Do you need to be creative to take good photographs? Well, the answer is YES. What is creativity? Many people think that creativity is something that belongs to only certain group of people. Many people often think that they are not creative. Well, for me, creativity is an attitude and it is also a matter of perspective. Everyone can be creative! In fact, everything we do everyday can be creative. It’s an attitude. It’s a willingness to take a fresh look at the things that are surrounding us.
In life, we often face a lot of challenges daily. How often are we willing to face these challenges “creatively”? When I say “creatively”, I meant – How often are we willing to be open minded, keep learning from our mistakes, make effort to try new ways of doing things, step out of our comfort zone or take some risks? As the saying goes, “if you continue to do what you have been doing, you will continue to get what you have been getting.”
Just like taking pictures, photographers must be ready and willing to change the focus of his lens or look for another angle when the situation changes. Every new scene that is presented in front of a photographer is a new camera setting, a new perspective. We need to keep learning from others and from our own mistakes (well digital photography made is really easy for us nowadays, we can simply try to shoot anything for experimentation). We can’t improve our skills if we stay at home. We need to step out of our comfort zone and take action to hone our skills. That’s my definition of creativity. It’s an attitude!
I love to capture landscape through my lens. As I venture into the world of photography, I learnt that the lens you have is critical and sometimes it can really change the way you look at the same thing. In other words, the type of lens I have on my camera will determine the view I have. Sometimes, to make a normal looking scene extraordinary, I have to change my lens or perspective.
In life, when we are faced with a difficult situation, we need to also “change our lens” or our perspective in order to have a breakthrough. I sometimes call this re-framing. When you choose the see things differently, you will start to think differently. And when you think differently, you will behave and act differently. And when you act and behave differently, you will likely get very different results!
When I am stuck and I need to re-frame a challenging problem, I will often ask myself to describe the situation I am facing differently (changing my lens and angle). I will always try to look at the positive side of things (mindful of my attitude). I will ask myself what are the opportunities that are presenting themselves in front of me. I will also try to talk to others to gather their views on the situation. I will be open to other perspectives and possibilities. Like photography, when you are willing to move about, explore your environment a bit more, talk to others, look at the pictures they have taken, etc…you will often find more than one possible answers to the same situation. That’s re-framing. That’s persepective.
Life is complex. Many challenges we face in life don’t have a single solution or answer. There are always more than one possible answer or solution to everything. So, be creative (i.e. positive attitude and open minded, willing to step out of your comfort zone, keep learning, and take risks) and be ever ready to re-frame your problems into opportunities i.e. find new angles and see it from a totally different direction. Remember, your attitude is key.
With self-confidence and the willingness to pay the price (Lesson #1), you will often discover that there are always more (and better) solutions than we initially had assumed. Yes creativity is about persistence, hard work and the willingness to challenge ourselves. Very often, we will say to ourselves “Where got time!” Well, when we strive to be creative in our lives, our work and relationships can have the potential to become more effective and satisfying. Something for all of us to think about.
Some questions for your reflection…
1. With my definition of “creativity” in mind, can you be creative? Are you willing to pay the price for being creative? If not now, when?
2. In today’s world, can we afford not to be creative? What will be the consequences? What will be the potential for you?
3. What are some of the things or situations in your life right now that requires a new lens, new perspective and a new "camera setting"? What will you do differently after reading this sharing?
Life lessons I learnt from Photography "CLICK":
Life lessons #1: Confidence in Self & Pay the Price
Life lessons #2: Look for the Beauty
Life lessons #4: Creativity is a matter of Attitude & Perspective
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