Close Up Photography

[caption id="attachment_953" align="alignnone" width="267" caption="Rusty Chain"][/caption] One of the best ways I know to jump-start my creativity when I'm in a slump is to do something that isn't my usual craft. I've been having a hard time fitting in time to be creative lately because my son is teething, and, well, basically we're all short on sleep. On top of that, I've rarely had more than 10 minutes when I could completely get absorbed in doing my own thing. That's fine for computer stuff that I can stop and start, but when I'm feeling like creating, I need longer blocks of un-interrupted time to myself. Yesterday, I had some time, but I was so tired I didn't feel like getting out all my tools and supplies. So after a few minutes of yoga followed by a short nap, I decided to take my camera and go outside. Photography, especially close-up photography, is an interest I've never fully pursued, but I'd like to. In half an hour, I shot about 200 shots. It was the first time in a couple weeks I felt really creative and completely absorbed in what I was doing. [caption id="attachment_954" align="alignnone" width="400" caption="Rust and Ashes"][/caption] It's also one of the first times I felt like I knew how to get the interesting shots I wanted to get. Probably due to the work I've been doing on getting better at jewelry and baby photography, I've just gotten better at photography in general. I took some weird, artsy pictures of everything from ashes to rusty metal to extreme close-ups of the tiny succulents in a planter box. Then I cropped the ones I liked the best to get even closer to the subject, sometimes so close that if I didn't know what the picture was of, it would be hard to guess. So - this is my inspiration post for Monday's Muse - if you need to get inspired, go do something creative that is different from what you normally do, and let yourself enjoy it rather than worrying too much about the finished product. [caption id="attachment_955" align="alignnone" width="400" caption="Succulent (Extreme Close-up)"][/caption] More of my close up photos on flickr