I’ve always found when I don’t know how to begin a difficult task or approach a complex issue, a good way to get started is to make a list. The goal of the activity is really not to create a list, but to give some structure to my thinking so that I can brainstorm on related ideas without worrying about how they affect each other. I find that by just listing ideas that come to mind, I can move on to other ideas without getting “rat-holed” by one of them.
Once I have all the ideas I feel like adding to my list, I can then arrange the list by some criteria I feel may be useful, such as by my interest in the topics, or the dependences they have with one another, or how easy (or difficult) they may be to learn, or my level of readiness to learn them, or by whatever other criteria I feel inclined to use. When the list-making and arranging is complete, I usually find I have a much clearer idea of how to begin the task or approach the issue.
In my pursuit of an individual photographic style, I found I’m circling around the whole experience of photography and becoming overwhelmed by the numerous facets I find interesting and wish to explore. I need a clear point on which to focus, and a place to begin that focus from. That realization lead me to create this blog as a place to explore what it means to be a photographer. Now that I have the blog up, here’s my first list–a list of lists that I’m interested in creating.
List of List Topics
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Reasons I’m interested in becoming a photographer
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Ideas around developing a personal “style”
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Subjects I’m interested in
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My goals as a photographer
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Things I’d like to do with my photographs
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Skills I’d like to develop
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Ideas I’d like to explore
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Unanswered questions I have
I’ve already begun creating lists for some of these topics. Once those are complete enough, I’ll post them and choose one or two to work on. At least, that’s my plan for today.
Photographership 