Breaking out of a slump - do something or just wait it out?

[Boris Stupak]

I just like to buy cameras. Who cares about the pictures?

If you'd all drop the pretext that you are all "photographers" and just accept that you like to buy, sell and play with equipment, you'd all be happier.

If you happen to take a halfway decent photo once in a while, you can add that to the plus column.

 

[Roger Hicks]

I just like to buy cameras. Who cares about the pictures?

If you'd all drop the pretext that you are all "photographers" and just accept that you like to buy, sell and play with equipment, you'd all be happier.

If you happen to take a halfway decent photo once in a while, you can add that to the plus column.

As I've grown older (and insh'Allah wiser) I am less and less interested in buying, selling and playing with equipment. I don't mind buying, though I do it less and less often, but I hate selling (too much hassle) and as for 'playing with', no, I'd rather take pictures. Perhaps when you're older (and insh'Allah wiser) you'll feel the same way.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Boris Stupak]

No, I like to play with cameras. The world has enough photos, billions added daily. "insh'Allah" has very little, if anything, to do with my proclivities.

Since I don't get into slumps, I don't have to get out of them. I just take pictures when I feel like it. I recognize my reality.

One day soon, I'll have a "Google Glasses" type gadget on my head 24/7. If I need a picture of something, I'll pluck it out of the endless stream of images I'm constantly storing in the "cloud" of everything I ever look at, now that we've got a technological Akashic record which rivals the one produced by the Cosmic Architect. So we can store everything that we produce by consciousness anyway, an infinite loop.

 

[Steveh]

I just like to buy cameras. Who cares about the pictures?.

I do, quite deeply, which is the whole point of this thread and the agonising that gave rise to it. If you want to be a gearhead there's several thousand other threads on RFF that will accommodate you, but at least have some respect for people who actually do care about this stuff.

 

[Steveh]

But on a more positive note, here's the first fruits of my "carry the RX100 and shoot my life" policy. This is how I found my son when I walked in from work. Grab shot before he told me to get lost.

 

[Boris Stupak]

My feeling, and I'm not being flippant, is that you either have a good eye or you don't. You can't force it.

If you don't have the inner eye to see and take good photos, all the agonizing on earth is not going to make your photos better. But you can always enjoy the gear.

 

[Steveh]

My feeling, and I'm not being flippant, is that you either have a good eye or you don't. You can't force it.

If you don't have the inner eye to see and take good photos, all the agonizing on earth is not going to make your photos better. But you can always enjoy the gear.

For what it's worth I completely agree, but I still think you're missing the point. Hey ho.

 

[Exdsc]

I just like to buy cameras. Who cares about the pictures?

If you'd all drop the pretext that you are all "photographers" and just accept that you like to buy, sell and play with equipment, you'd all be happier.

If you happen to take a halfway decent photo once in a while, you can add that to the plus column.

Today if you go and shoot with a digi P&S, you'd be judged as a show off who's trying to appear as a photographer - someone who does not need expensive cameras.

If you shoot with a DSLR you'd be judged as a show off who's trying to play the photojournalist.

If you shoot with a Leica, everyone knows the stereotypes for that.

If you use a Holga or film camera you're a hipster wannabe.

And now a new one, if you're in a slump its because you're truly a gear collector who's self-deception of being a photographer has caused the unhappiness/slump.



Maybe, the best way to overcome a photography slump is avoiding other photographers and avoiding the negativity and venom of photography community as a whole?

 

[Murchu]

My feeling, and I'm not being flippant, is that you either have a good eye or you don't. You can't force it.

If you don't have the inner eye to see and take good photos, all the agonizing on earth is not going to make your photos better. But you can always enjoy the gear.

Seems a bit of a cop out to me. I am not sure there is anything in the world any person cannot become competent or good at, with time, practice and effort. Talent, or lack of, may however decide if you can become anything better than competent/ good, imo.

 

[OurManInTangier]

Seems a bit of a cop out to me. I am not sure there is anything in the world any person cannot become competent or good at, with time, practice and effort. Talent, or lack of, may however decide if you can become anything better than competent/ good, imo.

Well said.

With practice, application, time and a half decent 'How To' book (throw in a small first aid kit too) even I can manage some DIY tasks. My friends all seem to have mastered the use of bandsaws, power drills and the complexities of solo wallpapering whilst my wife swears blind some of her friends husbands can even detect electrical wiring behind their drywall (all I can do is speculate 🙄) I may never be able to build a house worthy of habitation but I can now put a picture up without gravity embarrassing me once again.

I'm sure I'm not alone in applauding the spirit of endeavour in those that are aware talent isn't a gift bestowed on them in their chosen avocation.

 

[benji77]

Based on the photos you posted, I feel that you have nothing to worry about. They are really nice, and I'd say just continue with what the h** you are doing 😱

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

My twopence: everybody goes through the phase(s) of a slump.

But then there's the ultra-slump: for the second time in the past 10 years, I've seriously considered stopping photography altogether. I see incredibly banal photos (not to say that mine aren't banal, but I don't think they're incredibly banal) get far more enthusiasm, even revenue, than my shots. My flickr account is a living dead account, with hardly any traffic and feedback. To the point I've stopped replying.

I've been adding photos just for the benefit of a few friends who are too Facebook-adverse.

Anyway, cutting it short lest it be considered whining --that ship's sailed, I guess: a slump is natural. But if after a while you can't shake the feeling, call it quits.

 

[Steveh]

So the post-script is that I took the advice of several people on this thread and took the RX100 for a no pressure evening walk after work last night and - slump busted! Another (non) revelation is that I'm an urban photographer at heart, and I need the city to get the creative juices really flowing. I'm pleased with these though:

Phew.......

 

[David_Manning]

Great stuff. Glad to hear you're back in business!

 

[Steveh]

Thanks David - it's a relief! As you know, the RX100 is a ridiculously capable camera as well - I don't think I'd be limiting myself much if I sold every other camera I own.

 

[rkm]

I really like the way you compose images. Steve.

 

[noisycheese]

You have some very nice images, Steve - congratulations!

It seems that having an ongoing photo project is a way to help overcome a slump. If you are working on a project that truly matters to you, it helps to overcome periods of photographic inactivity in my experience.

 

[Clint Troy]

Back in te day, there were 2 sides to photography, counterbalancing each other: the camera and the darkroom.
As long as you we're doing both, the slumps we're minimal. In a vision slump? Go in the darkroom to work on older negatives.
Tired of the darkroom? Go outside.

Nowadays it's more like: in a slump? Time to buy new gear. No clear vision? Fondle your gear. I find them weird, these modern times.