TRANSCRIPT:

Welcome to Tyler’s Tips. Today I’m gonna talk about how we can use curiosity to drive our storytelling. So we have a powerful tool in curiosity. Often when we’re trying to create photographs we get lost in a lot of the technical details. We start thinking too much about the composition, we start thinking about leading lines, or the lighting or this or that or the lens or the camera, it goes on and on. It’s a very technical endeavor. And that part of the process is great fun, and wonderful challenges live in that space. But it’s easy to allow those technical challenges, and some of the creatively technical challenges, it’s not just technology but figuring out how we’re gonna light a subject. Or how are we gonna compose it. Those things can distract us from the story. Because at the end of the day, in my opinion, success in a photograph lives and dies with its ability to tell a story. And connect emotionally with whoever it is you’re trying to connect with through that photo.

So curiosity, a very wise friend once told me pivot to curiosity. When in doubt, pivot to curiosity. And I love that turn a phrase. And I encourage you to think along those lines when you’re creating a photograph. Especially if you find yourself in that spot where you’re like I can’t quite figure it out. I can’t find it, I’m not feeling the mojo in this photo. We’ve all been there. In that moment, if we can pivot to curiosity, go back to what is it that’s interesting about this? Why is this even engaging? Why are we here? And using that curiosity to drive us deeper into the idea. What’s cool about this thing we’re shooting? And then come back around to that technical creative side, that nurturing and feeding that curiosity bone in our brains. Well we don’t have any bones in our brains, but you know what I mean, is a very powerful tool in helping keep us focused on the story. And helping us find the path that we need to walk with our photograph to make that story come alive. To share with somebody else.

There’s my Tyler’s tip for today. If you have a little bit of a stumble when you’re shooting, and you’re not able to find the mojo, pivot to curiosity. And dig a little deeper. I hope that was helpful, and thank you for your time. As always, if you have a challenge or an idea that you’d like to have me discuss in a future episode, please go ahead and shoot me an e-mail and I’ll work it in. Until next time.