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Developing A Creative Sense

Jerry IntervalAccording to Ken Webb, M. Photog., Cr., creative sense requires a mere one-inch journey form the left side of our brain to the right side; yet at times it seems to be a trip of a million miles. If you can be motivated to make that journey, it can be worth the effort in every way.

Running a photography studio is primarily a left-brain function, so we have to challenge ourselves to exercise our creative vision and move to the right brain lobe where we can discover profound creative resources. Give yourself assignments as pure exercises to strengthen your creative visualization.

A concept piece is a very abstract mental thumbnail. Sometimes you can develop a rough mental image based on a song lyric, scripture phrase from the Bible, or a metaphoric phrase that comes to mind. Just dreaming up metaphors in itself is good creative exercise.

On his hard drive, Ken keeps a folder called “Elements.” Inside this folder, he keeps five other folders called:

  • Places: Landscapes, waterscapes, spacescapes, artificial environments, etc.
  • People: Adults, children, tribal, businesspeople, homeless, teens, etc.
  • Things: Objects, trees, clocks, signs, shapes, rainbows, etc.
  • Animals: Birds, reptiles, pets, horses, etc.
  • Grids & Textures: Perspective grids and textures found in the real world (e.g., peeling paint, gravel, concrete with cracks, etc.)

Going through the basics of visual grammar, we have the Seven Cs of Artistic Expression. These are the foundations of visual expression and the most important element of anything created.

  • Concept: The idea, the seed, the thought, the story
  • Components: Each visual element that makes up the whole story
  • Composition: The visual rhythm that moves the viewers eye where you want it to go
  • Center of Interest: Most important—where you want the attention
  • Contrast: The most effective tool in attracting the eye to an exact point of interest
  • Color: The emotional “harmony” of visual music—adds feeling and overall expression
  • Creativity: The realization that there’s no merit in doing things the same way that you’ve always done them. Arnold Newman once said, “Great photographers are not the products of great cameras or lenses. They are the products of great minds, hearts, and stomachs.”

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