Inspire me with your ideas, I want to take some photos

Marcel

Marcel

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Marcel
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My mojo has been severely lacking for a while. Between having a full time job, 2 kids, not alot of sleep and also the time that the forum takes....I've not taken any photos for aaaages.

As it turns out I've been handed somewhat of a lucky break.
Last Monday I went to A&E after not feeling well, where they think I may have had a TIA/mini stroke. I'm currently on the sick now while I await a CT scan and other tests.

So I want to use this week to take some photos. I look outside, I see the glorious weather and Im invigorated to get out there and take some landscapes. Maybe the seaside, maybe some lovely countryside.
But I'm not allowed to drive :(

So I need to tackle something at home. Something that's fun, but pretty easy to do. Ease me back into getting my mojo. I'm not allowed to exert myself either (Wife's words not mine!).

Anyone have any ideas I can turn my hand to?
 
Marcel said:
As it turns out I've been handed somewhat of a lucky break.
Last Monday I went to A&E after not feeling well, where they think I may have had a TIA/mini stroke. I'm currently on the sick now while I await a CT scan and other tests.
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Wow, you really are a 'glass is half full' sort of guy Marcel.
I had knee surgery a couple of weeks ago and am largely housebound -and bored out of my brains- so I shall shamelessly piggy-back your thread. ;)
 
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Why not do some self portraits? Pick some photographers you like the look of and ape their style / images. Or have a go at a "photostory". Years ago in college we did a Vanitas project which I found really interesting - traditionally it's a still life, but why not make it into a series, perhaps mixed with portraits. Do some mini macro landscapes in the garden - see how alien you can make normal stuff look. Take a photo of the same banana in the same place and samt time every day, but with completely natural light and document its decay. Make a stop motion video, though not necessarily of the banana.
 
Birds in the garden
Flowers
Water drops
Wire wool sparky stuff in the garden
Stars

Do a tracey emin, take a photo of your unmade bed, or the contents of your fridge

Long lens, spy on the neighbours ;) :)
 
Put a bird feeder up and shoot some of them (not literally)!!!! Or take up :beer:
 
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Marcel said:
My mojo has been severely lacking for a while. Between having a full time job, 2 kids, not alot of sleep and also the time that the forum takes....I've not taken any photos for aaaages.

As it turns out I've been handed somewhat of a lucky break.
Last Monday I went to A&E after not feeling well, where they think I may have had a TIA/mini stroke. I'm currently on the sick now while I await a CT scan and other tests.

So I want to use this week to take some photos. I look outside, I see the glorious weather and Im invigorated to get out there and take some landscapes. Maybe the seaside, maybe some lovely countryside.
But I'm not allowed to drive :(

So I need to tackle something at home. Something that's fun, but pretty easy to do. Ease me back into getting my mojo. I'm not allowed to exert myself either (Wife's words not mine!).

Anyone have any ideas I can turn my hand to?
Click to expand...

on your next hospital trip ask one of the nurses to pose for you ;) - although you might find that a bit exciting in your condition

that aside theres plenty of macro oprtunity in the back garden - flowers, insects, spiders webs etc , or if the weather is nasty you could do some table top abstracts
 
Seriously bud, hope everything turns out OK after the tests.
Burrs isn't far away on the bus, plenty of dippers, industrial landscape stuff around there, shouldn't be to taxing for you.
Don't suppose a ten mile hike in Goyt Valley on Wednesday interests you? ;)
 
flyingmonkeycorp said:
Why not do some self portraits? .
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he's already done that twice , the results were, um .... 'interesting' (aka not somethingyou want to see when you are eating)
 
wontolla said:
a ten mile hike in Goyt Valley
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he's in no condition to climb a hill in order to get signal to call the air ambulance for you ;)
 
big soft moose said:
he's in no condition to climb a hill in order to get signal to call the air ambulance for you ;)
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Hmm, maybe not, but I have some GOOD mates to do that! :angelic:
 
As Spring is making a tentative appearance it's time to break out the macro lens and go on the hunt for small sticky things in the garden, new buds, insects etc. How about looking for the early ladybirds.

Good luck with your health, I hope it proves to be a false alarm and you are soon back at work.

Chris
 
big soft moose said:
he's already done that twice , the results were, um .... 'interesting' (aka not somethingyou want to see when you are eating)
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Yeh, who can forget that one of him sat on the bog? :jawdrop:
 
Make a blue flaming waterfall, (very beautiful for photos) pick a still night, and watch your family go oooh aaahh ... Then few days later make a bigger one, get a mate to hang it high in a leafless tree and watch the flaming waterfall flow over branch to branch on the way down for even bigger Ooohs and Aaahs. :D

I wrote instructions here in the inspiration ideas forum over a year ago if you can find it. ...it is a fantastic thing, you won't be disappointed.
 
