[Zephos]

I have a theory, and this may seem totally obvious to most people but I'm just getting around to accepting it.

You see, I am a full time student and I have job as well as a wife and daughter so I don't get a lot of time to go out and do something as selfish as my photography. When I do, I am usually under time constraints and often times don't take very much time setting up my shots, etc, etc. Nor am I able to go to cool places or go exploring very often, and my favorite type of photography is nature and landscape.

Anyway, I am rarely satisfied with my results and I know that it takes time to really be good at this, but I'm starting to wonder if I don't get satisfaction out of my shots because I just don't put enough time into it. I mean, what photographer can spend only a couple hours every other week with his camera without doing much traveling, etc, and come out with great stuff on a regular basis? Maybe there is someone here who can prove me wrong, but the only stuff I find around my house that would only take a minute to shoot is subject material for macro shots, really, and certainly not during the winter (all the little critters are hiding).

Anyway, I wonder how much I can expect my photography to improve when I'm done with school, or when I'm retired even. I bet someone here can tell me how it was for them.

Thanks all!

[panoguy]

Life is busy, and hobbies get us out of the "busy-ness" for a short while. That's their value! It might be stamp collecting, skeet shooting, woodworking, competitive ping-pong, or quilting. Heck, for some lucky folks, their hobby is cooking, in which case everyone loves it when they "practice!"

My advice is if you're short on time, don't put it aside, just find a way to get more out of what you have. Macros are great, since you can do them almost anywhere (and you don't need bugs or plants - try looking at moldy food before you toss it!), if you have the right lenses or bellows or adapters. Search for "macros on the cheap" here in the forums! Even just being a camera gearhead like many of us are, is part of the hobby-ness.

Next, I may shoot photos for my income, but I also use photography for meditation... which is when it becomes my "hobby." I read this book (Practice of Contemplative Photography) and it totally changed my view on what's a "good" or even "acceptable" photograph or subject for a photo. It really breaks the act down and makes even 30 minutes a week refreshing. Speaking of which, I go out on photowalks with other photographers (rarely these days, it seems) and that's a way to combine the hobby side of things with being social and going new places.

Reminds me, I should get the Toronto Pentaxians together soon!

[jatrax]

To be proficient at anything you must practice. There is a theory that it takes 10,000 hours of concentrated work to be a master at something. Not sure I believe it but it is out there.

I toyed around with photography for years and never IMO improved much. In 2010 I bought a k-x and started shooting regularly, almost every day. Sometimes, a nice walk, or a drive to the mountains or just a couple pictures in the garden. But almost every day. I have a very long way to go to be where I want to be but looking back at images from 2010, 2011 I am embarrassed. That is a good thing, it means I have gotten better.

So, you have a job and you are a full time student. Do you carry the camera all day? Mine is always with me. Even if you don't pull it out imagine taking a picture in your mind. As you walk to school look around and in your mind frame a composition. Maybe you shoot it, maybe there is no time but you can always exercise your eye.

Your photography will not automatically improve when you graduate or when you retire. I can tell you from experience that work, duty, chores, family expand to fill all available time. So thinking after you are done with school you will have more time is an error, it will not happen unless you make it happen.

I started shooting in high school, but I graduated, got a job, got married, had kids and there was never enough time until I decided that I would make the time as part of my daily routine. And that took almost 25 years. Don't wait that long.

[robgski]

Schedules are always tight, no doubt. Inspiration is hard to find under pressure, but I like to say "Desperation provides Inspiration"
Since I committed to two separate daily challenges, I fell obligated to shoot something, anything to fulfill my self-imposed obligation It is tough to do with a full schedule, but it helps me keep my eye open for opportunities, and to try, something, anything, for a shot.Here's some ideas, YMMV:

You live in one place, go to school in another place, and work in a third place, do you have your camera with you at all three, or at least with you en route? I take a lot of shots on my way to or from work, even if I'm making a gas stop or grocery run, I usually see something worth shooting, 3 minutes of filling a tank is three minutes of composition and adjusting time.


