We all want to be better photographers, but rarely is the path to accomplishing that plainly obvious, and it can be easy to make unconscious mistakes that stop us from reaching the next level. If you feel like you are a bit stuck in a rut, check out this insightful video essay that features an experienced photographer discussing five common reasons photographers fail to improve and how to break free and take the next step forward.
Coming to you from Alister Benn of Expressive Photography, this excellent video essay discusses five common reasons why photographers fail to improve. One that I think we can be particularly prone to these days is becoming overly reliant on external validation. Of course, if you are a professional, you need to be concerned with what clients think. However, if you do photography for your own enjoyment, the only person whose approval you need to be concerned with is yourself. Seeking external validation will only lead you to constantly chase trends and to try to craft your imagery to maximize ultimately meaningless things like Instagram likes, which, in turn, will lead your unique creative voice falling by the wayside, which is a shame, especially since exploring that voice is why most of us picked up a camera in the first place. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Benn.
#7. Quit watching and get out and shoot.