inspiration, or lack thereof - DPChallenge Forums

03/21/2006 01:28:41 AM · #1

i dunno, it always comes and goes with me, and usually if i give it a few weeks or months and come back to it i'll be up and out and taking lots of pictures again, but it's really been close to a month since i've taken a picture i really feel strongly about.

part of it might be because no matter how much i love my olympus, it's reached the end of the line...the usb port is broken so i had to buy a card reader for it (then i just lost the card reader a week ago and haven't bothered to replace it yet...running to the clusters to dump photos is way too annoying), it's full of dead pixels, it randomly craps out on me, and let's face it, it's an incredibly low-end camera.

i've been trying to pick up a mid-range Powershot for a few weeks, found a few on the campus e-market but the sellers have been kind of dodgy, and i really don't feel like going through ebay or other markets. i don't want to spend more than $100 on another peashooter since i'm planning on getting a dslr after the summer, but then the one i've been looking at got discontinued.

just got a new lens for my film-eating slr, and i've been playing a little with that but film and processing is getting expensive.

i just don't know, man, i'm hoping i could come in here for a pick-me-up of sorts. photography isn't the only thing that i feel is going wrong right now, but i feel like it'll do wonders for morale if i can fix it again. if you want to show me cameras or pictures or hell, even want to make a rival out of me for the next challenge, eh, i'm up for anything, mostly because i haven't been up for anything for quite some time.

crayon

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

03/21/2006 01:43:50 AM · #2

I get lapses like this too.

Try taking photos that has no artistic values. Go to your old neighbourhood, your old school, the place you grew up at, things like that. Shoot photos like they are meant to document and not for art. In the process, I sometimes stumble into many shots that I actually like a lot, and I will then turn those selected few into "art" :)

Hell... go take some snapshots of people, friends, your pet.

"jmsetzler: Everything isn't meant to be fine art. Don't forget to have fun with your camera"

03/21/2006 01:47:40 AM · #3

Originally posted by crayon:

one of my issues is that it's kind of hard for me to get off campus, or really anywhere that i haven't already been and haven't photographed the hell out of already, you know? leaving campus takes time that i can't easily spare, and the last time i went out for a shoot the experience was so much that it'll be a while before i muster up enough courage to go downtown again (still haven't gotten the pictures back from them yet, either; my friend's playing around with them in the lab).

maybe i just need a new camera so i can hit that whole new level that my old one couldn't, then i wouldn't have to worry about going anywhere else to take pictures.

crayon

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

03/21/2006 01:53:39 AM · #4

I see you have no competition ;) D-230 in DPChallenge

Well, unless you've got a home studio of some sort, it may not be so easy to get inspired by things you have already shot. Aren't there events in campus that you could shoot and get busy with? Like a "a photo a day in campus" those kinda thing, maybe?

Tamron 70-180mm F/2.8 Di III VXD

03/21/2006 01:56:58 AM · #5

I actually PMed autohuff once just to say hi to the only other person using my camera (and maybe hoping to get a little competition out of him in the process) but he never responded and hasn't been back to the site since. Wonder if I scared him away.

My camera is terrible at event shooting. All it's really been good for is candids in the lounges or well-lit parties and the occasional borderline abstract artsy-fartsy type of shot that I like to do. Which is why I kind of want to move up. At least to something with optical zoom and basic manual functions.

MadMan2k

Sony Alpha a6400

03/21/2006 01:58:40 AM · #6

Sorry to hear about your crappy spell. I got tired of photography in 2004 when I had my G5, so I just pretty much took a break for a year and a half, now I realize how much fun it can be again.

crayon

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

03/21/2006 02:00:45 AM · #7

Originally posted by modgethanc:

Which is why I kind of want to move up. At least to something with optical zoom and basic manual functions.

If you could afford it, maybe you should.
New hardware almost always rekindle the interest :)
I'm still seriously wishing to jump on the dSLR bandwagon, but I can hear Yoda saying, "patience, you must, young jedi... fight the tempt, you must!" (actually I'm weak willed, just cant afford one yet) LOL

03/21/2006 02:06:12 AM · #8

Originally posted by crayon:

Originally posted by modgethanc:
Which is why I kind of want to move up. At least to something with optical zoom and basic manual functions.

If you could afford it, maybe you should.
New hardware almost always rekindle the interest :)
I'm still seriously wishing to jump on the dSLR bandwagon, but I can hear Yoda saying, "patience, you must, young jedi... fight the tempt, you must!" (actually I'm weak willed, just cant afford one yet) LOL

By the end of the summer I should have enough money to blow on a dSLR. That's if I can find just a Maxxum 5D body for a reasonable price.

As of two minutes ago I started tracking down a few people who I tried to buy cameras from. I'm not quite desperate enough to buy a new peashooter if I'm going to be throwing down ~$650 for a camera in another six months, but I really just need something to tide me over in between...

03/21/2006 02:06:58 AM · #9

I can relate to being in a rut :-)

You might want to try exploring some avenues you havent tried before. Look around here on the site, find some styles, or techniques, or different point of views or stuff that you just havn't really ever tried. Examples: the artsy slanted stuff. Abstracts. Night photography. First thing in the morning (like at dawn). Action shots. Candids. Motion panning. etc, etc....
I was in a small rut once and I remember in particular the 'From the ground up' challenge came along. I went out to some of my same old spots, but was laying down shooting mostly, and found some new 'spark'.
Try just getting wild and wacky, have fun. There was a thread about a fad a while back, where people would set their timer on the camera, then toss it up in the air! Sometimes interesting results :-) Or swing it around from the strap, etc.

