More on Creativity

Following Nic Stover's presentation last month, we had a stimulating discussion about creativity and how to bring more of it to bear in our photography.

Since then, I've read an interesting book on the subject and have exerpted some of the most relevant passeges for those of you who might be interested and may want to pursue further discussions about this and related topics.

Gerry 

Thoughts from Bruce Barnbaum, in The Essence of Photography: Seeing and Creativity (2021)

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What excites me in a photograph by another photographer is seeing either something I’ve never seen before or something I’ve seen a million times, but never like that.

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When I set up my camera to expose an image, I unconsciously flip through the entire “library” of photographs I’ve made to see if I’m just repeating myself. I also flip through the library of images from other photographers that I’m aware of for the same reason. If it seems that I’m doing little more than repeating myself or others, I walk away.

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Don’t neglect the technical necessities, for they are critical to giving you the pathway to articulately express your visual thoughts. Technical skills also allow you to forge into areas of new artistry that you cannot explore if you’re lacking those technical skills.

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Photography is a thoughtful process from beginning to end, and if you fail to think about the end product (finished print or file) when you’re at the beginning (the scene you discovered), you’re groping in the dark. You’re snapshooting; you’re not engaged in photography. Always keep in mind that the photograph is your creation, even when the scene is not.

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Picking up a camera and aiming it at something that strikes you as interesting doesn’t make you a photographer. If the photograph is going to have any meaning to a viewer, it has to start with what it means to you.

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I encourage the kind of contemplative thought right from the start that will produce a personal interpretation of the scene that the viewer cannot appreciate [even if standing next to you at the scene] except through your photograph.

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A photographer has to see the relationships among the numerous objects in the scene in terms of form, line, tone, and color, and he must see those relationships within the three-dimensional vista in front of his eyes.

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Recognizing the difference between light that enhances a scene and light that detracts from the scene takes experience. The photographer has to learn how to see the light and understand how light brings out or destroys the lines, forms, tonalities, colors, dimensionality, and all other aspects of a scene.

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The scene in front of a camera is always a starting point for your journey. The creative photographer has to find the scene that she responds to and recognize its potential for personal interpretation. Few understand the difference between snapshots, with no interpretation, and real photography that entails personal interpretation.

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The interpretation begins with the exposure itself, where you see what’s in front of you and simultaneously imagine what you can do with it.

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Although you may be wildly excited about [your subject], you must still keep in mind that, as a photographer, the scene is nothing more than the raw material for your creation. What you then do with it is a product of your artistic decisions.

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Beyond the question of, “Did it look like that?,” the question you have to ask yourself is, “How do I want it to look?” Answering that question will put you on the road to creativity.

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The heart of meaningful photography is to “say” something visually that connects with viewers, that means something to viewers, that moves viewers’ emotions.

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Intuition and imagination go hand in hand, and both are prerequisites for creativity. But they don’t come out of thin air. Behind them is a vast amount of deep interest, observation, knowledge, and involvement with the subject.