Every photographer will eventually experience a time when they’re just not feeling very creative. You may feel uninspired, frustrated with your work, or just stuck in a rut.

When you face a situation like this, there are several things you can do. In this article, we’ll look at 6 productive ways to move forward, as well as some ideas of things you can easily photograph to get your creative juices flowing again.

1. Work on Editing Old Photos

If you’re like many photographers, you enjoy actually taking the photos more than you enjoy editing them. As a result, most photographers have a lot of photos on their hard drive that have never been processed.

If you’re struggling and you don’t feel like taking photos right now, one option is to use your time to go back and work on those photos that you’ve already taken.

Even if you don’t have any photos that are waiting to be processed, you probably have some old photos that could be improved.

I know when I was first learning how to edit digital photos I went a little overboard at times, and I think that is pretty common. I’ve gone back and re-processed some of the better ones and found that the results are much more pleasing.

If you need some help with post processing, be sure to check out the Decoding Lightroom video course.

2. Try a Different Type of Art

How about dedicating some time to other artistic activities that may help to restore your creativity? You could draw, paint, play music, work on graphic design, or some other type of art. Taking some time to expand your horizon could be just what you need.

3. Read a Photography Book or Magazine

Books and magazines can be extremely helpful for learning, improving your skills, and for finding inspiration. There are books on every aspect of photography that you can imagine, and magazines are also a good choice if you’re looking for something shorter.

You may already have some books or magazines at your house, and most libraries have a decent selection of photography books as well. Another option is to download ebooks. You can find a number of free photography ebooks at Amazon, and many more are available at very reasonable prices.

4. Take a Break

Maybe you just need some time away from photography. You may find that taking a break will help you to come back refreshed and motivated to get back into it later.

Sometimes, as creative types, we need some time away from the camera to get a new perspective and find inspiration. That is completely normal and it happens with most creatives, from a painter needing some time away from the canvas or a guitarist wanting a break from music for a few days.

5. Push Yourself

How about giving yourself a challenge that may help you to break out of that creative rut? Instead of avoiding photography, you could choose some sort of challenge that gives you some newfound energy and motivation.

There are plenty of different things you could do, including:

• Limit yourself to a single lens
• Try a new type of photography
• Take a walk and photograph whatever you come across
• Use your smartphone camera

6. Things to Photograph:

If you want to break out of your creative rut by finding something to photograph, there are plenty of options. While you can choose anything that you want, here are some options that may be accessible.

Your Family

Your family members can be excellent subjects for your photography. Not only will you get some practice, but you’ll also come away with photos of the people you love. If you have kids, chances are, they are among your favorite subjects to photograph.

You can either take the photos around your house or head to a specific place. I enjoy taking my kids to the park and getting portraits in a nice setting like the woods or beside a lake.

Flowers

Flowers make a great subject for photos, and they’re easy to find. You may have flowers in your yard. If not, you can head to a local park. Botanical gardens and arboretums are also great places to go. This page has a huge list of botanical gardens organized by location. You can probably find one within a reasonable distance from your home.

Another option is to go to the store and spend a few dollars on flowers. Bring them home, put them in a vase, and work on some still life photographs.

Nature

You don’t have to go to an epic location in order to come away with beautiful landscape or nature photos.

In fact, more common or everyday locations will challenge you a little bit more in terms of creating compositions that work. All you need to do is visit a local park or public area that you can explore, and photograph whatever you come across. Opportunities are certainly easier to find in rural areas, but even urban areas have parks that can be useful for photographing nature.

Urban Scenes

Instead of photographing nature, how about heading to a city to photograph an urban landscape? You can take a walk in the city and photograph the buildings and people that you come across.

Yourself

Another option is to take some self-portraits. Put your camera on a tripod and use the timer or remote, and practice taking photos of yourself. Self-portraits can be a great way to challenge yourself, and you won’t even need to go anywhere or rely on anyone else.

If you’ve been feeling a lack of creativity, hopefully these tips will help you to use your time productively and bounce back to regain that creativity.