Go small

What if you had to limit your creative project to a fraction of the normal size? I found this to be very interesting when I decided to do some “macro” photography over the holidays. Macro photography requires you to get very up close and personal with your subject because you take a shot of a tiny fraction of what you might normally take. I have an example of this in my PIC-OF-THE-WEEK below.

But does this transfer to other forms of art? If you compose songs try writing a jingle. If you paint still life maybe you could paint a small section of the subject. If you write short stories try writing copy for an ad or a 140 character tweet. If you sew clothes try sewing a blouse for a doll.

The point is to give yourself artificial constraints that force you to look at things differently than you would have otherwise. New perspective: new creativity.

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

I always look forward to this guy’s appearance at our house. He always shows up at Christmas time.

 

Discover

What was the most significant visual moment in your life?
One that I wasn't even aware of. I photographed an apple in a bowl of fruit. I proofed it. The darker proof caused the surface of the apple to become like a night sky. That gave me impetus to realize there were things in the process of photography that I could learn from by not staying bound to the rules and to play and discover.

The quote above came from a Q&A interview with Paul Caponigro, a photographer who is the recipient of two Guggenheim fellowships and three National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) grants. I like the way he described the unexpected-ness of photography. I get the feeling he discovered a whole new world just by looking at the photograph with a darker exposure.

Could the things you create be enhanced by looking at them with a different perspective? What if you composed in a new key signature? Or restricted your painting to shades of red? Or wrote a novel with a 300 word limit? Or choreographed a dance in 5/4 time?

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

Another covert photo as I was sitting in an airport.

New tools new rules

I don’t know of any creative pursuit that doesn’t require some kind of equipment. A writer needs a typewriter or a computer or a pencil. A dancer needs rhythm or music. A composer needs an instrument. A painter needs a paintbrush and something to paint on.

Sometimes adding a different type of tool can jumpstart your creativity. I recently bought an inexpensive neutral density filter for my camera and took it out to see what affect it would have on my photography. I knew it wasn’t the best quality but I was interested to see how it would change the way I approach picture taking. It turned out to be very interesting and fun because I looked through the lens with a different perspective. I could now take some shots that I couldn’t have before and visa versa.

So try a new tool and learn some new rules. It may give you a new perspective that brings something fresh to your artistry. Just make sure you don’t get caught up in the “if I get this I’ll really be an artist” trap. I could have easily spent $80 or more on this filter, but I opted to spend $20. Maybe I’ll upgrade in the future, but right now I’m interested in learning what all can be done with this one.

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

Here's one I took using my new ND filter. You can hold the shutter open longer for more color saturation.

 

Step Back

Leonardo Da Vinci said this:

...it is good to retire to a distance because the work looks smaller and your eye takes in more of it at a glance and sees more easily the lack of harmony and proportion in the limbs and colours of the objects.
(Leonardo da Vinci, Notebooks)

It's good to step back and view your creation from a distance, and it's especially easy if you're creating in the visual arts. You can reduce the size of the photo on your computer or you can physically step back from a painting. I do this often when I'm working on a photograph (CTRL/-, in Photoshop). It helps to see the "whole" and not just the magnified parts.

I have also done this with other creative works, most recently a theater script that my wife and I wrote. As I thought about how to maximize our rehearsals. I decided to look at the relative length of each scene and plot that on a histogram. This not only let me see the flow of the play, but also let me plan each rehearsal so we covered all of the scenes by dress rehearsals. It looks like this:

So remember to step back and get perspective as you create.

PIC-OF-THE-WEEK

We took a mini-vacation this week and stopped at Hot Rod City in New Philadelphia, OH. It's part museum, part restaurant, part gift shop and part ice cream parlor.