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That sounds pretty cool!

Thanks for all the suggestions (and the nice words!). The goyt valley walk is a bit too much for me :p

I can get my wife to drive me somewhere, so we may go for a drive on Wednesday, a peaceful drive and a picnic somewhere, gets me out of the house :)

Seems the suggestions lean towards ideas of macro.....No macro lens :(
 
Marcel said:
Seems the suggestions lean towards ideas of macro.....No macro lens :(
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close up filters, tubes, reversing rings, filters, raynox adapter etc

What camera do you shoot with ? If its a canon i'd happily lend you a basic set of tubes to play with
 
Marcel said:
As it turns out I've been handed somewhat of a lucky break.
Last Monday I went to A&E after not feeling well, where they think I may have had a TIA/mini stroke. I'm currently on the sick now while I await a CT scan and other tests.
Click to expand...


If that's how you define lucky then I'm never going to the bookies with you.:)
 
Marcel said:
I can get my wife to drive me somewhere, so we may go for a drive on Wednesday, a peaceful drive and a picnic somewhere, gets me out of the house :)

Seems the suggestions lean towards ideas of macro.....No macro lens :(
Click to expand...

Well, if you are in the area, the Royal Oak on Market St, New Mills at lunchtime is where you will find us! Might even treat you to a pint (or orange juice) if you turn up.
Sorry bud, but no macro to lend you!
 
All the best, Mr B. Hope it turns out to be something other than a TIA and that the useless ladygardens at the DVLA (if they're involved... personally, I'd advise against it unless your medics are going to tell them anyway!) don't that'sfornaughtypeople you around s much as they are me.

If you had a proper camera, I'd lend you my macro lens (Nikkor 105mm VR) for a while to help your mojo but... ;) Not sure what your bag holds (and don't want to see it!!!) but I'll bet there's at least one lens suitable for portraits, so why not try a load of portraits of the kids (or Mrs B.)? I know it's a huge field but how about some landscapes? Maybe a trip to the beach and some seascapes?

I've found that seeking mojo too hard keeps it away - it'll find you when it's ready, hopefully soon.
 
Nod said:
If you had a proper camera, I'd lend you my macro lens (Nikkor 105mm VR) for a while to help your mojo but...
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Come on Nod, you know there's only one Macro lens and thats the canon mp-e 65mm. luckily Marcel is a canon user. I'm sure Stewart at Lensforhire would have one you could donate... :)
 
Thanks for the offers :) (And the offer of an Orange Juice :D)
Unfortunately my mojo has eluded me for so long, I'm forced to seek it out with vengeance. (Not telling the DVLA anything until I *have* to, which according to their own guidelines, I don't have to).

In my camera bag is the following

7D
430EX flash
50mm 1.8
24-70L
10-20 f4 (Sigma)
70-200L
Two tripods, two heads
Cokin filter system with some filters (one nd, one nd grad, one 10 stop welding glass).

I have 3 flash heads here, which have been kindly loaned to me by our very own @Yv
Two softboxes and a couple of umbrellas to go with those too.

My problem is that when I start to get invested in taking a shot...I can set it all up, but then it's over for me. Once I've taken that shot, I get 'bored' of it right away. Ive never had the inclination to, say, 'work' a location or object properly to get as much as I can, I just rush through it and move on.
I need to slow down and be forced to think about things.
 
Marcel said:
Thanks for the offers :) (And the offer of an Orange Juice :D)
Unfortunately my mojo has eluded me for so long, I'm forced to seek it out with vengeance. (Not telling the DVLA anything until I *have* to, which according to their own guidelines, I don't have to).

In my camera bag is the following

7D
430EX flash
50mm 1.8
24-70L
10-20 f4 (Sigma)
70-200L
Two tripods, two heads
Cokin filter system with some filters (one nd, one nd grad, one 10 stop welding glass).

I have 3 flash heads here, which have been kindly loaned to me by our very own @Yv
Two softboxes and a couple of umbrellas to go with those too.