Imagining a place in your mind helps yo when it comes time to shoot. If you pass by the same place daily, look at it, think of how you'd capture it without a camera, then stop and try to capture it. I saw a tip about carrying a little cardboard picture frame to look at places through to help you compose a shot. When you know what it is about a scene that makes you want to take a picture, your set up time is much reduced.

If you don't see anything on your regular route, take a detour and pay attention, you can always come back to capture it on a second or third pass. I've passed by the same location multiple times until I finally got the view, angle, lighting, in my head so I could determine what it was I liked when it finally came time to stop the car and shoot the picture.

You have a child, introduce them to nature, they help you discover things you never noticed. Mom and kid photos are always great, fun for the whole family. Unless your wife has told you that she has no interest in nature walks, and that it's selfish of you to go out to go without her and your child, you might be assuming all that.

When you review your photos, really critique them and be honest about your mistakes or what detracted from the vision you had. Also, stick with one lens and camera combination that you know well in various conditions, this will make quick shooting more efficient.


In my desperation, I take a lot of last minute pics of household stuff, and I have plenty of stuff, too much in fact. If you arrange a bunch of stuff almost randomly, and put some front and back lighting on it, you can call it a still-life "Half Eaten Breakfast", "Scene from a Full Dishwasher" or "Laundry Pile at Dusk", the opportunities abound.

there was never enough time until I decided that I would make the time as part of my daily routine.

As he wrote, if you make it part of your schedule, you can find a few minutes. Even if you shoot the same thing for a week, the last shot will be better than the first, and you'll feel like making progress, rather than squeezing out an hour on a weekend and trying to cram it all in.

Good luck, I look forward to seeing your photos!

[BrianR]

I carry around a little notebook and when I have a photographic inspiration, I take a moment to jot notes or draw little diagrams. When I have a few minutes here or there, I'll plan out shots in more depth. When I have a longer stretch of time to dedicate to photography, I have a game plan ready to go. I find this helps maximize my 'photography time'. This is especially handy for macro-type things that might have detailed setups.

Panoguy is dead on about moldy food- this is also a great excuse to not clean out the fridge which should give you more free time. I also collect all manner of odd little objects I plan on photographing one day as time permits, so I'm rarely lacking subjects I at least have some interest in (dried seedpods, insect exoskeletons, vacated wasp nests, or broken shiny mechanical things with interesting parts, etc).

[Ilovemypentax]

If you have skills you can produce in a short time. Start taking your cam wherever you go and keep shooting.

[K-Three]

I carry a small kit of body and a couple of zooms with me everywhere. I do most of my shooting on my commute. Granted, it's on a ferry boat back and forth across Puget Sound, but still, I find seascapes and skies, boats, planes, wildlife, patterns and reflections. The light is different every day, what can i do with it today?
Opportunities are where you find them. If you have camera with you, you can turn opportunity into a photo. Even if it's just your phone camera, learning to see images, and reviewing the results critically is what you need to spend time doing to improve your photography.
You no doubt have some down time in your day, waiting for others, waiting for something to open, getting from point A to point B. Carry a small kit and take photos.
Try to make pictures out of what you see every day. The more time consuming part of photography is processing and evaluating what you have shot. What worked, what didn't. Why it worked or didn't, what could I have done different or better. I find both parts of the process a great distraction from my "normal" work and life. It's therapeutic and relaxing.
As someone who grew up and learned this craft with film, we are now in a great age, once you have the sunk cost of a camera and lenses, it is essentially free to shoot as much as you can. it's easy to throw out the clunkers, re-format the card and go shoot some more.
When I was learning, every press of the shutter cost me more in processing and film.
Enjoy it.

[Zephos]

Life is busy, and hobbies get us out of the "busy-ness" for a short while. That's their value! It might be stamp collecting, skeet shooting, woodworking, competitive ping-pong, or quilting. Heck, for some lucky folks, their hobby is cooking, in which case everyone loves it when they "practice!"

My advice is if you're short on time, don't put it aside, just find a way to get more out of what you have. Macros are great, since you can do them almost anywhere (and you don't need bugs or plants - try looking at moldy food before you toss it!), if you have the right lenses or bellows or adapters. Search for "macros on the cheap" here in the forums! Even just being a camera gearhead like many of us are, is part of the hobby-ness.

