oceanarrow

I guess it is a slump.will come around quickly.my style is to capture the everyday subject in such a way that makes it stand out.I used to get creative by taking one lens,maybe 12-24 and take pictures all day that challenged me.greatly appreciate the comments.obviously some of you were dealing with the same thoughts.

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

Ocean, welcome to the Hog!
I agree, there's no point in just carrying a camera around just for exercise, though most of us actually need it!
The better you get, the less you want to just snap away. For what, just to erase everything later?
Like the eclipse coming up this year, how many are gonna be studying how to shoot them? I'm going and thinking of not even getting my camera out. For what, to prove I was there! I'll probably just savor the eclipse for those few precious minutes. The FDR library is the perfect example. I'm sure there was lots to shoot, just not the actual library as a library.
The more experienced, the more your work needs to be out-of-the-box!! That takes planning, and study not to mention the experience to pull the shot off.
It's not about carrying a camera but pulling off unique shots that are others inpos!
Though I will say, I'd love to be in the dull, frozen NW right now, probably the same way you'd like to be in dull sunny CA(but not sunny today!!) LoL
SS

LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

Wait. Wait. Others are paying for this? I guess I might be one of those welfare recipients....

oldtigger Loc: Roanoke Virginia-USA

In todays world where non-artistic, unskilled, people can buy high IQ gear
off the shelf at Walmart and burst shoot their way into images that go viral;
it is easy to just throw your hands up in disgust.

Now is everyone happy, can we get back to the subject of shooters block and copy cat images?

LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

I remember a lesson my grandpa showed me more than 50 years ago. He walked outside the general store and looked up. Within a few minutes the store emptied and people came out to " look up". Well he was looking at nothing. Years later, I was at a popular vacation spot and wandered away from "the spot". I took a different vantage point some distance away, got down very low and exposed some film. As soon as I left, there was a line of folks lining up for the same shot....

As far as feeling stale, I spend more time looking without the camera to my eye. Often, I return with nothing. I'm ok with that. We've lost the reason for being in the woods, on the beach, or on a busy street. Look at the tag line under my signature....

le boecere

tdekany Loc: Oregon

mcveed Loc: Kelowna, British Columbia (between trips)

Anybody can take extraordinary pictures of extraordinary things. It takes a photographer to take extraordinary pictures of ordinary things. Be a photographer.

tdekany Loc: Oregon

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

This might sound radical but....it's ok to not take pictures.

Photography isn't the be-all-end-all of life and if you don't feel like taking any pictures the world will keep spinning and life will go on. There are a LOT of things that are of great importance in life and photography is pretty low on the scale.

Live your life, don't worry about taking pictures!

One of these days you'll cycle around again and begin taking pictures if you feel like it.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

I have noticed many on this site go on canned cruises or go where every tourist in the world go. Have you travelers ever thought of doing or going somewhere else not so touristy. Yes it is fun to see some of these places but I have found 80% of my travels are to unique places. While in Germany for example I found dozens of old castles hidden in the woods with a trail leading to them. In AZ I took a forest road from Bisbee to Nogales, What a beautiful drive and beautiful opportunities for photos. Have you seen the Copper Museum in Clarkdale, AZ? Bet most have been to the tourist trap Sedona but missed this gem along with West Fork, Jerome, Winslow, Walnut Canyon, and the trip from Prescott to Wickenburg with mining towns and a great cowboy museum in Wickenburg. The open pit mines in the Morinci area and the river there, Globe and Miami.. Boyce Thompson Arboretum has many different views.
Each state has hundreds of these unique and less traveled to places. Take the small side roads and many communities have local museums all over the place.
In other words if you go to the same bus tour places every body goes to yes it is beaten to death but all over Europe there are thousands of wonderful not so touristy places like Trier.

Plieku69 Loc: The Gopher State, south end

Oldtrigger you hit a nerve with this one, but I agree with you. My own experience getting my first DSLR and taking pictures. Using auto only as the other settings were just confusing. The problem is the auto setting, it does all the thinking for the operator, skill and knowledge not reqired. Pray and Spray and sometimes you get lucky. THen there is the cell phone that makes averyone a photographer. Or so they think.

Real photography is a learned skill. Digital makes the results fast and easy, but to get that perfect photograph takes a lot of thought, planning and through understanding of your equipment.

I am still learning.

Ken

DoyleY Loc: Worland, Wyoming

I agree to a point. Love digital but it sure has changed things. One good thing with what has happened is it forces us to hone our creative skills and be more open to adventure. I too find myself becoming numb to some subjects, wildlife being one of them. I'm not saying I don't enjoy wildlife photos anymore, but sadly a lot of what you see is just ordinary. I'm trying not to be ordinary, don't want to be ordinary, or called ordinary. Wait for the shot I guess, spray and pray like some and hope for a surprise, plan ahead, oh what to do..............

waegwan Loc: Mae Won Li

I find myself in that situation of shooting alongside phones and pocket cameras and in the end I always walk away with the better shots. I always have a little more field of view or a little more reach or manual focus to get the subject or angle that the phones and pocket jobs just can't grab. In the end on family outings and so forth my shots are the ones that everyone wants to share and print. I'm happy for the other folks with good gear, they can make good memories for their families too. And when I'm on my own I get to shoot stuff that they don't print on post cards.

waegwan Loc: Mae Won Li

I want to learn how to disable the auto mode on my camera :b Sometimes I catch myself switching to auto thinking that I'm too busy to go through the settings and I don't want to miss a shot but then I remember that I'm usually never satisfied with the Auto shots and delete them anyway. There should be something in the menu to just disable auto.