
July 20th, 2016
TOP 5 | WAYS I STAY INSPIRED
1. MUSIC
Without a doubt music is the number one place I go to, to get inspired. I’ve talked about my love of music and what big of a role it plays in my creative process before on the blog but its worth mentioning again. I feel its important to differentiate its not just top 40 or the most popular hits that give me inspiration (although those definitely put me in a good mood) it’s specifically film soundtracks and scores. After all they are made to evoke emotion so its a bit impossible for me not to listen to a beautiful soundtrack without getting a jolt of inspiration and good ‘juju’. Kosta and I both share a love of soundtracks we found this 4 hour playlist on youtube and we love it!
Perhaps I’ll do a round of up my favourite scores of all time but one of my favourites that always gives me chills is Hans Zimmer – Chevaliers de Sangreal.
2. BLOGS
Back when I first started blogging I would consume my blogroll religiously every day. Then something happened with the birth of Instagram and Pinterest I slowly stopped going to my favourite blogs. The last few months I’ve fallen back in love with visiting some of my old favourites as well as discovering a bunch of new ones. Of course I have some favourite photography blogs but majority of the blogs I get most inspiration from are ones outside of my industry. I encourage you all to look outside your own industry for inspiration, I find inspiration from food bloggers, business bloggers, fashion bloggers etc. You never know what you may see that you can apply to your own industry in a unique way!
Fun Exercise
We all have our favourite blogs that we continuously feel gravitated to. A fun exercise to do when you’re feeling creatively depleted or overwhelmed and confused about the direction of your own blog/business is to list out your favourite 5 blogs/bloggers (you can also do this with your favourite brands as well). Next is the fun part, list out why these blogs or brands inspire you, what is it about them that keeps you going back? Take your time with this and get really honest, the answers will often give you so much insight to what you want your own brand or blog to reflect. Perhaps its one element of their blog for example a layout and easily digestible content or perhaps its the feeling you get when you visit their site (happy, inspired or motivated). Take note and take cue! The final step is to figure out how to infuse those elements into your own blog and brand chances are they are changes you’ve been wanting to make for a while be it conscious or subconsciously.
I recently came across my list I had written well over a year ago and it was so fun to re-read where I was drawing my inspiration from at that time and why those individuals were influencing me (these people still inspire me daily). For example few years ago I would rarely jump infront of the camera I would hide behind the camera where I felt perfectly content and comfortable however I found myself constantly drawn to other photographers who would get themselves photographed or get candid images of themselves in their element – it wasn’t until I made that list and asked myself ‘what is it about these people that I love so much’ that it dawned on me – I love that they were photographers but they also got infront of the camera now and again! I made a little note to self to get better at this (and I’ve stuck with it!)
3. OUTDOORS
Get outside! Go on a walk, explore a new neighbourhood, or just walk around your block a few times. I’ll be honest, this is the one I struggle with the most and whenever I do this I always wonder why I don’t do it more often because it never fails to make me feel relaxed, inspired and ready to tackle the next project. It’s often the simplest things in life that give us the most reward. My default is always ‘powering through’ which leads to getting burnt out pretty quickly. Taking a step away from you desk and computer to get outside even for 10 minutes will leave you feeling refreshed (always!).
4. PINTERST
I’m sure you’re all not surprised to see this one on the list! First was We Heart It (you veterans will remember those days), then came my tumblr love affair and alas Pinterset is the one that has stuck for years. I love pinning new content that shows up in my feed or searching for specific things (*ahem* my guilty pleasure organization boards) but when I need a boost of inspiration before a photoshoot, styling a vignette or needing to reference a visual example for a new project I alway go back to my own boards. We pin and pin…and pin but how often do we actually go back to look at the beautiful boards we curated and created that are filled with only images that resonate with us?
Some of my favourite boards to browse are
Before a photoshoot
Glamour, Black and White, Photography
When I’m feeling in need of some creatively ‘juju’
Coffee love, Fancy That, Travel, Be Artistic
5. MAGAZINES AND BOOKS
I’ve talked about my old school pinterest ways before on here as well as my deep love for beautiful coffee table books but I love carving out some time once a week to actually flip through old magazines and books and look at the gorgeous images. There is something about physically holding a book in your hands and flipping through the pages that stirs up new ideas and inspiration. Bazaar magazine never fails to impress me (especially the UK editions).
Love it! Thank you for sharing! Very inspiring blog post. Pinterest is also my go to platform for some positivity and inspiration 🙂 <3
http://www.thedeardiary.com
Music and outdoors definitely inspire me!
Thanks for sharing your favorite music. Soundtracks and movie scores are my muses too! xo
I definitely look to Pinterest for a lot of inspiration and photography – I always stumble across some beautiful things!
Ashley | Sunday Brunch