Try setting half an hour a day for your creative life. If you did this everyday for one year, you’d give yourself 182.5 hours, roughly the equivalent of 4.6 work weeks. As you can see, it really adds up.

Many find it helps to pay yourself first in the morning. Get up early and get more time for yourself. One advantage to setting time aside in the evening is that the amount of time you spend can often be extended. Try both. Monitor your energy, Strike a balance between what’s practical and what’s ideal for you.

Set up a space that’s ready for you to be creative (even if this is a User setting on a portable computer) and keep it organized, so you’re ready to go when you get your time and you don’t waste it organizing.

Finally, when you’re able, take a trip for a long weekend or week of total immersion. Trips can add many more valuable hours to your creative life, as well as new stimulation, new material, and a fresh perspective.

The biggest challenges are starting and sticking to a plan. Start now. You’re sure to miss a day here and there, just don’t make it a habit. Instead, make a habit of taking some time for yourself.

Listen to more creativity tips here.

Learn more in my creativity workshops.

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Recently, I spoke with Scott Sheppard on NIK Radio. Scott wanted to talk about how to avoid “Photographic A.D.D.”. He asked, “So what do you do?” I replied, “You have two choices. You can spray and pray. Or, you can look before you leap.”  I elaborate in our wide ranging discussion on how to focus your creative vision.

Listen to our conversation on NIK Radio.

Find more audio inspiration on my website.

Learn more about creativity in my digital photography workshops.

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Nik Radio

August 21, 2010 | Leave a Comment

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Visit Nik Radio and listen to advice and inspiration from top pros using Nik software; the growing list of offerings includes Tony Corbel, Moose Peterson, Rick Sammon, Tony Sweet, Vincent Versace, and many others.

Want more inspiration?

Read selections from 42 conversations with photographers here.

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Chris Orwig, Deke McClelland and I talk about the artist’s life.

We all agree. Creativity can be taught. We can all learn to be more creative.

Listen to the conversation here.

Learn to be more creative with my free Lessons.

Learn to be more creative in my digital photography workshop here.

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SCAMPER

April 8, 2010 | Leave a Comment

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SCAMPER

Having trouble coming up with new ideas? Get thousands of ideas with one word. Try SCAMPER. In 1939 advertising executive Alex Osborn, “the father of brainstorming”, first proposed a set of nine strategies for creative thinking, seven of which were later rearranged by Bob Eberle into the mnemonic SCAMPER.

S   Substitute

C   Combine

A   Adapt

M   Modify

P   Put to Other Uses

E   Eliminate

R   Rearrange

What are the other two missing words?

Minify, which I like to think of as expand and contract or put another way reduce and enlarge.

Reverse, which I think is the most powerful tool of all. It’s typified by the 180 degree rule. Do the opposite.

The underlying assumption with SCAMPER is that new ideas are based on old ones. This may not always be the case, but often it is. To use SCAMPER, you have to start with something.

You can use SCAMPER as a list of questions that can be used to generate new ideas. Simply ask, “Can I ____ something?” inserting the words SCAMPER represents one at a time. Next, you might try using two words at a time. Later try three. Classically, the best solutions are the simplest, but not always.

Find over 20 creativity tips here.

Learn more in my workshops.

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Jimi DeRouen (Rocky Nook) talks with Harris Fogel (Mac Edition Radio) about the creation of and editorial concerns of Rocky Nook books in this 10 minute interview.

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Kathy Ryan (New York Times Magazine) talks with Harris Fogel about curating exhibits for the New York Photo Festival in this 20 minute interview.

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Daniel Power (PowerHouse books) talks with Harris Fogel (Mac Edition Radio) about the creation of the New York Photo Festival in this 14 minute interview.

Category: Audio


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Scott Sheppard and I talk about prints, the fine art market, editions, pricing, licensing, and much, much, more in this informative interview.

Listen to the podcast here.

Find it on iTunes. Search for Inside Analog Photo Radio.

Find Inside Analog Radio online here.


