I hear you out there, sniggering at the idea that I’m speechless. Ha ha!
But seriously, has this ever happened to you? Where you were asked something, and were unable to come up with a meaningful response?
Recently I was asked for opinions on education and politics, and I didn’t feel like I had anything truly insightful to contribute. I had opinions of course. But I didn’t feel that I could add value beyond agreeing or disagreeing with others, or regurgitating things. It felt a little bit empty. Later I was reminded of a recent story by David Whyte; he was describing a similar situation for himself. He’d been asked to write about a topic, one he had not explored deeply, and he didn’t feel that he had anything useful to contribute. He felt like he had nothing to say.
So how do you go about looking at something in a new way, and generating something in your own voice?
David didn’t know what to do.
A fresh approach
His solution was to gather all the cliché or otherwise existing storylines about the topic and look at them all together. Not because he wanted to use them. Because he thought maybe something would emerge if he just sat with the pile of existing story lines for a bit. And soon he broke free. Ideas emerged, he began writing, and he’ll release his new work very soon.
I’m just going to make up a name for this activity: The Cliche Prompt.
I reconsidered my thoughts about education with the prompt in mind. It’s a complex topic, so I won’t elaborate right now, other than to say that David’s process led me to reset my view of educational objectives. When I mentally piled them together, I realized that many popular complaints and recommendations about education revolve around a set of presumed objectives, objectives that I might prefer to alter. Once I looked at it from that perspective, a number of thoughts coalesced for me, ideas that had not surfaced before.
Using the Cliche Prompt to create art
I’ve decided that this prompt can be utilized in a number of ways, and certainly to make newly-inspired artwork. Pulling existing stories together and looking for something else is another way to engage and build creative muscles. I’d call it complementary to the 10 ideas exercise from James Altucher that I’ve discussed in the past.
And not to get overly self-important about all this, but some Very Big Brains have talked about what can happen if you see things differently.
“A great thought begins by seeing something differently with a shift of the mind’s eye.” - Albert Einstein
I don’t know if the Cliche Prompt yields “great thoughts” for me. I’m pretty sure nobody would call my thoughts Einstein-ian. But I’ve used the Cliche Prompt approach to make photographs more than once.
For most photographers there have been subjects we feel we should be able to make something about - read as “say something about” - but we struggle to do so. If you’re a photographer you may remember this happening quite frequently when you were beginning to photograph. So many things look like they would make GREAT photographs, everywhere you turned! Until you looked at them later. It still happens to me, where I feel there must be something in a particular topic, but I’m not unlocking it. I’m not coming up with anything to say.
Finding something to say about ordinary subjects is one place where the Cliche Prompt can help.
Here are some different takes on ordinary things that I’ve made in the last year:
This hydrant image may not be a great example of generating new work from the exercise, because the hedge and the paint made it stand out without a specific prompt. At this point in my career, “seeing” it was easy. However:
A segue to snow
I presented the hydrant image because matching its geometry helped lead me to the next one, along with the Cliche Prompt. Forever I’ve been taking pictures of snowfall resting on objects, and they bored the heck out of me. Why did I take them all? Because snow always looks so cool, I keep wanting to photograph it! For somebody who doesn’t see snow all the time (me), it seems like it should be fascinating. I’ve made tons of photographs of snow piled up here and there. Every one of them felt like “nothing” to me afterwards. In retrospect, perhaps it’s because they felt like any of thousands of other snapshots I’ve seen before.
All those pictures of snow. So I thought about using snow to show other things, rather than making photographs specifically of snow.
I don’t know what you think of this next one, but the fence feels more like “something,” this time, especially when I pair it with the hydrant image.
The fence is just a fence. The snow is a key element, but sort of a supporting actor. Together as composed this makes a nice companion piece to the hydrant. And personally I like the contrasting hard and soft lines, the textures and the tones. Now I have a “snow picture” that I like. Whew!
Seeing things differently is not easy. That’s why I like prompts and exercises to help. Making an ordinary subject feel like my own is a big challenge. It’s a form of wanting to say something, but not knowing what to say, and then ultimately finding something.