My problem is that when I start to get invested in taking a shot...I can set it all up, but then it's over for me. Once I've taken that shot, I get 'bored' of it right away. Ive never had the inclination to, say, 'work' a location or object properly to get as much as I can, I just rush through it and move on.
I need to slow down and be forced to think about things.
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Then shoot some film!! Seriously, forget digital for a while, beg borrow or steal a film camera [I know several friendly mods that might be able to help you out ;) ] and start having to really think and work and NOT be able to see the fruits of your labour immediately. Don't worry about dark rooms and all that schmozzle, just drop it in at a snappy snaps to begin with, the anticipation is more exquisite than it ever was when it was your only choice, and no boredom because you are terrified you just wasted several quid on crap :LOL:
 
Have a bash at some smoke photography.

Reasonably easy to set up, the gear you've listed more than meets the requirements and you can have just as much fun (if not more) in post processing as in actually shooting it. Gavin Hoey does a cracking tutorial on youtube.

PLUS if you get yourself some nice therapeutic incense sticks they'll chill you out while you shoot :)

Get well soon mate.
 
Yv said:
Then shoot some film!! Seriously, forget digital for a while, beg borrow or steal a film camera [I know several friendly mods that might be able to help you out ;) ] and start having to really think and work and NOT be able to see the fruits of your labour immediately. Don't worry about dark rooms and all that schmozzle, just drop it in at a snappy snaps to begin with, the anticipation is more exquisite than it ever was when it was your only choice, and no boredom because you are terrified you just wasted several quid on crap :LOL:
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That's a great idea Yv! I have several Marcel can borrow if he wishes, even a couple of Canons that his lenses will fit. If you want to Marcel, give me a bell and I will drop them off for you.

I can throw in a couple of poundshop films too!
 
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Sorry to hear about your health issues, mate. I know how you feel re inspiration. I bought a camera again a while back and I've barely used it - seriously considering getting rid of it again.
 
Yv said:
Then shoot some film!! Seriously, forget digital for a while, beg borrow or steal a film camera
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I have a canon eos 30 you'd be welcome to play with (marcel I mean) that would fit some of your lenses.
 
The other thing I'd say (heresy I know, - if I disappear its because ive been swum for a witch) is if your mojo isn't there , and with all the crap you've had to deal with I'm not suprised - don't force it , it might be best to take a break from all things photographic for a little while, read books, watch films, play with your kids , maybe read a few photo mahgs and see if anything fancies your tickle ( theres a free smart phone app called TED , devoted to ideas worth spreading, which might be worth a look for inspiration (not just photographic) https://www.ted.com/ apparently there are 1400 talks from people at the top of their field. )
 
Why not try a bit of stop motion animation, here is one I did the other week with my daughter.
 
Some great ideas, thanks :)
I have a film camera, plum forgot to list it!

It's a Practika MTL5-B with a couple of lenses (It still has some half-shot film in :confused:)
Along with a rather spunky Lunasix Lightmeter that I splashed out on sourcing a few years ago when mojo was higher.
I suppose I'm a classic case of a gear freak (to an extent). I want to develop the creativity again like I used to have....

The smoke thing sounds like a plan!
 
It's the weather. Mojo goes on holiday while its cold and dark out.

I tried a 52. That was an awful idea. Mojo sprinted off.

Film would be fun. Get thee to a poundland and stock up on Agfa vista :)

If you can take the time off why not have a weekend in north wales or go up the Lancashire Coast? All northern children should be dunked in the murky waters at Blackpool beach at least once.
 
I did when I was a child. I think that's where I developed this tail and third eye in my back.
Danny, thanks for that link. I've just watched the smoke one and then a couple more. I'm gonna give them a whirl in the morning...quite excited!
 
Sorry to hear of your health issue but good to be positive, loads of people experience TIA's and everything works out fine - listen to medical advice :)
Any towns/cities nearby for some street/candid shots ... gentle walking, stop for a coffee and sit down?
 
If you fancy a chilled day out shooting wildlife, I can pick you up from Bury and take you out for the day, no physical graft involved for you.

Let me know if you want?
 
Have a go at the oil and water, pretty sure I used 70-200 for this and others, fascinating watching the shapes whiz around as looking through the viewfinder.....and hope you feel better soon (y)


IMG_7411 by rkcphotos, on Flickr
 
Marcel said:
I need to slow down and be forced to think about things.
Click to expand...

Sounds like you're the sort of person large format was invented for :).

I'd try photographing fruit and veg. Look at what Edward Weston managed with peppers. The textures from a cabbage or half cabbage etc. etc can be amazing. Try an exercise to make it look like anything but what it is by lighting and viewpoint. Experiment with viewpoints and angles to conceal rather than reveal the subject matter.

I think this should all be possible with your equipment.

And get well soon.
 
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