What are your influences?

What are your artistic or spiritual influences other than your

favorite photographers?

Music? Paintings? Architecture? Philosophy? Nature? Literature?

 

Do photographers experience "creativity blocks" like in many other

mediums? How do they "snap" out of them?

 

Just curious...

 

JMF

When I suffer from creative blocks, I usually take a day off and go street shooting. By

doing street photography, it relaxes me. It open my eyes to the surroundings and I

start picking up ideas. Ideas such as location for a shoot, expression of a subject,

framing of an image, and type of subject to shoot. Eventually, as I spend more time

doing this, the more ideas I come up with. Than I go back and work out those ideas.

When the ideas eventually runs out , I would than go back to the streets again but a

different location and start all over again. That usually does it for me along with

some sample works of photographers that I like...Dan Winters, Timothy White,

Andrew Eccles, Avedon, etc....

 

Danny

www.dannyliao.com

<a href="http://www.keithlaban.co.uk">Keith Laban Photography</a><p>Strangely enough I�ve never been particularly inspired by photography or photographers. The work of several artists including Victor Pasmore, Antonio Tapies and Mark Rothko has directly and indirectly influenced both my painting and photography as has my love of the vernacular architecture of the Mediterranean.<p>Whenever I�m �blocked� using one medium I use another.

Jose wrote<p>

 

<i>What are your artistic or spiritual influences other than your favorite photographers? Music? Paintings? Architecture? Philosophy? Nature? Literature?

 

Do photographers experience "creativity blocks" like in many other mediums? How do they "snap" out of them?</i><p>

 

I'm not a bible thumper and with that in mind, Jesus is my only spiritual influence. This, I must confess, has a limiting nature but one that I can easily live with.<p>

 

As to the arts, I have no influences I can claim other then what I see contemporarily, has convinced me more and more of what I don't want to do or be like. That's not to say that there aren't any photographers or other art styles and artists whose efforts I enjoy but it's to say that although I do like their efforts, their effort don't consciencely influence what it is I currently do. One never knows about the sub-conscience. :) The fact it's sub-conscience, means one doesn't know about it in advance. :)<p>

 

As to getting past a block, that's up to you and how much effort you're willing to put forth to get past it. I don't know if "block" is an accurate description. In my case, it's not a block but a frustration in either my efforts to define myself or an unhappiness with what it is I'm currently doing. I'm constantly trying to push myself to the next level or a new level of uniqueness or increase/improve viewer impact.<p>

 

In order to do so, one has to come to grips with themselves, get away from the influences of others and leave the hateful critics behind in order to allow themselves to truly blossom. Learn to seperate valid criticism from venemous, discouraging, hateful behavior. This is not to say that you don't pick up books to learn about advanced techniques or explore with others, "How to." techniques to expand your expertise and capabilities. It also doesn't mean to ignore what others around you have to say but you do have to filter what people have to say so as to create a photographic world that works for you and what it is that you're wanting to say.<p>

 

For me, to move forward in my efforts requires continually asking myself questions and waiting until answers issue forth. Until this happens, there's no need to even pick up a camera. Why? What I'm wanting doesn't come from the camera or the act of capturing an image by tripping the shutter but progress comes from the unhearlded interior of the mind. The gray matter is where it all, for me, comes from; no where else.<p>

 

I've been hammering on my mind since my last outing, on the seventh of March for some answers. I came up with some wonderful images on that last outing but there were some points about the images that I couldn't quite lay my mental finger on. They were some of my best efforts. Try as I may, there were no answers to answer the mental knock at the door that I kept hearing. Over the last couple of days, I finally came out of the malaise the success of the last outings efforts created and started working on the questions that had come about from that outing. Today the answer finally came.<p>

 

Even though the images were captured, over a month ago, they hadn't been printed. Today, I started printing them. Why? Because they make sense to me now; where as a month ago, they made sense only to my sub-conscience. :) For the mental efforts of the last five weeks, I have come up with two new ideas to work with and answered a nagging question that has nagged me for quite a few months. One of the ideas is not unique and the other is probably not unique. Either which way, I have a couple of new directions to work with and a better understanding of what it is that I want to do.<p>

 

The short of my above, to me, it all comes from inside you and how much effort you're willing to put forth to improve your understanding of yourself. Everything else follows. Now that I've answered the knock that has been perplexing me over these last five weeks, I can have the print secession that I've not been able to have and I'll be able to again pick up the sensor body and "sally forth" into the next unknown beyond.<p>

 

Hope my above is found both insightful and helpful.<p>

 

 

Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, Tom Waits, Townes Van Zandt,

Robert Johnson, Johnny Cash, Miles Davis, Charles Bukowski,

e.e. cummings, Kurt Vonnegut, Bertrand Russell, Lao Tsu,

Herman Hesse, Elmore Leonard, and the hundreds of people I

meet every year.

 

To get past a block, I do a combination of taking some time off,

trying something different, and simply forcing myself to shoot

through it.

I put <a href="http://www.spirer.com/tribute/index.htm">this</a> together a while back.

