Something I cannot get my mind around is how I can go shoot at the same place over and over and still find new and interesting ideas at the same location, almost as if there is an unlimited number of possibilities but I cannot see them at any given time.

It seems that if I believe an area is “tapped out” for photography ideas, I don’t find anything new and become bored with it.

However, if I find myself in a state of “awe”, where I am truly amazed at something, whatever it is….creativity comes. It feels like the more in awe I am, the greater the creativity, even if it is being in a familiar situation.

Even more strangely, is that being in awe, seems to come as much from internal attitude as much as a new surrounding. I can think myself into being more amazed at things when I stop to smell the roses, instead of just getting a job done.

So tonight I was up at Haleakala with my good friends and saw these silhouettes against the sunset from a different angle and shooting location…and it was a type of shot I had never thought of before being up there as often as I am. It caught my attention because I was in awe of the sunset and the shapes walking in front of it and I felt excited to grab a few shots.

There is a serious connection between being in awe and being creative. Try to put yourself in a mental and physical state to be amazed at something, and see how you feel creatively.
Canon 6D , with Canon 100-400 f4.5-5.6 L IS

f5.6, 1/640 2500 ISO, Shot in RAW and Converted to JPEG (6D seems more noisy in RAW than it does in JPEG out of the camera)