How to Get Out of a "Creative Rut"

Hello Everyone!!!

 

I had a gallery visit planned for today's post (which I still will post, don't worry) but this post felt more natural to write today so here goes...

 

Have you ever been stuck in a rut? Be it creative or just life in general? Because that's how I feel right now. And as this blog is a place were we can hopefully learn and grow creatively from each other, I thought this might be the place to hopefully help you with tips to get out of the rut if you feel the same way.
 

Here are some really fast hand drawings I did yesterday. If you think you have nothing to draw what's in front of you!

 

I don't know about you but I feel like sometimes when we have a hobby, passion or career that we love and it feels so much worse when something goes wrong. I suppose this shows how much we care.

 

Sometimes when there is too much thrown at me or a project is too exciting I get completely overwhelmed and just pause.

Do you know what I mean? And then it feels like the longer you pause the more effort it will take to start the project again. This my friends is what I call a "Creative Rut".

 

Make your creative space helpful to you. I stuck inspirational quotes on my wall.

I am no professional (unless you're taking about a professional procrastinator) but I would say, you have two options: 1. sit around watching random Youtube videos all day until you finally look up and your eyes feel square and you realise you have done nothing with your life or 2. kick some butt (metaphorically, please don't kick any real butts)! Get out of that rut and produce a body of work that you will feel so proud of!!

 

Hmmmmm... well to me it's a no brainer, the second option is the one for me! So then why do I keep finding myself having square eyes and an empty sketchbook??

 

When I hear people talk about their passions I find it so beautiful! To think that someone works constantly, and never has a reason to stop because they love it so much, is absolutely awesome! I used to feel like I was one of those people but ever since I've been going to college and applying for Uni, I suddenly feel so small.

 

Don't get me wrong I absolutely love college and really feel like my mind has been opened and maybe this "Creative Rut" feeling is a perfectly normal side effect.

If you're tired of drawing, use your hands!! Start making in 3D, I guarantee it will help you see from a different perspective!

 

I think the main thing of a "Creative Rut" is the feeling of being completely overwhelmed. I keep hearing all these amazing stories of how people make their creative practise their everyday life and never separate the two. So then when I don't quite feel in the mood to draw, I suddenly feel so inadequate.

 

But you see I am human at the end of the day, I'm not a machine.

Step out of your comfort zone! Rethink what drawing is for you. Try drawing sound or how you feel in your mind instead of a physical object.

 

Rethink painting! This is when I got frustrated with my painting so I dipped tape in paint and covered a page in it. Now I suppose you could say its a representation of my frustration at the time haha! (There is no right or wrong with paint do what you enjoy!)

So! I don't want to be in a "Creative Rut", I'm sure we all don't, so how are we going to fix it?!

1. Turn off the screens (not yet if you want to finished reading this post first haha!). If you're procrastinating in anyway try and break the habit. Believe me I know that feeling but one step at a time will help you.
2. Get your camera out and take a photo (of anything, you don't even have to move, not yet anyway) I find that a camera can be a frame to help you see the beauty in something. Also flicking through old shoots you have done will help remind you of your creativity!(If you don't have a camera draw quickly or just look around for a bit and be inspired.
3. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!!! It sounds so rediculously cheesy I know but it's true! Remember how strong and creative you are! YOU CAN DO THIS!!
4. Don't compare yourself to others! Now I love appreciating other people's work, I think talent is a truly beautiful thing but don't put yourself down for it. There is no such thing as perfection, it's just something we construct in our heads, so we will never reach it. Just look after youself and you'll find the creative you will be back in no time
5. It's up to you. If you still feel stuck then its completely up to you to turn it around. Find an outlet for you, whack paint on paper, draw with your eyes closed, hit a piano and see what sounds you make! It's up to you at the end of the day to change how you feel.

Get out there!! Tell a friend or family member that you're stuck and go see an exhibition together. Different points of view can really open your minds. 

When I was flicking through my camera I saw the last few photos I had taken. They were pretty cool and I hadn't done anything with them. It made me realise that when I feel inadequate next to these amazing people that make art everyday, it is not because I don't make art everyday but that I don't show it!

