Feeling less than adequate

kyeezie

I didn't know where to put this thread :dunno but figured I am here the most and wanted to get your thoughts on stuff. I had a fun filled weekend, full of photo opportunities but I came home feeling the pictures were just not good. I feel like I am in a funk. Maybe it is because what I was taking pictures of wasn't something I normally do. Anyway, what do you guys do when you are feeling "ehh" about your pictures?? Thanks!

Scott_Quier

kyeezie wrote:

I didn't know where to put this thread but figured I am here the most and wanted to get your thoughts on stuff. I had a fun filled weekend, full of photo opportunities but I came home feeling the pictures were just not good. I feel like I am in a funk. Maybe it is because what I was taking pictures of wasn't something I normally do. Anyway, what do you guys do when you are feeling "ehh" about your pictures?? Thanks!

Cry :cry :cry

Then get over it and go back out and do it all over again - but this time, change something.

Keep shooting - that's the only way to get through the funk.

Blurmore

I have a 3 pronged approach to this (and will probably get flamed for it).

1. Get back to basics. Don't worry about advanced techniques, and technical crap, shoot like your eyes are on Prozac, just shoot.

2. Shoot something NOT for money, anything...so long as you are not getting paid, and it is not for anyone else's consumption.

3. Before the next time you go out, scour the internets for 5 shots that really turn you on, print those small on a piece of copypaper, and take it with you on your next job. Replicate those shots.

Scott_Quier

Blurmore wrote:

I have a 3 pronged approach to this (and will probably get flamed for it).

1. Get back to basics. Don't worry about advanced techniques, and technical crap, shoot like your eyes are on Prozac, just shoot.

2. Shoot something NOT for money, anything...so long as you are not getting paid, and it is not for anyone else's consumption.

3. Before the next time you go out, scour the internets for 5 shots that really turn you on, print those small on a piece of copypaper, and take it with you on your next job. Replicate those shots.

No flame here!

I really like the first two - they are a nice refinement of my more crude suggestion.

The third is good too - it may cause one to think a bit more about what they are shooting. I can see where this would result in getting a copy of the inspiration image, but also leading one to think about other possibilities.

Very good suggestions!

coldclimb

I find this time of year is my slow time. January through April or so, I take far fewer pictures than the rest of the year. Maybe it's winter getting me down or something, I dunno...

Yesterday morning we had a fully involved structure fire and I was lucky (and insistent) enough to get to ride in the basket of our brand new platform truck the first time it's ever been used on a fire. As we moved into the air I had an incredible birds-eye view of a crew getting a 2 1/2 inch hoseline in place, with a huge fireball rolling out of a garage door right in front of them and an entire structure in flames as a backdrop. I didn't grab my camera when I left the house, even after thinking about doing so on my way to my car. It wasn't worth turning back and spending thirty seconds grabbing it. I've been kicking myself ever since.

Maybe we can cry together.

kyeezie

Thanks for the suggestions! It is nice to know I am not the only one. This is really my first low. What I did this weekend was for free, I enjoyd shooting but when i got home I was let down. I don't know. Maybe because I haven't shot a wedding in a loong time and I feel I'm bast at that. Maybe I will cry (cause I am a girl, I can :cry) then I will get over and then get back to basics, and take a little break until I realize I shouldn't be taking a break..lol.

Blurmore

kyeezie wrote:

Thanks for the suggestions! It is nice to know I am not the only one. This is really my first low. What I did this weekend was for free, I enjoyd shooting but when i got home I was let down. I don't know. Maybe because I haven't shot a wedding in a loong time and I feel I'm bast at that. Maybe I will cry (cause I am a girl, I can :cry) then I will get over and then get back to basics, and take a little break until I realize I shouldn't be taking a break..lol.

Shooting for Free, and shooting something NOT FOR PAY...have different effects. You should never shoot something for someone else "for free". Even if it is for charity and you aren't getting paid, you should get warm fuzzies. Shooting something for someone else and not getting paid is soul crushing, and you shouldn't do it.

dadwtwins

kyeezie wrote:

I didn't know where to put this thread but figured I am here the most and wanted to get your thoughts on stuff. I had a fun filled weekend, full of photo opportunities but I came home feeling the pictures were just not good. I feel like I am in a funk. Maybe it is because what I was taking pictures of wasn't something I normally do. Anyway, what do you guys do when you are feeling "ehh" about your pictures?? Thanks!

Wow, I soooo know this feeling.:D

Everyone has an off day but it is worse when others are depending on the pictures to "look" good. We all have to pull inspiration from somewhere when we are just not into the moment. This is where experience comes in when we have to fall back on those formula shoots that maybe generic but at least they will look decent. The more you shoot, the easier this will get.

