Are your photos looking a little tired? Dale Morris shares seven tips to help you boost your creativity and spice up your images.
Ok, you love photography (you wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t) and you love going out and taking images of things. It could be wildlife or buildings that tickle your fancy, or perhaps you lean towards landscapes and people? But are your photographs looking (how can I say this tactfully?) all a bit 'samey'? You are obeying the rules of composition and getting the exposures in order, but you’re not producing anything that’s particularly original.
You have portraits of elephants from your last trip to Africa, a lovely sunset over Uluru, a pretty girl on the beach and some snow-capped peaks. Maybe there’s even a picture or two of a bird in mid flight. That’s all great but perhaps it’s time to try something different – to start pushing your creative boundaries?
Next time, don’t settle for the images you usually shoot. Why not look for something new and atypical instead. It may be the shadows cast by a crowd of people on a busy street at sunset, the curl of a flower petal, the reflections from a pool of water or the creases around an old man’s eyes.
You should still be aware of the general rules of composition – ‘rule of thirds’, leading lines, patterns, textures and shapes – but keep an eye out for more appealing and unusual angles. Going for unusual or artistic shots can be a risky business, but for those who dare, the rewards can be fantastic. Your photo albums become far more varied, you begin noticing details in the world you may not have seen before. You may just find that taking photos becomes more fun too.
So, what should you be looking for? Here are some tips to help you add some interest to your next photo shoot…
01 PICK OUT THE DETAILS
Instead of seeing the whole of the subject , take a moment to look for an interesting segment and that will make for a pleasing image on its own. If you have a zoom lens scan over the scene until you find something pleasing. Macro lenses are also great for picking out details.
Sometimes it’s good to leave it to viewers to
fill in the blanks. Even when presented with just a small fraction of
the larger subject matter it’s easy to work out that this is a photo of
an elephant. In this shot I decided to go for an abstract image, trying
my best to obey the rule of thirds. Nikon D200, 400mm, f/4 @ 1/160s, ISO
640. Photo by Dale R Morris.
02 PATTERNS
Patterns make for interesting photos. Look for the stripes of a zebra, the shape of a bird’s feathers, the symmetry of a flower petal or the spiral of a curled millipede. A pattern may be as complex as a spider’s web or as simple as the sunlight reflected off the water’s surface.
Fern heads always make for simple and striking images. There’s
something about a spiral that catches the eye. The use of a wide
aperture has blurred the background so that the simple fern head becomes
the hero of the image. Nikon D100, 100mm, f/3.5 @ 1/180s, ISO 400. Photo by Dale R Morris.
03 BE ABSTRACT
Sometimes a photo is made interesting merely by the fact that the person looking at it does not have a clue what it is. As long as the composition is pleasing to the eye, an abstract image can work fantastically well, especially when displayed next to a standard picture of the subject. Again, look for patterns and textures and eye-catching lines or the simplicity of a single pleasing shape. 
Although this is clearly a picture of a millipede, the attraction of
this particular image is the spiral shape. Repeating patterns, spirals
and symmetry are common in nature, especially at a macro level. Open
your eyes to a smaller world and you will soon find all sorts of
interesting photographic subjects. Nikon D100, 100m, f/18 @ 1/60s, ISO
400, flash. Photo by Dale R Morris.
04 REFLECTIONS
There’s something rather nice about the way light and form are reflected from water, especially when there is symmetry involved. Alternatively, why not try taking a photo of just a reflection (cutting out the main subject) You may find that your results will be both pleasing, abstract and unusual.
This scene caught my eye because of the simplicity and symmetry of
the patterns in the water. Reflections can often make for attractive and
somewhat abstract images. Nikon D200, 11mm, f/4.5 @ 1/125s, ISO 320.
Graduated ND filter used on the sky. Photo by Dale R Morris.
05 MOVEMENT
While photographers mostly aim to shoot sharp, crisp images, some subjects work really well with a hint of blur – just enough to add a sense of movement. Try using a tripod with a slow shutter speed (from 1/30s to several seconds) to photograph a person jogging, long grass blowing in the wind, or cars on a highway. Another tactic is to hand hold the camera and ‘pan’ in time with your subject’s movements. If you get it right, the subject should be discernible (if not sharp) but the background will be blurred, conveying a sense of motion. Neutral Density (ND) filters can be useful for slow-shutter-speed shoots. By reducing the amount of light, ND filters let you access slower shutter speeds than usual.
This image was taken at sunset. A slight breeze caused the grass to
move. A low-angle photograph with an intentionally slow shutter speed
created this simple image. Nikon D200, 400mm, f/4 @ 1/20s, ISO 320. Photo by Dale R Morris.
06 UNUSUAL BACKGROUNDS
Be on the lookout for unusual or plain backgrounds that can lend your image a canvas-like quality and help the subject stand out boldly. With macro shots, why not bring along a selection of coloured or white cards or even photographs that can be placed behind the subject and used just like a theatrical backdrop?
The startling colour and shape of this unusual sea worm are
highlighted by the simple white background. To get this shot I placed
the worm into a fish tank lined with white plastic. Nikon D200, 90mm,
f14 @ 1/160s. Photo by Dale R Morris.
07 TAKE A FLIGHT
If you ever get the chance to take a ride in an ultralight or hot air balloon make sure you take your camera along. Aerial photography can yield amazing results, simply because the perspective is so unusual and not what we are used to seeing. Be aware though that vibrations in aircraft can cause camera shake – use a shutter speed faster than 1/250s and try not to lean on the airframe.
This is the Okavango Delta in Botswana taken through the window of an aeroplane. You often find abstract and attractive patterns in landscapes, especially when seen from above. Fast shutter speeds are needed in aerial photography to compensate for movements and the vibration of engines. A polarising filter was used to cut out some of the reflections on the window through which I was shooting. Nikon D200, 45mm, f/4.5 @ 1/750s, ISO 400. Photoshop for curves and colour saturation. Photo by Dale R Morris.
Article first published in Australian Photography + digital magazine, January 2013.