Next, I may shoot photos for my income, but I also use photography for meditation... which is when it becomes my "hobby." I read this book (Practice of Contemplative Photography) and it totally changed my view on what's a "good" or even "acceptable" photograph or subject for a photo. It really breaks the act down and makes even 30 minutes a week refreshing. Speaking of which, I go out on photowalks with other photographers (rarely these days, it seems) and that's a way to combine the hobby side of things with being social and going new places.

Reminds me, I should get the Toronto Pentaxians together soon!

Thanks for your advice panoguy! I think I will check out that book. Maybe it can change the way I see things too. I personally love macro photography, partly because it is so easy to find subjects, and I plan on buying the DFA 100 macro as a graduation gift to myself haha (My wife says AFTER I get a job though lol). For now, I think I will try to do some more macro with my 1:2 lenses and pretend they are as nice as that one

[beachgardener]

I think it was in the movie Smoke Smoke (1995) - IMDb where the shop keeper created a photo with his camera set up on the foot path every morning at the same time. Every morning 8am I think it was, the lens facing the same way every time, no matter what was in the scene, the shutter tripped at the same time every morning for years and years and he created photo books, maybe it is the little things in life that can be the most interesting

[Zephos]

To be proficient at anything you must practice. There is a theory that it takes 10,000 hours of concentrated work to be a master at something. Not sure I believe it but it is out there.

I toyed around with photography for years and never IMO improved much. In 2010 I bought a k-x and started shooting regularly, almost every day. Sometimes, a nice walk, or a drive to the mountains or just a couple pictures in the garden. But almost every day. I have a very long way to go to be where I want to be but looking back at images from 2010, 2011 I am embarrassed. That is a good thing, it means I have gotten better.

So, you have a job and you are a full time student. Do you carry the camera all day? Mine is always with me. Even if you don't pull it out imagine taking a picture in your mind. As you walk to school look around and in your mind frame a composition. Maybe you shoot it, maybe there is no time but you can always exercise your eye.

Your photography will not automatically improve when you graduate or when you retire. I can tell you from experience that work, duty, chores, family expand to fill all available time. So thinking after you are done with school you will have more time is an error, it will not happen unless you make it happen.

I started shooting in high school, but I graduated, got a job, got married, had kids and there was never enough time until I decided that I would make the time as part of my daily routine. And that took almost 25 years. Don't wait that long.

Thanks for your advice. To be honest I rarely take my camera with me on my daily routine, partly because I'm afraid of losing it or having it stolen while I'm walking around campus or studying (I have a sling pack for it + my school backpack). Hmm... I think I will try to devise a way to either store it inside my backpack or have it attached somehow. Its a K-50 so I'm sure I could fit it in with a lens or two if I really tried. I guess I just never seriously thought about doing that until now.

---------- Post added 02-29-16 at 09:35 PM ----------

Thanks to all your replies! I can't reply to you all specifically but I feel really inspired by your ideas! Tomorrow I am going to take my camera to school with a single lens and use it as I'm walking to class, etc.

[jatrax]

Tomorrow I am going to take my camera to school with a single lens and use it as I'm walking to class, etc.

It is amazing how much 'down time' you can find if you really think about it. When I take my wife to an appointment, I can sit in the car and wait or I can walk around and take pictures. Grocery store? Lots of cool stuff in the parking lot. Coffee shop? Lunch? You get the idea. And I suspect you are out and about far more than most because of your schedule.

Also, keep in mind you should allow 5 to 10 minutes every night to upload those snaps and study them. Most will just get deleted. But you are practicing. Even if you get only one picture per day, take it home and open it up and look and study it, that is 365 learning experiences every year.

[Zephos]

It is amazing how much 'down time' you can find if you really think about it. When I take my wife to an appointment, I can sit in the car and wait or I can walk around and take pictures. Grocery store? Lots of cool stuff in the parking lot. Coffee shop? Lunch? You get the idea. And I suspect you are out and about far more than most because of your schedule.

Also, keep in mind you should allow 5 to 10 minutes every night to upload those snaps and study them. Most will just get deleted. But you are practicing. Even if you get only one picture per day, take it home and open it up and look and study it, that is 365 learning experiences every year.

