enjoy taking the camera out when we go out anywhere... I have some weeks where my camera never sees light of day, and other weeks where I will take 100s of photos.
I started the 52 challenge to try to encourage me to get my camera out every week, at least once... but life gets in the way sometimes. Recently we have been told my mums cancer is back and aggresive, so once again I have no creativity, I cannot think about the future without this wonderful woman... I really must take some nice photos of her as she is now (she still looks healthy), but it kind of seems wrong to ask...

I suppose this is a long winded way of saying that we all lose our mojo from time to time As others have said, try going somewhere different, or go out with someone different... I know when I go out with my daughter, I see things in a different way, purely by having someone else to bounce ideas off.

 

[mikew_RIP]

I took a break at the end of my Olympus days. I was finding no inspiration, getting frustrated with the amount of editing I had to do due to noise, and the fact that my eyes arent as good as they were made it more difficult to see the shot/settings, then adding the fact that Oly were not going to be making DSLRs made me feel let down by the comapny ... I was simply not enjoying myself any more. After 2 months of not using the gear, I sold it all through the forum I was a regular member at.
After a further couple of months I got bored with my little point and shoot XZ1, and felt I needed to get back into the game... bought myself a 5100 and the family a 3100 (so they would leave my gear alone) and I now find the hobby very relaxing and theraputic... I have no illusions that I will ever sell anything, and many of my photos are of the "snap-shot" variety, but I still enjoy taking the camera out when we go out anywhere... I have some weeks where my camera never sees light of day, and other weeks where I will take 100s of photos.
I started the 52 challenge to try to encourage me to get my camera out every week, at least once... but life gets in the way sometimes. Recently we have been told my mums cancer is back and aggresive, so once again I have no creativity, I cannot think about the future without this wonderful woman... I really must take some nice photos of her as she is now (she still looks healthy), but it kind of seems wrong to ask...

I suppose this is a long winded way of saying that we all lose our mojo from time to time As others have said, try going somewhere different, or go out with someone different... I know when I go out with my daughter, I see things in a different way, purely by having someone else to bounce ideas off.

Really sorry to hear your troubles Tracey,my wifes mum has just been diagnosed as cancer and we are awaiting a second opp to hear the full details.

I have been a lot happier with my photography since i found out what type of photographer i am,i am a "happy photographer" this means i take pictures i want when i want present them and PP them how i want,lets face it most of the pictures that sell as art work for loads of money break just about every rule in the book,not that i think for one moment mine will sell.

 

[grandpaw]

I haven't been taking a lot of pictures lately due to medical reasons but hope to get back out and do some shooting soon. We have a local photography club that has many members in our local area. We have also had many people find us on the web and join. At this point we have almost 7,000 members so we get to see a lot of different pictures on our site from many different locations. One thing that is nice is that with the local members, someone is always having a group shoot where you can go and take pictures with other people that are at many different levels. There is also many times where they get together and go on day or over night trips to do some shooting. Getting together with other people that enjoy the same thing as you do will help motivate you and keep your interest up also. Maybe there is a group you can join or just start your own group. There is not very many days that goes by without someone in the local area inviting everyone to a group shoot. Getting with others that enjoy the same interests as you do can be a real motivation.

 

[Marilynne]

When next year? Hubby and I are visiting next May/June, we plan on making it a less "touristy" visit, and start to see more of what life is like there.

See post #29 Tracey.

Sorry to hear about your mom. I don't think she'll mind if you ask nicely to get some photos of her.

 

[jcottone45]

I sometimes get the same feeling, then I sit myself down & start looking at sites that have photos (flickr) & think about how many hours people invest in waiting for just the right moment to get the shot they want or quality of the pics they take, then I say to myself life is too short to fret over it, just take the shot thats fun or enjoyable, everything else seems to fall in place for me anyway!
Hell I've been a member of this site for almost 5 years & still don't know how to participate in weekly challenges & half the time I have no idea what some people are talking about, but I am still here until I get thrown out!
I only learned how to post photos to my gallery in all this time, but I like the site & not being a computer geek has kept me away for long periods of time, but as I said I like this site so I'll stay though I have nothing to offer/add to help others!

 

[Vincent]

... I thought buying the macro lens would give me a new challenge, new things to look at, but that really did not work.
...

Paul, I enjoy your pictures, as you might have noticed.
Creative block is common in all trades, it is not you.
Turn it around, I heard people that went out to see things they like, without camera. At a certain moment they did regret not to have the camera to capture that magical moment and they started taking pictures again. You do not go to take pictures, that does not work, you go out to see things you like, you take the camera to share it.

P.S.: If a macro lens is not for you it is not for you, we are all different that gives interesting pictures.

 

[skater]

I know this thread kind of died, but here I am (still) working on vacation pictures, and I came across a few that my wife took that just made me shake my head. Why are we keeping this, I wondered.

Then I remembered why: It's supposed to be fun. And they are fun pictures. Sure, they're not the greatest shot of a Metra train or of a bridge or of the Chicago skyline, but they are fun pictures, of something we saw together and enjoyed. (Well, I was driving so it was unlikely I got to look for more than a moment, but you get the point.) Why did we take (and keep) a picture of that street sign, even though it's on a rusty metal pole, through the windows of the truck? Because it has my wife's first initial and our last name on it, so it made us smile.

That thought made me think of this thread, so I thought I'd add it. You might not be in it for the silly vacation pictures, and that's fine. But it's a hobby. Keep it fun.

(Obviously, I'm working on our pictures from our day in Chicago. Woohoo, almost done.)