Finding “words” can be joyful. Or just a relief, if I’d been frustrated! Ideally we don’t get too frustrated; it’s better to just recognize stuckness as a temporary condition and live with it for a bit. The more often a person can unstick themselves, the easier it becomes to recognize the condition as temporary.
When it rains does it pour?
Here’s an example of the struggle. The subject is rain. Like many photographers, I’ve got photos of objects with raindrops on them. Is this next one good? It’s not bad. When I hear somebody say something is “fine” I could easily conjure up this photograph of tomatoes in the rain as an example. I tried to use shadows to create interest, and it’s fine, but it just doesn’t move me.
Things got more interesting for me after I considered all the normal ways I’ve seen the topic depicted, and considered alternate perspectives. I changed the subject from “rain” to “how rain feels” and then went shooting.
In the following image you can barely see raindrops, just a few drips and streaks. The sense of wetness comes from other elements. You barely see the rain, but it feels like rain.
Next, the raindrops could make the actual rain seem like they are the subject. But are they? And either way, can you feel this scene? That’s what I’m going for.
Again in the third image raindrops are visible, but they are more about presenting a mood, a feeling. Cold and hard.
Neither rain nor snow…
Finally, I’ll move away from the elements and leave you with one more example of getting unstuck. I’ve taken a bazillion images of swimming ducks and geese. I remember the first time I was able to zoom in and see details of faces and feathers. I was fascinated by the close-up looks, but after I’d done that… just how many swimming ducks can a person look at, and who cares? Generally with wildlife I’m looking for dynamic poses or unusual behaviors. But this is nothing more than swimming waterfowl. Yawn?
Again with thoughts triggered by other images - you might remember the cranky cormorant attacking the goose - I’d started paying attention to which animals get along with each other, and which do not.
In that context I finally did have something to say about peacefully swimming birds. I was fortunate enough to be able to get them in a bit of a triangular formation. But I’ve taken tons of similar compositions and been bored. The key here is that they all look different but they still look like best friends. Now I’m interested again, and I have something to say.
So my advice is to give the prompt a try. Whether you’re a writer, an artist, or just trying to pull some thoughts together for the next business meeting or cocktail party.
If it works for you, maybe you’ll want to rename it your “Get Past the Cliches Prompt.”
Limited Edition Prints for Sale
As promised, I’ve got a new set of Limited Edition prints available for purchase. Any unsold African wildlife images from last fall, as promised, are retired from circulation.
Each edition consists of ten Numbered Prints and two Artists Prints, 16x24” silver halide, with certificate of authentication. As before, these are not just limited by quantity, but will also be available for a limited time. So if you would like one or more for yourself or a special person, don’t hesitate. You wouldn't want to become he who is lost!
Until next time,
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Interesting take on the subject. I'm not sure I need a prompt since I usually shoot what I think would be a good picture in terms of subject, light, and composition. I've often been self critical of not be more "intellectual" in my picture taking - you can describe your shots in a way I've never been able to - I shoot it, like it, keep it (with some technical expertise in there too).
I just read an article on photographer's "keep rate"; the number of images that are keepers in a shoot. My keep rate usually ends up at around 1 or 2 in a hundred. The reason I bring this up is because I have always seen photography as a numbers game (with the exception of portraits and weddings - the keep rate better be high). When I'm doing outdoor photos I always consider myself lucky to have all of the elements act in unison to bring about a great shot.
I am reminded of an Ansel Adams quote: A good photograph is knowing where to stand.
1. Yes, and AA also thought that 12 good photographs per year was a good crop. I'm more ambitious, but also with lower standards for what counts as "good" :-) He actually said 12 "significant", but tomatoes, tomahtoes...
2. Stop being self-critical!!! Apart from that, you do great work. I realize the two are not at all related.
3. Definitely with wildlife the hit rate is lower, by design actually. I.e., I'll shoot as many exposures as possible (almost) to get one image, because you can't predict what the subject will do, and if you stop shooting you could miss something impactful. Most of the images I create never get dropped into a hard drive, I review through my computer monitor but still on the card reader, then tag a few, and just download the few.
4. This relates to portraiture, but I'll answer your quote with a quote that makes me smile every time: “Portrait photography is 10% inspiration and 90% moving furniture.” - Arnold Newman