Beïng influenced by someone can be of great importance but at the same time it could be like an excuse that's holding you back for not revealing the true nature of oneself but rather the nature of the one you look up too. But that beïng said, the one's that I feel I'm influenced by(or at least want to be influenced by) have a mystic reality about them that (for me) can not be looked over. They can be (and should be)Edward Weston, Atget, Ralph Gibson, Duane Michals,with others to follow, and in the non-photography world: Frank Zappa, David Lynch, Stanley Kubrick, Bruce Lee(the King,and the one and only...), Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ween, The Doors,...What they all share? They speak truth at some level or another, and while that may sound cheap for someone else, it certainly works for me...

Spiritual. I've thought about this and come to the conclusion that when photographs naked people, there is dimension to it which is spiritual/philosophical/political. Ideas that link into this are. <br>1. Every individual has value and deserves respect. Even though we strugle to actually respect many people much of the time. <br>2. The human body can be a thing of beauty. Aesthetic pleasure and erotic reaction work independently: you can get one without the other or both. You can ignore one in the process of making a picture and still find it is there in the result. <br>3. It is a natural thing to appreciate the beauty of the world around us. The fact we see that beauty is supporting evidence for the existence of a benign creator (whatever ones religious beleifs may be). But there is a tension between enjoying the beauty of the body, and respecting the person inside it. There is also a tension between being a faithful husband and enjoying the beauty of women in general. These tensions are a key part of the creative process.<p>

 

My other photography doesn't have any complex motivations behind it. I do sometimes want to preserve the memory of something but usually it's simply because I think it makes a good picture. A lot of it is "things people have built", I'm not interested in shooting "People doing things" or "natural landscape" although I like some pictures in these categories. It's becoming fashionable to knock Ansel Adams, but I admire his work enormously, but I can't point to anything in any picture of mine which has been influenced by him. I think I absorb tiny influences from every picture I've ever seen, so it is quite difficult to identify an influence. I've taken ideas from David Hockney (joiner photographs), and there are 4 or 5 pictures I have made starting with the idea of copying something else. But that is not the same thing - that is taking someone else's idea for a walk ...<p>

 

Poetry and song lyrics do have an influence. I created a cover for the book "venus in furs" because I had been listening to the Velvet Underground song of the same name. Generally it's be a line or even a single phrase. "Pieces and Parts" was one; I've been wanting to do something round "I was staring at the face of rage" for a while. After I took <a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/1394212&size=lg">this picture</a> I got the lines "The bed lays now cold and empty as a casket, your body left it's shape upon the sheets and little else." And they've been in my head when I repeated that shot. <p>

 

Yes we get creativity blocks. I had one that lasted for about 5-6 years. We don't know why they come or why they go.

Music: I like to listen to Techno at my darkroom and dream of next pictures at the Discotheque. Bosses and petitioners are useful against blocks; at least they make you touch some camera again, the rest usually develops itself automatically.

Jeff wrote<p>

 

<i>I put this together...</i><p>

 

Based upon your "put this together" efforts, is it safe to say that you've abandoned the "West Coast School of Grand Landscapes"??? :)<p>

To get past a block, I grab one of my Holgas, forget about exposure and technical issues and just try and capture a "feeling" rather that a technically perfect photo.

 

And as others have said, try something new. Currently I'm experimenting with pinhole photography and alternative processes. There is so much to learn about different types of photographic techniques, and a new film format or printing process can help a person look at the world in a slightly different way.

Jeff....;)...J

My main influence is my tight budget.......that means with film, the shots are planned, the film developing has to take place quickly, the trips are made early in the morning or late in the evening..with digital the same still applies, now the overhead is the fuel burn of the truck, the cost of meals. I don't allow my photography style to be influenced by spirituality. While there might be a concept in my images, I wouldn't call it artistic...As a matter of fact, I consider those who insist of labeling themselves as artists, egocentric / insecure...I am a taker of photographs, and nothing more. I have no specific favorite photographer or artist although some rise to the top once in a while, to be rapidly toppled.

John wrote<p>

 

<i>I consider those who insist of labeling themselves as artists, egocentric / insecure...I am a taker of photographs, and nothing more.</i><p>

 

Well that's a bit narrow minded. Why? Because there are those that just take snapshots. Then there are "Photographers" who make their living at photography. Also, you'll find there are some, who just take pictures and nothing more. But, there are also some, who are none of the above as they're artists who create images for others and that's their purpose in life. It's okay if you don't want to call yourself an artist. :)<p>

Degas, Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Edward Hopper. Look to your favorite painters for inspiration. I stood before a canvas for twenty years before ever taking up a camera, I feel this is an advantage to my compositional eye.

<a href="http://www.keithlaban.co.uk">Keith Laban Photography</a><p><i>�As a matter of fact, I consider those who insist of labeling themselves as artists, egocentric / insecure�</i><p>John, �artist� is a job description, not a judgement. I know many artists, some are very good and some are not so good but all are artists.

