Lately I've found that rather than always going to the full effort of planning a shoot and organizing it all i'll go out and just shoot (crazy, i know!). Quite regularly I won't even do anything with the pictures.
Earlier in the week at a local photographers meet I heard someone say something to the tune of "The value is not in the shots but in the experience". I wasn't a part of that particular conversation and only really overheard the line, not knowing the context it was in but it got me thinking a little.
I've found that for better or worse I tend to shoot a little less now than I did a few years ago. A little voice inside my head was wondering if that was due to apathy to it all but that phrase made me realize that I've come into the habit of making pictures, not just taking them. It helped to realize that the times I do just go out and shoot for fun it's not for the pictures, it's to practice and learn and improve.
April 6, 2010 at 2:26 AM
You'd be surprised how friendly people can be when you ask to take their photos! Just go for it and see what happens! You'll never know if you never try ;)