Embracing Constraints or What Keith Jarrett Taught Me About Photography f/18

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Show Notes

Limitations on our photography can be a source of inspiration and creativity. I recently learned of a story about jazz musician Keith Jarrett that exemplifies this idea. Constraints may be uncomfortable yet they can also shake loose new ideas and unexpected successes. I talk about this topic in today’s episode.

Here are 5 ways to practice embracing constraints. Listen to the episode for more details.

  1. Use one lens. Do an entire shoot with a single lens at a single focal length. If you have a prime lens, use it. If you have a zoom, pick a focal length (35mm, 50mm, whatever) and stick to it.

  2. Use a single aperture. Select an aperture you don’t normally use in your photography. For example, I’m a landscape photographer usually maximizing depth of field. I’d select an aperture of f/2.8 and do an entire shoot with a shallow DOF.

  3. Capture a singular subject. Look for a specific shape, pattern, or color and photograph only that. For example, take a photo walk and capture only circles or only red subjects. When you begin actively looking for something you begin to see it more often.

  4. See first and photograph second. If your location is your constraint, look at other photos of your area. How can you more uniquely capture that location? Can you do better? Another exercise is to do a photo walk without your camera, making mental notes of what you might photograph. Then repeat the walk with your camera and capture the frames.

  5. Photograph from a fixed position. Stand in one place and make 10 unique photos. You can tilt up and down, zoom in or out, turn left or right. You cannot step forward or backward. Got your 10 unique photos? Now capture 10 more.

Resources in this episode:

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