Finding Time & Motivation

Finding time to do what you love can be difficult, 2013 has particularly not been nice to me in that regard. I won't get into specifics, but I have only been able to shoot a small fraction of the amount that I would like too... frankly, I'd love to shoot everyday. I am not a professional, I do not make a living taking photographs, and my time is that of most enthusiasts or "weekend warriors" and sometimes less. Family aside (they're #1, as they should be and will always be) photography and making images is when I'm at my happiest.

So for most of this year, I've been trying to make images when free time, inspiration and motivation align.  If you are like me, with the lack of free time, the 2 other parts, inspiration and motivation may also be difficult for you to find, or at least it is for me.  I haven't figured this all out, finding time to shoot, finding motivation and inspiration... it comes and it goes, but I think I'm getting better at it and maybe this post can help you.

OK, so on to the important stuff.

• Figure out what you want to shoot... macro, landscape, portraits..etc... and then acquire what ever necessary equipment that would be needed to accomplish these images. Don't over think it though, and go basic.
• Set up a game plan for accomplishing goals. If you want to do landscape photography use Flickr, Google Maps, Google Earth and other similar methods to get a feel for a location. Find a bunch, then create a document that has the location name, distance from your city and what you'll be shooting there when you arrive. So if you have 3 hours of free time fall in your lap during the evening and you can get out for a sunset, you know what is in reach of the amount of time you have. These same ideas can be put towards other styles of shooting as well.
• Finding motivation... a tough one, this is how I'm trying to motivate myself, and this may or may not work for you. I'm currently finding photography exhibitions and working on completing entries for them. Some are in my comfort zone and submissions are made with past and present photos, others are a new challenge for me. I may not get to submit to them all, but I'm trying..and looking at the list daily is making me want to get it done. If that isn't your cup of tea, maybe post on your blog or social media site that you are going to post "street photos from Boston" this month, and give yourself 30 days to get it done, the next month it could be "I'm going to take street portraits in Providence" ....these proclamations will hopefully get the gears turning and get you out to do what you want to do.

 

  


If time fails you, or you choose to do something else and it doesn't work out for you, don't fret, take an hour here and there and open up your old photo catalog on Lightroom or whatever software you use and pull up some old images. One of the coolest things is seeing how much you progress in your image making and photo editing... sometimes fresh eyes find new life in old images as well, and your own photos may be what actually inspires you.