Here's a photo I took ages ago, I really like it but I've never shown anyone.

 

So I suppose what I'm trying to say (and if you're still reading this then you are the best!) is just GO FOR IT!!

 

Be fearless! Put yourself out there! YOU ARE AWESOME!
 

The world is a beautiful place so get out there and make the most of it!! Here's a photo I took on a little Paris adventure!

 

So there you go! I hope that has helped you if you feel a little less stuck in a "Creative Rut". And if you still feel stuck, well at least you know you're not alone!

 

I wish you all the happiness in the world!

Hope you have a great day!!

 

 

Guess Who's Back?!

Hello Everyone!!

 

I'm sure you've guessed from the title and the fact that I've posted this that BLANK KANVAS IS BACK!

 

I took this on my Canon DSLR 1200D at Sky Gardens in London. This was a great photography day out! I'll blog about it to show more photos and I am definitely going back!!

I had to put the blog on hold while I sorted my life out, haha! But all is going well! I worked hard and passed my A levels with an A in Art (Wahoo!). I also had to apply to art college. After working on my portfolio and going to many interviews, I was accepted into University of the Arts London and I am now studying an Art and Design Foundation Diploma at Camberwell College of Arts. (Wow all of that sounds so official - in a nutshell I now go to art college).

 

So, there is a lot to catch up on and its all very exciting!

 

I thought for todays post I'd like to reintroduce myself  because it has been so long and I feel like it will be nice to start again. So here goes......

 

Hello everyone, My name is Katherine and I am the writer and creator of the blog Blank Kanvas. I am an art college student and I have recently specialised in 3D Design: Theatre, Screen and Performance. Art is my life and I know it sounds cheesy but it is very true! Look around you, everything has been designed, everything is art. Isn't that exciting?!

 

Here is an outdoor installation I created in A level. With everything going on I never got a chance to blog about it. Better late that never right?!

Don't worry I'm not going to change the existing format of the blog too much but I have got so many new ideas!

 

Here's a little taster of what's to come!.. 

• My First week at art college

This is my favourite photo I took of a sculpture we created in the first week of art college. Can't wait to blog about this!

• Explaining the different pathways in art

As brilliant as Painting and drawing are there is a huge world of art out there. This is a section of a 3D piece I worked on a few weeks ago.

• DIY room decoration
• Gallery visits (because you can never have enough!) and I'm hoping to collaborate with other bloggers! 

I have been going to so many galleries so I have a lot to tell you about! In this photo is the lovely Isabel (aka Izzie the illustrator) She is absolutely brilliant and we have so many plans for collaborations, so watch this space! (I'll put a link to her blog at the end)

• Photography days out
• Experimenting with new and different materials in art

Here is a little experiment using textures.

 

One of my favourite weeks at college. We made the wall in to our sketchbook, anything we made went on the wall. I loved this project and will definitely blog about it soon!

• Experimenting with baking and cooking (I'm not a pro but this way, I can make the mistakes so you can keep your kitchen clean when you have a go! haha!)
• Drawing in public
• Life drawing

Sorry about the nudity (you can scroll past if you want haha) this is a few 10 minute paintings I did in a life drawing course.  Life drawing is a brilliant way to improve your observational drawing skill, once you get past the naked people fact... 

• Explaining my specialism

This is the first ever maquette I made in my specialism of design for stage and screen. I am hoping to one day go into model making. This project was all about developing characters. I learnt so much and will definitely pass on my knowledge to you in a blog post!

• Looking back at old A Level work (advice)

Here one of the pages from my old A level sketchbook. Oooo it will be wired looking back and seeing how far I've come!

• AND SO MUCH MORE!!!!

So there you go! I'm back in action!

 

If you are reading this now then thank you so much for sticking with me! The future is very exciting and I can't wait to share all this creativity with you!

 

As always Blank Kanvas has been about inspiring creativity between all of us. I'm still only learning and so we can go on this creative adventure together!!

 

Here's a link to the wonderful Isabel's blog https://izzietheillustrator.wordpress.com/

 

Thanks again!

I hope you have an absolutely brilliant day!

 

 

Nature Photography!

Hello everyone!

