No longer at the peak of my photography skill

I used to go out and shoot and have at least 1 banger for the day, nowadays every shot i take even with my best gear looks like the most amateur photos ever. Today I went out to shoot some pics in downtown vancouver and wanted to capture the essence of a desolate city and none of the photos gave me that sort of vibe. Maybe the lighting was bad? Maybe i used the wrong lens? As i learn more technical parts of photography the more i lose my creative side to take meaningful photos. I guess everyone experiences this but ive been trying to get of this rut for months and i cant seem to progress .

Post a couple - see what others think. Evaluate and list differences between what you liked and present condition.

Maybe try to distance yourself as much as possible from the technical? Carry one lens, cover the screen, put the metering in P mode and don’t look at it, forget bullshit like ETTR, etc? And give yourself a more straightforward assignment. Empty streets might not be the best cure for a rut.

wanted to capture the essence of a desolate city and none of the photos gave me that sort of vibe

Did you feel that vibe when you were out there with your camera?

 

Sometimes, to quote John Lennon, "life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." Did you stay open to other possibilities that might have been there but you may not have paid attention to because of your focus?

 

Don't get me wrong, I think it's good to challenge yourself with a focus like you did, but if it's not happening, don't forget to try to make lemonade with the lemons. Otherwise, I agree with andylynn. Go out with just your phone cam or your simplest camera and see what happens, forgetting for a day or so the technical and gear aspects of what you're doing. That's not to suggest you give up on your technical and gear learning and usage. It's just a way to let go of something that may be getting in the way of your vision right now.

 

These are tough times. Maybe the inspiration is not there because of all that's going on. You might let it go for a week or more and do something else. Then try coming back to it.

I've rarely had luck when I go out on a photographic "mission". It's about as successful as going to a flea market and hoping to get a very specific thing. Right now, with the virus going on, my head isn't really into anything anyway. When I was a kid I was technically quite knowledgeable. That knowledge didn't hurt anything because I'd pack up my Yashica TLR and go out for extended bike rides around Vermont. Took some of my best photos then, as I wasn't looking for anything in particular, but found plenty of interesting stuff.The bike let me go slow and stop anytime something looked interesting. These days I drive and so many times I see something but need to be somewhere or don't have the ambition to turn around and go after it.

 

I'll also suggest that you're trying to take pictures of the lack of something, rather than the something, and that's inherently difficult. You have to think really hard about what desolation looks like. I've had the same idea here, but the "desolation" is only partial and doesn't come through in a photo.

I used to go out and shoot and have at least 1 banger for the day,

When I was 21, finished my first College Diploma, with my business partner expanded into our own Studio - I, in my opinion was shooting at least 10 crackers each day.

 

As time went on and I developed in my niche of The Craft, I learned more, became more self critical and sought others' opinions.

What was a cracker then, doesn't past muster now.

. . . nowadays every shot i take even with my best gear looks like the most amateur photos ever.

 

Hackneyed and cliched though it may be: one of the best shots I made in the last five years was one of a set of six Portraits using a Polaroid. The first five were good, the last was excellent - and I knew that, the instant I sealed that moment.

 

***

 

Technical is important: at the core I am a technician, I have learned that never letting technical smother creativity is one cornerstone of The Artist.

 

Quality Thinking is very important.

 

WW

Not even sure how I'd recognise 'a real banger' - when I do go out (not as frequently now), sometimes I'll have a definite end or destination in mind, others I'll just want to record, for my own pleasure or interest, something that has caught my eye. Not being a motorist, I travel(led) mainly by bus, so I could always alight at the next stop and stroll back if something I saw did appeal in some way.

 

Often my photography revolves around my other interests - wildlife, Industrial Architecture, landscapes, Heritage railways - but each of these can provide images that were completely serendipitous, and frequently when looking at images on the monitor, I'll spot something that I failed to notice at the time.

 

My two standard emotional reactions to looking at my images are either 'I wish I had ...' or 'I wish I hadn't ...' - and both of these provide learning points for the future. If I like my images, I sometimes share them on this site - occasionally, others are kind enough to like them too.

cycles happen

My two standard emotional reactions to looking at my images are either 'I wish I had ...' or 'I wish I hadn't ...' - and both of these provide learning points for the future

 

Sage.

Short term burnout occurs for a lot of reasons, but usually passes pretty quickly. I've used a strict discipline to pull mysrlf out of that hole many times over. What I often have done is to establish a different thing to explore, which I haven't tackled previously, and and allow only that one thing to focus on during the period. One time it was going to the shore of Lake Michigan each day for a couple of days, wading among the gravel as it washed up. and find bits and pieces of fossils to photograph, which expanded to different colored and textyred rocks. I learned that best pictures were taken after squirting the rocks with water from a spray bottle I carried...it gave depth of color and sheen without shine. Another time I decided to focus on fungi in nearby forests, and learned about the many types,. colors, shapes, and growing conditions. These sidepaths expanded my photographic vision and I got back to my normal stuff with renewed vigor. Hopefully you too will soon find your path.

cycles happen

True. Progress isn't always linear. In fact, it rarely is.

