Tips + Techniques


6 Ways for Photographers to Inspire Creative Energy in Isolation

April 17, 2020

By Jasmin Neidhart

© Flora & Grace

Jasmin Neidhart will be a panelist on our upcoming webinar, Creativity in Quarantine—Friday, April 24, 12:00-12:30 p.m. EDT—with fellow 30 Rising Star alumni/WPPI speakers Quyn Duong and Caroline Tran. Together, they’ll talk about motivating creative energy, productivity, sanity and community connection, and they’ll answer your questions. Save your seat and join the conversation!

Living a life full of inspiration and imagination, and leaving a footprint in this world—that’s the dream for us as creatives. Balancing this energy is a struggle sometimes, and creative blocks are something all creatives have to deal with from time to time. Especially in this time of isolation and quarantine, brought on by the coronavirus that has upended the wedding industry and altered the way portrait photographer approach business, we creative souls are experiencing a lot of roadblocks and anxiety in our lives!

[Read how one photographer bulldozed some of these roadblocks after, among other things, navigating the stimulus bill.]

The good news is, there’s no better time to dive into your inner world and spark your creative power. Our doors may be closed, but this is the moment to use the stillness around you to channel your energy and motivate creativity.

It’s important to understand that creativity is a form of energy and one of the essential elements in our lives—just like love and happiness. It’s in our nature.

ACCEPT OUR NEW REALITY

Provided you are staying safe and healthy at this time, do your best to accept what is going on in nearly every industry and don’t feel bad about yourself. Equally, don’t try to force energy. Creativity is something that can’t be forced; it flows!

We all have different natural states, much like the changing seasons. It’s okay if you lack creative energy right now. You first must fuel yourself with acceptance.

EXPLORE MEDITATION

Your energy will always level up to your sense of awareness, so it’s time to learn how to connect with your energy center. This whole topic is a very big field, but diving into it is very simple at the beginning. All you have to do is opening Youtube or Spotify and search for a meditation that’s meant to create creative energy. There are so many out there that are amazing!

Get yourself a yoga mat or a towel and find a corner in your home that you love and that has good energy. If you don’t have an outdoor area that you can use right now, you still might be able to open your windows and sit in the sunshine, feel the heavenly breeze from outside—and breathe deeply.

SET A MORNING RITUAL

The main problem nowadays is that we don’t start our mornings with positive awareness; we wake up and feel the weight of the world and our lives immediately. So, it’s more important than ever to learn to practice rituals so you can set yourself up for good energy.

[Read accounts from “12 Successful Wedding and Portrait Photographers on Their Good Living/Working Habits”]

My partner, Tim, and I do meditation as part of our morning ritual every day. It’s the first thing we do after waking up. No smartphones or any distractions from the outside world beforehand.

After this meditation, we give our bodies energy with the sublime drink that is lemon-ginger water:

  1. Squeeze one lemon into a cup
  2. Add fresh water
  3. Slice in some fresh ginger

Reading a new book for 15 minutes can also help quiet your mind and center your sense of focus during this important part of your day.

Oh, and sometimes we like to play some energizing music and have a weird dance party together. Movement helps get the day started!

SUSTAIN HUMAN CONNECTION

Wanting to connect with others is part of what makes us human. During this pandemic especially, it’s easy to feel very isolated. Now is the best time to use technology to really connect with people.

There has been a huge shift on Instagram over the last few weeks—it isn’t just about proudly sharing luxury, success and ego right now; it’s about making real connections with people in authentic ways and sharing our true characters with the world.

As soon as we show the world who we really are, it’s so much easier to connect with people who have positive energy.

There are also many other amazing ways to connect: Finding creatives in Facebook groups, joining Zoom calls with others. What if you founded your own group with creatives to inspire and empower?

Listening to people’s wisdom on podcasts helps to stay centered too, and there are so many creatives out there who are sharing amazing content in Instagram Live sessions. From fitness courses to marketing inspiration, website reviews, cake baking—you will find everything your soul needs.

FIND BEAUTY IN SMALL THINGS

In springtime, sometimes it’s just the way the sun is shining so beautifully through your windows or how nature is waking in front of your eyes. Have you ever watched trees sway in the wind, or the way birds glide so effortlessly through the air? Be aware of the melodies that they sing; they share such beautiful songs with us every day.

You can also now take time to eat! Have you ever sat down and let your awareness dive into a moment of eating? You’ll be surprised by the divine taste of an apple, the beautiful structure of a lemon or the colors of grapes.

Beauty is everywhere. We just have to slow down to feel it.

HAVE FAITH IN YOUR JOURNEY

We are all in this together and our lives are still full of opportunities! Look at all the things you have already accomplished, how far you have come and all the beautiful moments you’ve experienced so far.

Photographers: This is the time to look at your wonderful work and feel deeply inspired and energized by your own creations. Look at your last wedding season and feel all the moments of joy again. Browse through all the wonderful travel photos you have taken but never found time to reflect on again.

Sending lots of love and creative energy!

Jasmin Neidhart is a destination wedding photographer based in Europe who was chosen as a Rangefinder 30 Rising Star of Wedding Photography in 2018. Her natural and editorial style has graced publications around the world. She is also the host of a podcast for creatives called The Bloom Seeker, where she interviewed our senior editor for her first episode on how to become a 30 Rising Star of Wedding Photography.