Lately I have been reading and researching off camera lighting. I used to hate the look of flash photography. Now I love it. But that doesn't mean I will always use flash photography.
I think it's true that photographers develop a certain "look" to their images. They may use a certain editing style, similar camera & background settings, the same types of models ...all of those things add to the photographer's style. But even when said photographers obtain the look they are going for, there is ALWAYS room for improvement, room for trying new techniques, room to challenge yourself.
And that, I think, is what makes photography CREATIVE and wonderful. Room for growth and room for variety. It's never tiring. Well, physically tiring, yes. But the options for variety are never tired.
The hard part for full-time photographers is exhaustion. They get so tired of shooting the things they truly love to shoot, but they don't always get a break. They don't always have extra time to find new things to capture. It's all about TIME. To be creative you need time. Finding time can be difficult. We have families. We still have to do things like laundry and yard work. Or maybe we would just like to spend time with our kids or go kayaking, without a camera in hand.
It's been such a good year for me - I've learned to say no to certain sessions. I've contemplated types of sessions I love to do. I've thought about techniques I want to try. And I've started to form ideas for subjects I would like to photograph.
These off-camera lighting portraits are some of those things I've been wanting to attempt. So here's to taking breaks, learning new things and not missing the beautiful parts of life happening around you.
For you amazing photographer friends out there. Take a break! Shoot what you love. Don't take on too much at one time. Only accept sessions you ENJOY. Spend time with your family. Don't be scared to try something new.
A special thanks to Meagan for being so awesome.
