Dry spells?

Its funny how this blog is two posts old and I've already hit the topic of dry spells. There are a couple of reasons why I bring up this topic. For one, dry spells are something that EVERY artist must go through. I certainly have times when all I couldn't do much more than get frustrated. The first time I had a dry spell, I went to the shelter of my fellow film photographers on flickr and confided with the many experienced photographers in the community. I have honestly come to respect flickr with such a vibrant community of photographers that being a true part of it instantly brings out your true potential at the time. I say at the time because growth is an on-going process and takes time. Flickr's value to the amatuer photographer goes beyond the $24/year paid to become a pro user.

Back to the topic of dry spells now...
So I learnt a great deal from my friends on flickr and the most important one is that dry spells are a natural part of growth at every stage. In a constant search and find of ideas, your mind tires out as you go into the more narrow fields when you are searching for something so specific that you get lost, and your mind can simply not bring out any ideas. Its when an individual loses inspiration. You reach a point where you just are not satisfied with what's out there and you then know that you need to break out of the box. Often the best way to tackle a dry spell is to switch to something for a while. Like reading, or sketching or blogging for that matter... Just wait it out until the closed box of ideas opens up again. Its your attitude at this point in time that will determine the direction you go. If you lose touch, then you're obviously going to go backwards. The trick is not to give up, but cut down on how much of it you do and turn to other hobbies. Soon you will discover a new and a more creative side that will take over and lead the way.

Also, I hope to find time to go shooting during the day sometime next week. Hopefully for this shooter, all will be back to normal... For now, I take to my reading to both fall asleep and be inspired.