productive creativity

Reading Ted Orland's The View From The Studio Doorjust now. Lots of thoughtful comments to wrap my mind around. For now I'm struck again by the need for productivity to be creative. Sitting around and thinking about great photographs doesn't make them happen. The muse doesn't strike unannounced when you aren't making pictures. A productive process is a necessary part of being creative. You've got to be making bad pictures or just making pictures to make the good pictures. Also, I'm starting to feel that over thinking the process or the pictures can be a great way to get you blocked from making any good images. The good ideas don't come from sitting, thinking about them in a vacuum. You have to be making the pictures you want to be making and part of finding what those images are is by finding them in the images you are already making. Yes, I've touched on these themes before, but it wasn't too surprising to find them again in this book.

So shoot a lot. Look at the work so far. Try to learn from it and then shoot a lot more seems to be one way forward.

Craig Tanner talks about sometimes needing to give himself permission to shoot at first. Firing off 20 or 30 random shots, just to get moving. It gets you past that feeling that every shot has to be worthwhile or meaningful and just lets you engage and get to work.