First Thoughts

My first thoughts are that I like what I am reading. When, in my case photographing, you should always keep going. Don’t second guess whether or not what you are photographing is going to make a good photograph. I actually have found myself second guessing what I should be taking pictures of. You can’t make it a chore to take pictures. You have to have an open mind about it. I have to agree with Cameron when she says that if you are going to write you can’t be specific about what you are going to be writing about, otherwise you will draw a blank. I found myself to be stuck in this situation. I had an idea of what I wanted to photograph but when I sat down and really thought about was I was actually going to take pictures of I froze up. I got to the point where I just had to take pictures so I just went out and started snapping away. Next thing you know I start coming up with possible ideas for my subject I wanted to do. So now when I photograph I try not to think about what I want to do I just go out and start shooting, sometimes ideas hit me like a ton of bricks and other times still nothing. Now with the all the photographing I have been doing I find myself with not only one but two possible subjects.

Sandbox

I can see where this concept could be helpful, for you would be getting other people’s opinions about your work. Yet on the same hand I can see where you could go without. I like the idea of making your work public to get others opinions to help you better your work. But on the other hand what if you were going for a specific look and you got that look in that photo, but some of the public tried to tell you how to change it to make it look totally different? Then again it’s just their opinions and you could easily forget them, or so you would like to. You could also just keep those photos in your personal sketchbook. Also you are, or should be, just experimenting right now to better improve yourself for the future. I especially like the ‘Fail with fun content’, it makes sense why you should have fun with your playground, if you take it too seriously you can easily burn yourself out trying to make it “perfect” on the first attempts. Once again you have to experiment. I sometimes still find myself questioning whether this concept would truly be helpful. I do see where the playground could be very very helpful, but is it really necessary? In the end though I think it is something to try and see how it goes.

Shitty First Drafts

This reading is how I have done projects in the past. I usually rack my brain for a few days to get a great idea, something that usually doesn't come to me until the assignment is almost due, and then I start to gather what items I will be needing for my project. I will draw small pictures of ideas on paper. Little by little it usually comes together. I usually get on a roll somewhere in the process, things start to click and my creative juices start to flow, sometimes overflow and then I have so much I don't know what to do with it. My ideal assignment is to be given a list of choices to pick from and then I don't have to spend all of that time wasted trying to come up with something original. But I see now that life isn't like that, you have to make your own decisions, whether they be easy or hard. Usually by starting small it grows into something much bigger than I thought it could ever be. Making a photo project is a slow process for me, there are so many details, angle, lighting, subject, position, and all of the other little details; it has to be very thought out and executed. I usually get inspiration by looking in books or the Internet, but sometimes it just comes to me. Sometimes I have too many ideas and don't know which to choose, but eventually it has to be shrunk down into one small great idea.

First draft

It’s funny, well not entirely, how often I find myself in the same situation stressing about the things/tasks I need to get done. I am told that I need to come up with a final project or subject to photograph. At first I think this shouldn’t be too hard. Then I start think about it some more and realize what I have in mind is probably not great at all. I think that people will hate it, wonder why I even wasted my time with these photographs. It’s a total downer to my creative side. So I try to think of more ideas but end up with the same feeling. Just thinking about it is not going to get me anywhere. I need to start with something, anything. First role (first draft) of film I end up just running around the house taking snaps of my “ideas” and try to run form there. But obviously it is going to take more than just one try, especially with so many ideas, and who knows maybe I will find another idea. So I start another role (second draft) and possibly even another. By this time I am feeling pretty good with myself. Now I can watch my critical little mice in their jars with a smile, now that I finally go control over them. Now just to get my contact sheets done.

Morning Pages

I found this reading to be interesting. I watch allot of Oprah and she talks about journaling, something I have tried in the past to do but was not too successful. Knowing that it helps to get your feelings out to journal because the little bit I did do proved that to me. I will try to do morning pages because I do think that it will be a great tool and I want to see if it really works! I know that I have trouble sleeping some nights because I am thinking of all the things I have to do the next day or the next week, which makes me wonder if I would also write "evening pages" that it would help me to sleep. In the past I have also discovered that most of my creative ideas come to me at around 3 or 4 in the morning, so I always keep a paper and pencil at my bedside. I enjoyed the reading and will try my best to do my, "morning pages".

Julia Cameron Response

Who knew something so simple could be so helpful. Being helpful almost seems like an understatement. For just being the one technique it’s crazy how much the morning pages can or could do for you. For me it makes so much sense how you could untangle the mess in your head when trying to figure out what you should do for your next project. The big thick wall of the things you’re stressing about, the things you need to get done, what so and so said to you the other day how it made you feel etc., can be a total block of your creative or artist side. I never thought of writing those “issues” down to help find the other side. I totally agree with how Julia described the censor. How negative the censor can be, how discouraging. It’s like you are playing a mental game with yourself, a not so good mental game, one that can totally ruin things for yourself. With the help of the morning pages you can learn to live with the censor, not taking everything to heart. I like how broad of a technique the morning pages can be. It’s not just for the writers, but for every shape and form of art. It’s what you consider art to be. Also how you should take yourself on a date, meaning doing something that you really and truly like to do. Julia talks about how this can even help your artistic block. Once again something so little can be so helpful, not to mention enjoyable. People, myself included, tend to way over think things, things that are so simply.