The Creation of the Photographic Idea (Part 2)

Following my recent post of Food for thought - The Creation of the Photographic Idea (Part 1), Halsman also outlined a series of stimulation's a photographer can put to use and help generate creative ideas for any specific photographic project.

1. Stimulation by Brainstorming

It is simply the method of Brainstorming; either individually or collectively within a group of your peers. You can easily discuss or be open to discuss possible ideas or generate new outcomes from that original idea. You may find that it is easier to Mind Map your ideas.

2. Stimulation by Memory

Halsman states "the roots of most of our ideas draw from the great reservoir of our memory". That being said when we read; watch movies; listen to music we enrich our possibilities as artists and humans. However when we try and put our own memory to use we often can't avoid imitation. There are two types of imitation. (1) When imitation means solely copying someone else's work (it is wrong and becomes worthless) and (2) when it creates stimulation which can help develop something that exists and adds elements of the 'something new'. As long as the person adds his or her own values and beliefs it then becomes part of the creative process.

3. Stimulation by Knowledge

In step (2) of how memory can trigger our imagination, our mind can contain different information of knowledge. It can reference to previous outcomes and potential create possible predictions of known effects. This could be simply as reading the scene in front of you and how you tackle the problem, use your own photographic knowledge to help stimulate and create your "vision".

4. Stimulation by an Object

As photographers we often see and view more then most people. We are constantly on the lookout for something interesting however these objects not only make photographs more intereesting but can also stimulate our creative ideas to produce something highly unusual. If you have such an object...give some actual thought to it.

5. Stimulation by the Photograph itself

It is quite common that the frequent source of most inspiration is from the creation of the final photograph. Most of the time we comment only when we actually view the finished file or image noting that 'I should of done it this way'. The obvious advice for this point is to look for stimulation before it is too late. Visualise the image in all its details, you may not have all of them yet but work out what you want to achieve and the considerations for this. It often creates something new and or different.

6 Self-stimulation.

"The path of the impulse is directed by associations". The more logical our thinking, the more patterns in terms of our associations become established means or solutions. These often become more and more predictable and less natural. When we aren't typically faced with the problem at hand we often leave it be. Whereas if we are constantly faced with the problem we are constantly stimulating...the what, the why, the how.