"Attract-a-photographer Ltd."

[andreios]

Remember that old Monty Python sketch? "...your cat is suffering from what we Vets haven't found a word for. His condition is typified by total physical inertia, absence of interest in its ambience - what we Vets call environment - failure to respond to the conventional external stimuli - a ball of string, a nice juicy mouse, a bird. To be blunt, your cat is in a rut. It's the old stockbroker syndrome, the suburban fin de siècle ennui, angst, weltschmertz, call it what you will..." Of course in the end the poor cat was to be confused by a team of specialists... 🙂

I don't know whether it is only me who is so often moping in one's own "environment". All the well-trodden streets and paths of a city or a part of the country one knows for many a year...

So I was wondering - do you have any tips for some photographical "exercises" to attract one's photographic senses, that enable him to "see" pictures in some other places. In a nutshell - what is your way to find scenes, sights or things that could bring you from the rut in your ambiance?

 

[Sparrow]

I'm reminded of an a anecdote from Marathon Man, when Dustin Hoffman (a Method actor) couldn't find the correct motivation for his characterization after working on the scene for a few hours .... eventually Laurence Olivier (a classical actoorrr) glanced up from reading his script and whispered "just act, dear boy ... just act"

 

[Roger Hicks]

Yes, well, 'method' was given a bad name after it was hijacked from Konstantin Stanislavsky by Lee Strasberg. There's a lot photographers can learn from (for example) Stanislavsky's An Actor Prepares and Preparing a Role. Try and learn anything from Strasberg.

Incidentally, I think it was Confuse-a-Cat Ltd.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Gazzah]

Competition

Competition

What I have done in the past is pick at random an old photography mag out of the pile we all have - there is usually some competition in there with a theme, then I go out and see what I can capture. Ive never entered a competition, but it does make me think outside my comfort zone.
I live in the sticks and last month I picked out a mag with "Industry" as the theme... I had a fun week trying out different subjects and got a few keepers.

Might be worth a try.

Gary H

 

[swoop]

I thought this thread was about some dating website.

 

[andreios]

What I have done in the past is pick at random an old photography mag out of the pile we all have - there is usually some competition in there with a theme, then I go out and see what I can capture. Ive never entered a competition, but it does make me think outside my comfort zone.
I live in the sticks and last month I picked out a mag with "Industry" as the theme... I had a fun week trying out different subjects and got a few keepers.

Now that is a good idea.. Thanks, Gazzah..
Perhaps it might be worth for some other members also - something like an RFF theme of the month?

 

[kzphoto]

I had a photo professor describe a game he would play. It went like this:
-limit yourself to a square city block of space, one camera, one lens, and one roll of film.
-try to find as many interesting compositions as you can
-if you don't finish the film that day, return and complete your roll.

He said it worked for him when he needed new ideas. I ended up taking abstract pictures of bird poop and bubble gum stains.

 

[chris000]

I always felt that if you like the rut you are in, it can be a very comfortable place to be - but it does need to be shallow enough to see out of.

I'm useless at street photography, so if I feel the need to do something different I tend to head for the nearest town to see what I can do. I almost always fail miserably, but at least it gets the 'photographic' brain switched on again.

 

[Chris101]

I either:
- take a break,
- take a class, or
- take a pill.

If one doesn't work, the others will. Oh yeah, I have also tried ... take a picture.

 

[andreios]

- take a pill.

LOL, it's not as bad as that, luckily.. You see, this "mood" of mine is not a matter of "time" but rather a matter of a "place" and my question was what can I attempt to overcome this.

 

[Pirate]

Move to Europe.

Wait, you already live in Prague! How can you be in a rut? It's not possible out here.

Pick the smallest roll of film you can find... do they still make 12 exposure rolls? And give yourself a time limit. Pick a place.

That graveyard in the next town, from 1pm until 2pm. Make yourself shoot the whole roll in that 1 hour.

See what turns up. It's kinda like making a date with your wife. Plan to do something like this once a month/week/... etc. to keep your mind moving.