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Identify and Isolate the Variables

In any situation, it helps to know what elements you’re dealing with and what each of those elements contributes to the mix. With that information you can get results you desire more predictably and exert more precise control over the process. This idea is routinely applied in scientific fields where the benefits are clear for all to see. Not solely applicable to areas that are highly technical, it is equally applicable in any creative endeavor. Being analytical is one mode (to be listed among others) of creativity. The art is in knowing when to apply it, not being limited to using it exclusively or avoiding it altogether.

Find more Creativity resources here.

Stimulate your creativity in my workshops.

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Look at Things from Many Perspectives

One of the hallmarks of creativity is the ability to look at things from many perspectives, both conventional and unconventional. Often taking a different tack when engaging a problem reveals dimensions, relationships, insights, and solutions that might otherwise remain hidden. If you’re looking for something new, in order to find it, you have to look in new ways. Spend a little time exploring your options so you can be sure you devote yourself to the best approach available.

Find more Creativity resources here.

Stimulate your creativity in my workshops.

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Put It In Writing

May 15, 2009 | 1 Comment

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Put It In Writing

Writing helps clarify thought. Find the words to describe your images and you’ll not only be able to make your work clearer to others, you’ll understand it better yourself. Use one word, one phrase, one sentence, one paragraph, and one page. This sounds simpler than it is. Take the time you need to find the right words. The next time you find yourself called upon to describe your work, you’ll have the words to do so at the tip of your tongue.

Find more Creativity resources here.

Stimulate your creativity in my workshops.

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Evaluating Success

May 13, 2009 | 1 Comment

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Evaluating Success

Specify your standards for success to help you realize how far you’ve come and when you’ve arrived. Identify your standards before you begin projects. When you see your criteria, you may refine them, setting an even better course. With the clarity that comes from creating and organizing a list, you’ll be more likely to set an effective action plan to achieve each goal. New ideas will emerge!
Here are a few tips to setting standards for success.

1 – Keep it simple. You’ll understand your standards better and be able to share them with others more easily.
2 – Make it measurable. You’ll be able to make more objective evaluations during and after your efforts.
3 – Seek support. Collaborate with others who have additional skills. They’ll be able to help you accomplish specific tasks more successfully. They may also provide you with useful feedback.
4 – Celebrate success. Before moving on, enjoy the satisfaction of a job well done and reenergize, both with yourself and with others.
5 – Review and revise. Take time to evaluate your progress both during and after a project. Course correction is both the secret to getting there and to going farther.

Identifying your standards for success doesn’t keep you from exceeding them (quite the opposite), it will help you find useful perspectives and enjoy the successes you have achieved.

Find more Creativity resources here.

Stimulate your creativity in my workshops.

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Take A Break

May 12, 2009 | Leave a Comment

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Take a Break
Stuck? Take a break!
When the solution to a problem eludes you … Go for coffee. Take a walk. Take a nap. Sleep on it. Sometimes, you may need to do this for many days in a row.
Often, taking a break works best after you’ve done the necessary preparation or research on a given problem. Get the known (what you know and what others know about a particular challenge) out on the table and into the light of the day. Finding the know will help you find the unknown. You’ll identify all the involved components and become more aware of what’s missing. But, the unknown usually won’t come to you when you are in an analytic state. It usually comes whey you are in a receptive state. Taking a break creates a space that you will fill naturally. Nature abhors a vacuum. Use this to your advantage.
Really let go. Get the problem completely off of your mind (which means out of your field of vision). If you find you can’t stop your mind, do something else with your full attention. You may be so fixated on a problem that to get your mind off it, you have to make yourself do something else that’s entertaining, exciting, or challenging.
You might think letting go is a sign of a lack of commitment or a form of quitting. It’s not. Many times it’s an absolutely necessity. It’s a way of taking a necessary rest. At some point, everyone and everything needs rest – even your mind.
Once you’ve had the experience of benefitting from letting go, doing it again will become easier for you.

Learn to be more creative.

Energize your creative life.

