Reluctant photographer...

[Nocturnus]

Ok.. I guess that's me. I see things that I want to shoot, but somehow talk myself out of it and I don't know why. On the way back from Lockhart today, I saw a few old farm buildings that I would of loved to shoot, but I kept driving. I don't know how I got into this mindset, the number of pictures I've taken over the last few years has dropped big time.

Maybe it's time for a vacation so I can see some totally new scenery to me. Maybe that will be the kick in the rear I need.

[dwilliams35]

I really do that all the time, but I just write it off to not wanting to take the time tracking down the owner for permission to be on the property... There's only so much you can do off the road.

[Nocturnus]

This was like, highway then building.. no fences. From the looks it will be torn down soon for all that construction they are doing on 183 south of the toll roads.

[dwilliams35]

Originally Posted by Nocturnus

This was like, highway then building.. no fences. From the looks it will be torn down soon for all that construction they are doing on 183 south of the toll roads.

Fences don't really matter, it's still private property and subject to trespass laws.

[Imagebuffet]

Originally Posted by dwilliams35

Fences don't really matter, it's still private property and subject to trespass laws.

You know that telephoto lenses mean one does not need to set foot on the property, right?

[Imagebuffet]

Originally Posted by Nocturnus

Ok.. I guess that's me. I see things that I want to shoot, but somehow talk myself out of it and I don't know why. On the way back from Lockhart today, I saw a few old farm buildings that I would of loved to shoot, but I kept driving. I don't know how I got into this mindset, the number of pictures I've taken over the last few years has dropped big time.

Maybe it's time for a vacation so I can see some totally new scenery to me. Maybe that will be the kick in the rear I need.

It sounds to me like you might be bored and tired. It's a lot of time and work getting a photo just right, and what do you get for your efforts? I've noticed that I am not the only photographer on this forum who posts photos that get no feedback.

If you feel yourself getting burned out, take a break. Give yourself permission to miss those beautiful shots that you know you could capture. You don't have to do it! Just rest, until you feel like doing it, again.

[dwilliams35]

Originally Posted by Imagebuffet

You know that telephoto lenses mean one does not need to set foot on the property, right?

You know that telephoto lenses still only allow you to legally see one side of the building, and have optical limitations of their own, right?

[Imagebuffet]

Originally Posted by dwilliams35

You know that telephoto lenses still only allow you to legally see one side of the building, and have optical limitations of their own, right?

What did the OP say that would require him to do any more than that? All he wanted to do was shoot a photo of some buildings. You were the one who brought up trespassing.

[dwilliams35]

Originally Posted by Imagebuffet

What did the OP say that would require him to do any more than that? All he wanted to do was shoot a photo of some buildings. You were the one who brought up trespassing.

To which I responded, noting that the reason that I have similar moments myself is the time it would take to properly obtain permission to access the property, to explore the photographic possibilities of said buildings. He brought up the lack of fences, which are of course essentially irrelevant to the trespass laws in such a case: Thus my premise holds that I would need to get permission. At which point you took it off on a random tangent.

[Nocturnus]

Wouldn't need to do anything illegal to get pictures of said building. It's right there and for what I was wanting to do, I'd be able to shoot it easy from where I stood.

[dwilliams35]

Originally Posted by Nocturnus

Wouldn't need to do anything illegal to get pictures of said building. It's right there and for what I was wanting to do, I'd be able to shoot it easy from where I stood.

Which works fine.. My point was just that whatever your reason for bypassing such opportunities, mine is the inability to "work the building" a little bit without procuring permission.. Thus I generally don't stop for the one shot I can get from the road..

[texxter]

I believe that the enjoyment of creating an image should be the photographer's reward. Anything else is just icing on the cake. I strongly believe that the intrinsic rewards are those that support us in the long run, not the extrinsic ones.

I think of the great Irving Penn, who decided to create a series of images, spending countless hours doing platinum printing, of cigarette butts. He did it for himself - others came to recognize the beauty of these prints later, but the purpose of the work was not to please others, but to feed Irving's creative needs.

We photographers need to be in constant conversation with other about our work, but this is not the same as saying that the purpose of doing the work is to seek approval or feedback from others. In my opinion, that is.

Back to the OP's point, I think a way to fight this indifference to what seem like good photo opportunities is to prepare the "why" and the "what" ahead of time - it seems to me that a pretty sunset or rundown building may catch our eye, but there may not be a strong "why" to actually make us stop and create the image. On the other hand, if you give yourself an assignment, be it a picture a day, or a project of some sort, like photographing the color blue, you'll have a "why" and all you need is the "what" - the motivation precedes the creating act - just some food for thought.

[janikphoto]

We all get in this rut. You have to force yourself out of it, or it will deepen. One thing that has helped me shoot more than just my paying gigs is school. I'm taking classes again, so I can finally finish out my bachelors that was started over a decade ago, and the photo assignments give me a lot of latitude to express myself. Maybe you need to sign up for a workshop or something similar. You'd be surprised at how it will kick start your motivation!

[Joe N]

I often see sights I would like to photograph but more than likey I am on a schedule and don't have time to stop. One shot I missed that I will never forget - I was between Mt. Pleasant and Paris and saw a farmer plowing on the west side of the highway. The dust was hanging in the air and the light was hitting it just right and the farmer was enveloped in a beautiful red glow. I don't know if I could have pulled the shot off but I couldn't stop and try because I had my wife, my parents, and an aunt in the car and we were on our way to a wedding.

Unless I am out just taking pictures it is hard for me to stop and take pictures. Maybe we are all too rushed but you can always plan a trip back just to take pictures of the buildings before they are demolished.

[Nocturnus]

See, I have a thing for old worn down buildings. They have character, been through a lot. Like when I go home to visit friends/family. I always go back and take pictures of this one worn down shack I found when I was just driving around.

I did think about doing a photo a day.. I might just do that.