Awesome. Thanks for the great advice. I am going to put my camera in my school bag tonight before I go to bed.

[Alex645]

To a large degree in the 'first world', everything is a choice. How much time we commit to and prioritize work, relationships, sleep, eat, play, and photography. Having raised a son and daughter, I can say spend time with them as much as you can, while they still enjoy and crave being with Dad. Having been married and now divorced, I regret and now see that I gave work too much priority and time. Some things must be compromised and some things shouldn't.

But in terms of photography, the easy perspective is that time=results, but if that were true, all the great photographers would have done their best work toward the end of their lives or careers, and that simply is not true. I believe the quality and focus of your time is way more important than the quantity of time.

When I was a full time pro photographer, I derived almost no pleasure or satisfaction in my photography, other than making money with my equipment and improving my technique. I was producing images as a product of what the paying customer, agency, studio, etc. needed.

Now I am paid to teach photography and video. But although my profession is now 'art educator', my personal identity is as an artist that shares my passion for photography with others. All the other art teachers at my school are also practicing artists, but like me, it's not reflected in the time we put into it, as it is our identity. So that it isn't just a delusion, as a minimum, we produce an annual art show at the school to share our work as artists, not as teachers. It's a great motivator to do something new, special, and significant at least once a year.

Between all those things demanding my attention and time, including naps and daydreams, I created an annual field trip (since 2001) where 12-16 students pay for a 3-day photo/video workshop away from home (a short flight to a neighboring island). I and my chaperone-photographer adult assistants are not financially compensated, but the students pay for our expenses. This 3 day window dedicated to travel, photography, smelling the roses and watching the stars, is my photography time. Yes, I still have to wear the teacher hat, but my style is to model to the students what a photographer does, hunts, observes, persists, thinks, and reacts. If they ask for help and advice, I help. If they don't, I leave them alone. I tell them this up front.

Do I wish I could do this for a living and have my 9-5 only 3 days a year? Of course! But as I haven't figured how to get that to happen, I embrace and nurture this 3 day anniversary. There are some awesome photography workshops in your region. Santa Fe, Snowmass, etc.

Another awesome way to improve your photography is to go public. When you know others will view it, your work will step up for the exposure. On the cheap side, you can do that on the PF competitions. Recently my favorite thing is to make a custom photo book. Costco has cheap options, but my favorite is blurb.com.

My son did not want to go to college in Hawaii and needed time off "the rock". So we spent two weeks flying and driving from New York to Ontario to Missouri and Indiana to Colorado, Wyoming, Washington, Idaho, and British Columbia. Damn that was expensive, but he ended up finding a great university, I got to see parts of North America I'd never been to, we had great talks which are rare with teenage boys, AND I made a photo book documenting our trip.

When I was planning the trip, I thought, "this is crazy, this is so expensive, I can't afford this..." After the trip I thought, "why didn't I do this years ago...with my wife, my daughter, just on my own???"

So another suggestion: Make a photo book about anything. Find a theme, like the Bonneville Salt Flats or Mailboxes or secret special places on campus or your favorite hikes in the Rockies. Give yourself a deadline and just chip away. Sorry for the long post, but I think we all can understand your doubts. And it really comes down to Yoda's famous quote.

[JimmyDranox]

Don't let the results, good or bad, to spoil your pleasure of taking the shots, to capture the moments and the feelings. Photography is not only about good images, but is more about images which makes us feel the pleasure of living. Is about remembering moments, places, people.

And be patient with yourself.

[Rondec]

I think the biggest thing is not just to take lots of photos (although that helps), but to pay attention to mistakes or areas that you could improve. Be honest with yourself if you missed focus, or if you could have frame things better, or if you included distracting elements in your photos. The nicest thing about digital photography as compared to film is that you have an EXIF that tells you your settings and you can see that for some reason you were shooting at iso 6400 in the middle of the day or had your aperture set at f1.4.

As time goes by, you will think less about the nuts and bolts and technical aspects of photography and more about the composition, subject, and vision you have for a given photo. But it does take effort to get there.