Do you think that creativity is all about having complete freedom? I think it’s just the opposite. Restrictions are what really make us creative photographers. Watch this video to find out more, and get some ideas of restrictions you can impose on yourself to boost your photographic creativity.
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Video Transcript
Are you looking for ways to boost your photographic creativity? You came to the right place! I’m Julie, from Ultimate Photo Tips, and today’s Two Minute Photo Tip is all about being creative.
A lot of people believe that creativity is all about complete freedom. I actually believe the opposite. I think it’s about restrictions. Think about this. If I asked you to cook me a dinner, bit I didn’t give you any restrictions, you wouldn’t have to be very creative. You could make your favorite recipe. You could use what you have in the fridge. But what if I added some restrictions? What if I said, "Make me a delicious meal that has avocados, marshmallows, and pasta?" That’s an odd combination, so now you’re going to have to get really creative to make something that tastes good. So actually, the more restrictions you have, the more creative you have to be.
How can you use that in your photography? You can set yourself some exercises where you impose restrictions on yourself. Here are some examples:
- Go out for a day, and shoot with only one lens, preferably a fixed focal length. That’s going to get you seeing through the perspective of that particular lens.
- How about going out and shooting photographs from only ground level, to give you a different perspective again?
- How about photographing only red things? That will make you pay attention to things you might otherwise not notice.
- You could try photographing a particular subject. maybe something unusual. You could try "feet." Anything that puts you out of your comfort zone.
- My favorite project is a 365 project; taking a photo every day for a year. That’s a pretty significant restriction!
- How about taking only self-portraits for a year, every day!
You get the idea! Anything you like that imposes a restriction on you is going to push you to make more creative photos. So get out there and try it! Pick one of my projects, or pick one of your own, and watch your creativity get bumped up a notch.
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Happy shooting, and I’ll see you next time.