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Learn to Earn

April 14, 2009 | Leave a Comment

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Learn to earn. The more you know the more opportunities lie before you. The more you know the more productive you are. The more you know the better your product becomes. The more you know the more valuable you are. Investing in your knowledge base and skill set is the best investment you can make. Make time to learn. Learn after you wake up. Get up early and spend an hour inspiring yourself and satisfying your curiosity. Continue learning by doing new things during the day. Learn before you go to sleep. Go to bed early and read or watch educational enriching material. Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers suggests it takes 10,000 hours to become a master in a given field. You can’t make10,000 hours go faster, or pass them without interruption, but you can get to there one hour at a time. And you don’t have to spend 10,000 hours to see immediate benefits. Sometimes all it takes to transform ordinary into extraordinary is one good idea. But that one good idea won’t find you. You’ve got to find it. Make time to explore the hidden potentials in any situation and in yourself. Make time to learn. You’ll start earning immediately.

Listen to more creativity tips here.

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At the Palm Springs Photo Festival, Chris Orwig took a walk with me and we talked about a life in the arts. He’s been asking many other artists the same questions.

What inspires you?

What makes a photograph good?

What character qualities should the photographer nuture and develop?

Advice for the aspiring photographer?

Seriously consider answering the questions yourself.

Answering questions like this can energize and focus your creative life.

You can listen to my responses on his blog here.

Check out Chris’ work here.

Check out my workshop Illuminating Creativity.

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Be Open to New Opportunities to Learn

Receptivity is an essential quality necessary for creative success. There are many kinds of receptivity and many ways to become more receptive. Versatility increases the number of opportunities available to you. Practice makes success more likely.

While you can prepare for success and increase the chances that success will happen, you can’t force a breakthrough. Breakthroughs are often unexpected and come in unexpected forms.

Highly creative people are open to new opportunities. They understand that being open minded means being open to different opportunities to learn.

Don’t pass up opportunities to learn. Be open to new opportunities. And realize, they may come from unexpected sources at unexpected times.

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Rule Your Tools, Don’t Let Your Tools Rule You

“When you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” Beware of tools driving your process. Relying on the same tools is predictable and can be efficient; but it can also be limiting. Be aware that introducing new tools into your process can be creatively stimulating. The challenge is to know when to rely on the tried and true and when to try something new. To further your growth and still be productive in your chosen areas of concern you need to do both. Major corporations allocate resources to research and development. You should too. Make an action plan to consistently try new things, making sure that you don’t allot so much time to exploration that you become scattered and end up not producing work or producing nothing but novelty. You’ll see benefits from your time spent if you select experiments that have a higher likelihood of success and are aligned with your personal goals. Make a list of possibilities. Rank them. And get started with the highest priority you’ve identified.

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Make a Bucket List

February 8, 2008 | Leave a Comment

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Make a Bucket List

Currently in theaters there’s a movie entitled The Bucket List. A bucket list is a list of all the things you’d like to do before you die. Have you ever made a “bucket list”?

How many people do? Those who do, usually do it far to late. It’s not macabre; it’s actually enjoyable and extremely useful.

How many people actually follow through and do one or more items on the list? There are several things you can do to make the list more useful. 1 – Prioritize it. Find the most important things on the list. Find the things you can accomplish readily and with the least amount of effort. 2 – Make a plan. List the steps necessary to accomplish specific items. (You might do this for all of the items, but just doing it for the most important and easiest will get you started.) 3 – Act on it. 4 – Repeat the process.

How does this apply to creativity? You can make a bucket list with a specific theme – your creative life.

So what’s stopping you? After all, it’s your life. Take an active hand in living it your way.

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Passive and Active States Are Equally Important

The origin of ideas is one of the great mysteries of the mind. Though they can identify many of the processes involved, classic patterns, and mechanisms for triggering them, modern psychology and even the great spiritual traditions cannot fully explain them. It’s said that Mozart and Shakespeare wrote their masterpieces fully formed without editing. Their art was in them already. All they had to do was listen. And write. This was as much a mystery to them as it is to us.

If mystery isn’t present your process isn’t inspired – a living breathing thing. Mystery opens the way for discovery, insight, and breakthroughs.

So, how do you develop what you can’t define? Celebrate it. Cultivating curiosity will help you become ready for discovery.

Attention reveals. Non-judgementally, be aware of your process as it unfolds. You may even want to make note of essential components and processes as you become aware of them. Become aware of and develop your awareness of your creative process. Make a lifelong study of this profound mystery that you are a part of.

“Being” receptive may not seem like “doing” anything but there are times when the most important part of your creative process.

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