 

FWIW, Gisele, this is one my favourite accounts on Instagram, which may provide a bit of inspiration:

Jaume Creus (@jaume.creus) Instagram profile • 332 photos and videos

Go out, throw it into an auto mode and don’t pay any more attention to the camera, concentrate on what you are there to do. Sounds like you were so busy messing with the camera that you forgot why you were there. I’ve caught myself doing that.

 

Rick H.

One thing I should have mentioned, and maybe others feel the same - the photos I take with my mind are far, far better than the ones I take using a camera. This used to concern me, until I realised that a photograph is a two-dimensional attempt to capture and encapsulate an entire experience of sight, sound, smell, enjoyment and many other ancillary factors. Now that I know that, my photos look slightly better to me, but they still cannot convey the entire gamut to a viewer.

I used to go out and shoot and have at least 1 banger for the day, nowadays every shot i take even with my best gear looks like the most amateur photos ever. Today I went out to shoot some pics in downtown vancouver and wanted to capture the essence of a desolate city and none of the photos gave me that sort of vibe. Maybe the lighting was bad? Maybe i used the wrong lens? As i learn more technical parts of photography the more i lose my creative side to take meaningful photos. I guess everyone experiences this but ive been trying to get of this rut for months and i cant seem to progress .

 

Hmmm. This seems like it could be a combination of internal (you) and external (location) situational difficulties.

I would think about what I was doing that resulted in such uninspired photos and do everything possible to come at things from a different angle from whatever you did already.

 

Get up in the air, maybe: Parking garage or rooftop?

Sit with, or walk around your intended subject for a while and study it, oratory to feel it or just see if "something" comes to you?

Choose something out of your comfort zone, change up the subject matter?

Take a road trip, get the heck out of your typical area? (not the best time for this, admittedly)

 

OK so let's admit that most peoples' lives get at least a little more tame as we grow older. Maybe our lives aren't quite as exciting as they used to be. Maybe we've become distant from our friends and families? Maybe we just don't get out much any more. I'm not one to think in terms of "no longer at" or "I can't" or anything like what your title suggests. As for photography, I just don't see how one could have a peak, or no longer be capable of shooting creatively any more. Maybe, as suggested, you just need to mix it up. If your images seem uninspiring, maybe you're shooting uninspiring subjects. If you can't capture the vibe you think you are seeking, slow it down and put more energy into feeling what's going on around you or into feeling where and how that vibe is or is coming from. Figure out what your intentions are, but don't overthink it.

 

If your "best gear" isn't inspiring you, take out the LEAST best, or most rudimentary, most basic gear. Go full lo fi, get back to bare bones basics.

 

I dunno, just some suggestions.

Edited April 13, 2020 by Ricochetrider

One thing I should have mentioned, and maybe others feel the same - the photos I take with my mind are far, far better than the ones I take using a camera. This used to concern me, until I realised that a photograph is a two-dimensional attempt to capture and encapsulate an entire experience of sight, sound, smell, enjoyment and many other ancillary factors. Now that I know that, my photos look slightly better to me, but they still cannot convey the entire gamut to a viewer.

 

Back when I shot film, the very best shots on the roll were before it was developed. In my mind, they were brilliant, best work I ever did. Everything tended to go downhill after processing.

I know I have definitely passed my pique after years on this site.o_O

I know I have definitely passed my pique after years on this site.o_O

 

passed it or passed it on? :-)

shoot some pics in downtown vancouver .

One thing that helps me is to get out of my comfort zone. Try shooting some other genre, but set yourself a project or a goal?

I call it "Photographers Block"

 

When it happens to me, I turn my attention to other things in photography to maintain my interest and enthusiasm. I'll apply what I'm learning on Photo.net about the technical side of composition, lighting, detail in shadows, correct exposure etc, but disregarding getting a "good" shot for the time being. I'm finding that I'm getting better shots of even mundane subjects now. But I know what you mean, the viewer and yourself must see something interesting in the image to make it worthwhile taking it in the first place. Your shots of deserted streets may hold interest in decades to come, just title them "Corona Virus 2019-20".

I think you post in the wrong forum. This is the beginners forum and yet your're already passed your peak?

I think you post in the wrong forum. This is the beginners forum and yet your're already passed your peak?

On some level, we're all beginners ... or, perhaps, should be! :)

 

Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.

—Picasso

On some level, we're all beginners ... or, perhaps, should be! :)

 

We were all beginners at some point but regardless how well we did after a while we were no longer considered beginners even if we were not any better than when we began.

So if one is still a beginner and yet already past his/her peak it means one simply progress way too fast.

So if one is still a beginner and yet already past his/her peak it means one simply progress way too fast.

Not necessarily. It may mean, at least for some, that they’re able to think and feel anew even as they progress. Maintaining or recapturing freshness, perhaps innocence, even a bit of naïveté can be revitalizing.

OP, get a project to shoot for. It can provide direction.

 

Good luck!

Not necessarily. It may mean, at least for some, that they’re able to think and feel anew even as they progress. Maintaining or recapturing freshness, perhaps innocence, even a bit of naïveté can be revitalizing.

When you begin you are at the bottom. You will get better or not, you may get better to a certain point and then it's down hill, you may continue learning and get better all the time.

For the first case you don't have a peak because you are always at the bottom.

For the second case after you passed the peak you are no longer a beginner.

For the third case you never get to the peak.