No offense meant with that posting..I know a lot of artists too, but wanted to make a point that's a bit tangent to the thread, sorry..The need to have a title is of importance to some...As for the noted painters, yes they are artists, because of their noteworthy products of beauty or difference or originality. I consider the word artist a statement of rating a person's competence or skill that makes him or her stand out from the norm. To be an artist, my viewpoint is that the rating has to come from others besides yourself. OK, there's nothing wrong with rating yourself highly...but when you get called "on the carpet" things could get difficult...however, the other aspect is that even if one is NOT an artist, photography can still be a lot of fun. I would say what influences and inspires me aside from the budget is the luxury of having nice weather most of the year...and living in a part of the world that is rich in color..No wonder Ansel liked this part of the country...

Sorry but "Artist" is not a title, it's a descriptive word which describes a persons efforts.<p>

 

<a href="http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Artist.html">Definition of artist</a><p>

 

Hope the above helps.<p>

"partially my point exactly"...and you are right, is is NOT a title, but some folks seem to think that it is...I consider it a rating of creativity and outstanding competency...The link is interesting as a defintion..but..I would like to take it a step further as I attempted above...for example a painter paints pictures, but an artist creates art through the medium he or she uses. So..a "bad artist" in my viewpoint, is NOT an artist but a painter, albeit a bad one..he or she isn't quite making the "grade" for transition to the level of artist...Simply making the effort to be an artist doesn't make the grade...Or to return to the thread, I would assume that an uplifting experience of GOOD art could be inspirational to some to go out and wildly photograph art....Perhaps this is the reason why we see so many images of European church interiors on photo.net....Now to stay on the thread, certainly once in a while I might have a creativity block, but I would define it more as a need to take a pause and perhaps search around for a different subject set, an attempt for different lighting, getting bored with the good weather..or looking at just plain bad pictures I took and realizing that I need to reshoot them with a different approach.

OHH what a question ...!:o)<p> we are all living under influence (culture, background education, friend, money, ...) and I believe once you escape the warm mother's nest we all become artists in a sense: either actors or funambulists, some take risks some refuse...

<p> and photography is probably the way of expressing yourself which the free-est in term of manual skill, just press the button... <p> so influences can be infinite in number, and artists you admire might not be necessary the artist that influence your picture style, and not only artists but books, moods, drinks, feelings, places eveything in life that can inspire you ... PLUS imagination... <p> uhhh ... what was the question ? ... ah yes ... among 'the very Classic' T.Williams, A. Camus, A.Moravia, D.Buzzati, T.Mann, C.Levi-Strauss, C.Baudelaire, J.Prevert, R.Murakami, L.Visconti, Y.Ozu, T.Mahler, JS.Bach, P.Tchaikovsky, Puccini, Queen, Hooverphonic, Chet Baker, M.Davis, T.Waits, Portishead, Sheena Ringo, Magnum's R.Capa, W.Bishof and others, P.Strand, E.Hopper, G. De Chirico, Sir E.Shackleton and Sir A.C.Doyle, ..... and people I know, and so many others ... <p>and also ... a Serie 4D Robusto with a Rusty Nail, a ray of sun passing through venitian curtain, the softness of a woman skin in the darkness, a child eyes when listening a tale story, the subtle noise of stockings when crossing legs, and old map on the wall, the start of a long trip ... <p> but also what inspire me is not necessarily what I like... it can be the poorness of the world, the stupidity and obscurantism of some people, the darkness of a soul, the lightness of my sleep,...and the end of the road...

<a href="http://www.keithlaban.co.uk">Keith Laban Photography</a><p>John Thomas (no pun intended. Well OK, perhaps I could have put a comma in there so forget it, pun intended).<p>Artists invariably use the word "artist" as their job description. I don't know any artists who use "artist" as a judgement on their skills. It is my observation that those who are not artists in any sense of the word are the more likely to have a problem with the words art and artist.

Perhaps I should explain that "John Thomas" is slang here in the UK for penis, not sure if it translates well to those across the pond ;-)

Thomas<p><i><b>"Artist"</b></i><p><i>"

An artist is someone who employs creative talent to produce works of art"</i><p>Exactly what I'm saying.....a job description

Keith wrote<p>

 

<i>"Artist"<p>

 

" An artist is someone who employs creative talent to produce works of art"<p>

 

Exactly what I'm saying.....a job description</i><p>

 

No it's not! One can produce "works of art" and not make a living at it. I swanny! I'm through the G. D. looking glass here as many have obviously lost their minds. You're doing nothing except parsing words for your personal convenience.<p>

 

One can be an artist as a job description; a "working artist" or one can be an artist as in a casual past time; "hobbiest". This is where the line from "Forest Gump" comes to play; "Stupid is as stupid does."<p>

 

Why have dictionaries as it seems some like to rewrite the meaning of certain words because it serves their purpose. We can all waste our time sitting around the conversational table, while we parse words long enough until we can come to a mutual agreement on what we "might" be saying. Then when called to task on what we said, we can do the political side step by saying; "That's not what I was saying." Very "Clintonesk".<p>

 

The word "artist" has a clear cut and well defined meaning. The meaning of the word is not enigmatic. And your attempts to parse the meaning of the word isn't gonna play with this old city boy! Find someone else to run your game on.<p>

Artist ... a life description ... don't you think?!<p> :o]