One of the most popular debates going on right now in the world of photography is the question of "Can you teach vision and creativity?" A few books have been written on the subject, including one by Bryan F. Peterson called "Learning to See Creatively". By his book, Peterson is obviously a believer that one can be influenced to see things in our world to enhance one's vision. I don't know exactly where I fall on this subject, but I do know that I have grown in my ability to look beyond what is there and find more interesting things to photograph.A great way to change the way you see things is to learn about some of the basic elements of design, such as line, shape, color, texture, etc. Looking for these things in any environment can open up to a whole new world of photography for you.
I recently took a trip to Gettysburg National Park with a group of students and a teachers. One of my goals was to find a moving photo that spoke of patriotism and defined freedom. However, in the midst of the trip I found this assignment not suitable for my mood at the time and wound up doing just the opposite. My new goal was to capture elements of the oft-photographed Gettysburg which are not usually seen. To do this, I had to force myself to look at a scene and break it down. To look at the lines and the shapes I saw. To analyze the color and mood and determine if a photo might look better in black and white than in color. These thoughts helped me to take photos much differently than if I were just trying to take pictures of Gettysburg.
You may believe that you are not creative, or maybe you struggle to look at things in a new way. A little study and education in this area can go a long way for helping you obtain more ability to "seeing". For your next photo excursion, try looking at things in a new way, change your perspective, look for colors and textures. These things can really change the game for you and your camera.