Just know, we all feel your pain because we all have been there at least once:cry

zoomer

Embrace the feeling of failure.....this is what drives you to improve.

Remember Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds both led the majors in strike outs!!!!!

Moogle Pepper

Except for Babe Ruth, Bonds has been doping.

In any case, messing up is part of life, not just with photography. If you are in a photography funk work on a hobby and then get back to shooting!

ian408

I like the ideas Blurmore's offered. Especially the part about getting back to basics.

Each of these things should have a positive effect and provide a nice creative bump.

FedererPhoto

I've many times found trying some 'contest' - you know the kinds, where they say "Topic: Lines" or "Topic: Shutter Speeds" ... and you are forced to get creative. They sometimes help me break out of funks... I always do something to 'get out of a funk' before any paying gig... gotta be excited to make those images if you want them to matter to your clients.

mmmatt

Maybe they aren't as bad as you think? I did a family session when I was in AZ last January for a friend of mine who moved out there a year ago. Right after getting home I started working on the pics and I was really disappointed.

I waited a couple weeks and then got to them again. I was really pleased after taking a longer look and letting my head settle a bit. I personally can't find much beauty in red rocks, sand, tract homes, and redundant cartoon replicated cacti, so to me AZ is not an attractive place and that is probably where my disappointment was coming from. When it came time to deliver the photos I was very proud of them. I found I captured the dynamic of their family perfectly... and their family dynamic is an odd one. They loved them, and have 6 or 8 of them on the living room wall.

Maybe let the set sit for a bit and then go through again. If it is technical issues or compositional issues then maybe the magic of photoshop can help you out. If it is missed shots or poor coverage then maybe the couple won't miss them. Don't decide for yourself that whatever you did wasn't good enough for them. You have to give them up, so make the best with what you have and deliver them with a smile on your face. It probably won't be as bad as you think.

My $.02

Matt

medinaphoto1

kyeezie wrote:

I didn't know where to put this thread but figured I am here the most and wanted to get your thoughts on stuff. I had a fun filled weekend, full of photo opportunities but I came home feeling the pictures were just not good. I feel like I am in a funk. Maybe it is because what I was taking pictures of wasn't something I normally do. Anyway, what do you guys do when you are feeling "ehh" about your pictures?? Thanks!

This just means you are an Artist!

bike21

Lots of good advice in this thread!

mmmatt wrote:

Maybe they aren't as bad as you think? I did a family session when I was in AZ last January for a friend of mine who moved out there a year ago. Right after getting home I started working on the pics and I was really disappointed.

Same thing happened to me the other week in San Fransisco. I walked around all day (Google Earth says 7.5 miles!) and got a bunch of photos. Wasn't too impressed initially, but after sitting on them for awhile I feel better about them now. Working on processing them now actually

sherijohnson

I think spring weather and the time change might have a renewing feeling for you. I have been feeling it this week in GA. It's like new life abound as I see the trees, bushes and flowers coming back to life.

kyeezie

Thanks everyone. It's good to know I'm not alone, although it is sad for all of us. I was shooting all these pictures for myself, but after putting them away for a couple days and then reworking them they didn't turn out as bad as i thought. I also tried some of y'alls advice and went back to basics and things like that. I just got a d200 so am learning how to use that properly, so I am excited about that but the pictures don't turn out how I want. Keep practicing and don't let it get you down. Lesson learned. Thanks again everyone!

Travis

Another in the same boat this weekend to let you know that you are not alone. After not shooting for a couple of weeks, I took yesterday's beautiful weather as sign to head out to False Cape State Park and shoot some egret photos for Harry's DGrin Egret Fest. From start to finish, the day turned out being a bust.... I was late getting down there, my bike (the shooting location was 2-miles into the park) stripped a gear, the egrets huddled in mass on the opposite side of the water with no access, and I lost a contact lens in the process. I got home, uploaded the images to LR, rejected each one by one, and deleted the entire shoot.

I was bummed for a bit so I went back to look at some images that I haven't revisited in a year or so. They were from days where I went out and shot everything and the resulting take from a day was a variety of images - people, landscapes, cars, etc. It then hit me that there were other image opportunities all over the place that I totally passed over because I was focused on a singular subject. Just one of them would have saved the day. Oddly enough this rejuvenated my motivation to shoot more. I can't wait for next weekend!

I think sometimes we get so involved with creating great images that we take it extra hard when we have a mediocre session. The old adage as to there being no such thing as failure is something that we truly need to embrace.

A good self-assignment to try is to do a day-in-life. Start first thing when you wake by shooting a photo of something, anything and continue throughout the day. Shoot stuff out of the ordinary. It does wonders to your creativeness and self-confidence.

kyeezie

A day in the life or something similar might have to be my next project... Hmm..you've got my brain thinking now!!