In a lot of art forms, it is said that by restricting your resources in whatever craft you dabble in, you can force your creativity to spark. In photography, it can be doing something as simple as only shooting in black and white, or only using a specific focal length lens. While I see how this approach can force you to think outside the box, I went with a broader approach - simple isolation.

This New Year’s Eve, I went out on a solo adventure. I packed up enough gear for a few nights, and drove out into the desert to shoot what inspired me. But instead of focusing on what was in front of camera, my thoughts went into a frenzy of interpreted energy. The experience revitalized some of the ambitions I had when I first picked up a camera. Sort of like a reboot for my eyes and mind.

I was mostly limited to what light was available to me, and if I wasn’t recording a video, or taking a picture, I was getting lost in the vast openness of the desert and cacti, or staring deep into the shadows within the crevices of the nearby mountain. These experiences can unlock parts of your mind that aren’t used to being active, and provide you with an outlet of energy you forgot was there.

That “wonder”, as I call it, is the same as it was when we were young. When everything was new to us. When we had to use creativity to figure out the unknown. As adults, we think we know it all…we want to know it all, but to reinvigorate that mindset of wonder is a jump start to creativity that has sat idle for so long.

So get out of your comfort zone. Be vulnerable to uncertainty. Let go of your control. And let your thoughts wander…

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Inspiration through Isolation