Break Through Your Creative Block

One of the biggest problems that photographers deal with is creative block. You know the feeling- you come to a screeching halt in your creativity, you feel uninspired, you struggle to come up with new ideas, and you might even wonder why you’re trying to create in the first place.

Creative block is like a form of depression. You might start doubting yourself, you might start hating your work. You might wonder, “why am I doing this?” Although there are many things that can cause you to feel this way, I think the number one cause of creative block is repetitiveness. You’ve been taking pictures of the same thing for awhile and you’re getting tired of it. You’ve slowly stopped being creative!

If you’re doing the same thing over and over again, you’re never going to come up with original ideas. You’ll be stuck in an endless loop. A loop that may never end until your career does. That could be a problem.

So, how do you get out of this endless loop? You have to shock yourself. You have to do something new that you’ve never done before.

One of the first things that comes to mind when I think of this is shooting a new genre of photography. If you’re a portrait photographer, try shooting products. If you’re a landscape photographer, try shooting portraits. Break away from your specialty and do something different.

My number one recommendation for a photographer who’s immersed in lots of different genres of photography would be to wake up early in the morning and go take pictures during sunrise. Preferably somewhere you’ve never gone before. Get in the car and just start driving. You could go down a small back road that you’ve never noticed before, you could drive to the top of a mountain. There’s something magical about waking up before everyone else to capture then sun rising. Everything is quiet — it’s just you, your thoughts, and the click of your shutter.

Another thing that seems to always inspire a photographer is a new camera or lens. Now I realize that not everyone can just drop $2k on a new piece of gear, but maybe you could rent something. There are several online gear rental services that allow you to rent stuff for a week. Be honest, if you had your dream camera or lens for a week wouldn't you totally make the most of your time with it?

One of my favorite things to do is get out and meet other photographers. Whether it’s an meet up organized through social media or just a photo walk with a few friends, getting out and taking pictures with other photographers always seems to get me out of a rut. Seeing how others look at the world can change your perspective and spark new creativity.

The bottom line is to get out of your creative block you have to do something out of the usual. Meet some new photographers, go on a road trip, wake up early in the morning to shoot, or maybe try out a lens that you’ve had your eye on. Creative block is tough, but know that you’re not alone. We all go through it and we all get through it. Just give yourself some time and relax your mind.

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