Creative Energy

Most of the time, when I’m out and about, with my camera, whether personally or professionally, photography, as a general rule, is both representative and restorative.

In others words, more often than not, photography fills me up.

But there’s another side of photography that you rarely hear talked about.

This is is the side of photography, in particular, and creative energy, in general, that is depleting and draining.

Most snappers that treat photography casually will never know this darker, more challenging side of the craft.

But believe me, it’s there.

About a week ago, I was happily shooting in downtown Austin. The light was exquisite.

I couldn’t stop. I invested several hours, non-stop, walking about, as I always do, looking to capture the cracks, creases, and crevices of life, that most miss.

At the end of my short excursion, I was whipped, beat to the core, like I’d been run over by a truck. WTF?

Yes, of course, as you might expect, I was satisfied and gratified over what I had shot. But I was also dog-tired too, worn out, dead on my feet.

Somewhere in the middle of my second beer (Stella Artois), while scribbling notes in my journal, it came to me that creative energy, in photography, doesn’t just enjoy a happy face. It has a stern and serious face too.

And it’s this very somber and sober face that can suck you dry if you let it. It can easily overpower you and rob you of the fun in your craft.

Creative energy, done right, is an investment in time and space.

Photography isn’t all fun and games.

But, for sure, the whole process, both remedial and exhaustive, if you let it, can, literally, change your life, from the inside out.

Click

Jack