Kinda like what crayon said, try going out and try not to force or expect any results from yourself. Just get out and have some fun, kill some time. Maybe you'll spark some inspiration along the way :-)

Buck up little camper, things will be just peachy in no time :-P hehehe

03/21/2006 02:11:23 AM · #10

Originally posted by taterbug:

I can't even think of anything new to do, that's really my big problem. A lot of things I see on this site are literally impossible for me to do because of equipment limitations, which is why I focus a lot more on doing strange artsy shots that involve lying down, crawling into weird places, standing somewhere no one else will stand, putting my camera down and letting it take pictures it wants, and then photoshop vomitting on them, etc. I feel like everything I do is already experimental that experimental is becoming my norm.

And then I take normal shots, too.

I just feel like I've taken too many/enough of everything that's worth photographing.

Maybe I really do just need to sleep on it and take a month or so off. At least until I get a new camera. It just feels so empty, you know?

03/21/2006 02:12:23 AM · #11

Have you got any pawn shops around your campus? If you wanted to get something cheap and just temporary to get by, might be worth a bus ride, or if you got a buddy with a vehicle?
Sorry to hear about the bad experience you had before going 'downtown'. See if a friend would go out with you. Maybe see if you can find someone else with even a little interest in photography. I have a shooting buddy. That can even be an inspiration sometimes too.

03/21/2006 02:17:27 AM · #12

Originally posted by taterbug:

i have a very good friend who is a very good photographer (he's the one developing my film for me now) and i have yet to go on a photoshoot with him.

the thing with me is that i get incredibly self-conscious when i'm taking pictures, unless i can just get in the 'zone' and block everyone out, mostly because people give me a lot of strange looks for my 'techniques'...if i go with someone who's also taking pictures, i'll feel like i'm just going to 'copy' their shots because i'll see them take a picture of something and want to take a picture of it as well, and if i go with someone who's not taking pictures i feel like i'm holding them up all the time because i'll stop and lie on the ground for ten minutes to take a picture of a weed in the sidewalk.

i have too many issues >_<

stare_at_the_sun

Canon EOS-10D

03/21/2006 02:20:44 AM · #13

Those were all taken with a sub 2 megapixel point and shoot camera....a Nikon Coolpix 950, I bought it for $50 on ebay and never looked back.

It's not the camera that matters.... Sometimes you just have to accept what you have and make the best of it. Just because I was stuck with my crappy camera for over 3 months didn't stop me form taking pictures....I just had to go about it a little differently and had to be a tad more creative than usual.

So....I guess my advice to you is this: Go buy a Nikon Coolpix 950 :P

03/21/2006 02:24:42 AM · #14

You know, whenever I look at you I get hit with a case of wanderlust again ever since all that talk about backpacking in Europe :(

But yes. I love seeing what you and a couple other people can do with a 'crappy' camera because I generally do the same thing :)

I'm looking at a Canon Powershot A70 with a 256 mb card and some other things for $100 right now. Sorry, I'm not a big Nikon fan :D

03/21/2006 02:33:45 AM · #15

My prior camera (actually I still have it, but never use) was a crappy little HP320, believe me, as basic as they come, no controls at ALL, just very literally point and shoot :-)
Feel free to check out pics from it (in my portfolio, the folder labeled-the first year, stuff from the old HP), maybe something could give you an idea. Sometimes you can surprise yourself with how you can push a little cam to the limits and beyond :-)

stare_at_the_sun

Canon EOS-10D

03/21/2006 02:33:50 AM · #16

Originally posted by modgethanc:

Canon is a good brand.... I went from Canon to Nikon to Panasonic, lol.

Yeah....I'm still working on the whole backpacking thing. I still plan on doing it this summer....whatever it takes. I might just sell all my belongings and hit the road for a year or something, lol. Right now I'm reading "Vagabonding" by Rolf Potts........talk about wanderlust, that book will make you want to see the world more than anything else. Check it out.

03/21/2006 02:39:53 AM · #17

A few of my examples from the 2mp HP:

...not near as good as stare at the sun's examples, but still examples
:-P

Message edited by author 2006-03-21 02:40:56.

Olympus 12-45mm f/4.0 Pro

03/21/2006 03:09:50 PM · #18

Originally posted by taterbug:

I love the colors, the orange stands out really well on the cones :)

THanks for showing.

Message edited by author 2006-03-21 17:28:14.

OdysseyF22

Panasonic DC-G9

03/21/2006 03:22:13 PM · #19

You're not alone in your lack of inspiration. After the end of winter break, I found myself wanting to take pictures, but just couldn't seem to find anything worth taking. It took me a couple of months to get back into it. I prowled campus for the millionth time and tried to find a new angle to shots, or to think about them in a different way. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. So just don't give up!

On the equipment hand, my dad's selling his little Casio P&S pretty cheap. I think it only has 3.2mp, but will take decent shots. If you want to know more about it, PM me and I'll send you the details.

posthumous

Canon EOS-40D

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II

03/21/2006 04:29:21 PM · #20

isn't being on my favorites list enough to inspire you??? ;)