Photography, like almost everything else, goes away when you abandon it. And it’s not just about the pictures fading (or or discs degrading), it’s the skill that goes away. Vision is something you may be born with, but it’s also something you must practice.
I am out of practice.
It may not be that I’m not seeing much, because I do still see. It’s that I have not committed the time to my craft of late. Merlin Mann, one of my favorite bloggers (who extolls the idea of Making Things, not reading about other people Making Things), wrote a piece on his recent attempts to get better at photography. It’s a piece I shall share with all my intro students next semester, to remind them that this is not easy – this takes work, it takes practice. And it takes an ability to accept sucking at something for a while.
So … what does this mean? It means I need to work harder at my craft(s). I say craft(s) because I need to do more than just make pictures. I need to figure out video storytelling. I need to figure out audio storytelling. I need to figure out storytelling again.
I was good at it once, I want to be better at it now. My goal for 2009: Five bits of creative stuff a week. Words, images, sounds or video, but five a week. Okay, maybe four.
You seven readers, please carve out some time …
Canon G10, 31 mm, ISO 200, 1/10, f/4.5
I’ll look forward to having more blog posts to read daily.
I like the idea of the four or five creative things a week. With three writing classes and nothing visual next semester, I might have to jump on that wagon.
“And it takes an ability to accept sucking at something for a while. ”
This really struck a chord with me. It’s encouraging to hear this verbalized.
“And it takes an ability to accept sucking at something for a while.”
Definitely got a taste of that when turning in my portfolio. I crave to be better at storytelling. I really want to work on it in 2009.