Instagram & How To Take A Great Shit

I've spent quite a bit of time using Instagram lately — a mobile photo sharing app, kinda' like Twitter but for photos — but I've found that sometimes typing on the iPhone can be a bit of a challenge.

It's not that I have especially fat fingers — if anything they're quite slender and girlish — it's just that my mind usually works at least five times faster than my fingers, which stumble all over the keyboard like a drunk on Sunday. Throw in the iPhone's tiny keys, slippery screen and temperamental autocorrect feature and I have all sorts of problems. But the one that seems to pop up the most often on Instagram as I comment on photos is what I like to call the 'Shit Shot Dilemma'.

You see 'shot' is a word I use a lot. "Great shot." "Beautiful shot." "WONDERFUL shot!" But sitting right there next to 'o' is its good buddy 'i', ever lurking, always waiting for my sloppy finger-work to come calling. And so it goes. "Great shit." "Beautiful shit." "WONDERFUL shit!"

Dang it. It happens to me all the time. But it took me a while to notice. In fact, in my early Instagram days, before I wrote much or commented at all, someone left a comment on my photo: "Nice shit," she said. Hmm. Well said, I thought. Anyway I hope you like the shit above.

---

Image by Lachlan Payne Photography.

Advice For Aspiring Photographers

Photographers can be a precious bunch, sometimes. 

Take the guy, for example, who was reluctant to offer a friend and colleague of mine assisting work for fear that he would only take jobs away from him in the future. Sad, but true, and stories like that are commonplace, so I was pleasantly surprised when I stumbled upon this article where 35 photographers shared their advice for young, aspiring photographers.

I recommend the read, though I know it's a long one, so I've pulled out my three favourite pieces of advice for you here.

"Give it all you got for at least 5 years and then decide if you got what it takes. Too many great talents give up at the very beginning."

— Carl De Keyzer

"Avoid all photo schools and courses."
— Thomas Hoepker 

"If you become a photographer you will do a lot of walking so buy good shoes."
— David Hurn 

You can download a PDF of the article here.

---

Image by Martin Gommel.

29 (Or Less) Ways To Stay Creative

I love lists.

So it was with great delight that I stumbled across this video from Get Out The Box listing 29 ways to stay creative.

1. Make lists
2. Carry a notebook everywhere
3. Try free writing
4. Get away from the computer
5. Quit beating yourself up
6. Take breaks
7. Sing in the shower
8. Drink coffee
9. Listen to new music
10. Be open
11. Surround yourself with creative people
12. Get feedback
13. Collaborate
14. Don't give up
15. Practice, practice, practice
16. Allow yourself to make mistakes
17. Go somewhere new
18. Count your blessings
19. Get lots of rest
20. Take risks
21. Break the rules
22. Don't force it
23. Read a page of the dictionary
24. Create a framework
25. Stop trying to be someone else's perfect
26. Got an idea? Write it down
27. Clean your workspace
28. Have fun
29. Finish something

But let's be honest — who has the time to do all these things when we're so busy trying to be creative? Not me.

So, in order to make your life easier, I'm going to suggest combining a few, or even skipping the non-essential ones, in order to save time and be more productive.

• To begin with, if you don't bother buying that notebook (#2), then you won't have to make lists (#1), write for free (#3) or write ideas down (#26). Time is money and you just saved yourself a bunch of both.
• Next, why waste precious time singing in the shower (#7) when you can combine it with #11 (surround yourself with creative people) and shower with creative people? Streamlining.
• Still need more time? Quit beating yourself up (#5) — collaborate with others (#13) and have them do it for you. Outsourcing.
• But there's more you can do. Embrace #6 (take breaks), #22 (don't force it) and #25 (stop trying to be somebody's else's perfect) by not trying too hard to complete the rest of the list.
• And finally, affirm the spirit of #21 (break the rules) by breaking rule #14 (don't give up) and just give up entirely.

Congratulations, your productivity just went through the roof and you learned how to be creative.