 

The other day I went to my favourite park to take some nature photography with my professional Camera (Canon EOS 1200D).

 

I was pleased with how some of the photos came out and wanted to share them with you to hopefully inspire you!

I used manual focus on the flower in the foreground. I was so lucky to be able to focus on the bee in the flower (I also used zoom because I didn't want to get to close to the bee, haha!)

I used close up settings on my camera, manual and auto focusing and I really tried to think about composition when taking the pictures.

 

I enjoy photography so much! it is just a hobby for me so if you have any tips or tricks please share in the comment and we can all inspire each other!

 

Feel free to dip in and out of this post. I hope you enjoy viewing it as much as I enjoyed making it!

 

 

Close ups and zoom

 

I was able to use a zoom lens for these photos which was very exciting!

 



I had to stay really quiet when taking this but I managed to take a close up photo of this amazing butterfly. I think butterflies are so beautiful!

I used a zoom lens, for the first time, to take this. I was so amazed at how far it could go and still keep an amazing quality image. I recommend a zoom lens!

There was a vast amount of these tiny flowers so I tried to get a close up to show their beauty. I also used focus to emphasise the flowers even more.

Landscapes of the woods

In the park there is an amazing woods that seems to go on forever! I couldn't leave the park without going in and taking photos! Here are some of the photos I took in the woods.

 



I would love to get a wide angle lens and try this shot again, I think it could look much better!



Theses stairs are my favourite part of the woods! It looks so magical!!





I took this low down on the ground behind a tree stump. I focused in on the background and I'm pleased with how I have captured the light hitting the leaves.



Double exposure/editing

 

I used an app called Pixlr Express to edit my photos. I do not have Photoshop and I've found that this free app it a good replacement (considering it is free).

 

I have used Photoshop at school and I think it really is amazing! I hoping to do a blog post on Photoshop soon!



I edited this photo on Pixlr Express. I used double exposure to contrast a photo of wood grain to bold flowers.



I edited this on Pixlr Express and used double exposure. I also made the flowers appear more florescent to contrast against the bark of the wood.



 

Focusing on a varying composition

 

It can be quite difficult to pick out what to focus on in a busy composition, like a bed of flowers. I keep practising and I think these have turned out quite well!

 

So there we go!

 

I hope you have enjoyed this post! Please let me know of any ways I can improve because I'm only learning and it would be wonderful if we could share our creativity and inspire each other!

 

Thank you so much for reading! Please feel free to check out my other posts and join this creative adventure by following to be told when I make a new post.

 

Thanks again, have a brilliant day, and don't forget to be creative!



My First Professional Camera!

Hello Everyone!

I am super excited to tell you that I finally have a professional camera! I'm so excited!!

The official name of the camera is Canon EOS 1200D DSLR. It is quite a popular camera and is recommended for beginners, so this was ideal for me!

 

I have always loved photography! I love all parts of it; from old family photos, all the way to art being expressed through the medium of photography. It is just wonderful to think that moments in time can be captured and the image can be kept forever. From a very young age, I have loved photography, I remember using my mum's terrible phone camera (that was so amazing at the time by the way) and taking close up pictures of fabric and walls for different textures (yes, I know, I was a weird kid).

This is a close up photo I took on the new camera. I think this shows what amazing quality the camera is in focusing on the details of the fabric.

 Fancy photography for me, up until getting my camera, was taking photos on my iPhone 4S and then editing them with an app. Haha! But now I can be super fancy and take super high quality 18 mega pixel photos!

I just got a bit creative here. I put a candle behind a glass of water and this really helped to highlight the tiny bubbles in the water.

 Some of the photos in my last blog post were taken with my new camera, when I was testing it out. If you haven't seen that post yet, feel free to check it out, its called Experimenting with Mark Making.

I've already taken thousand of photos on the new camera and I'm trying to learn different techniques to really advance my photography knowledge and skill! I have been trying out different shutter speeds, close up settings, temperature and aperture settings, etc. I like to think of it as editing a photo before the photo has been taken.

 

Shutter Speed with Zoom

I took this using the low shutter speed and zoom technique at the Saatchi gallery

My Brilliant friend Laura is an A Level photography student (she is amazing!). Laura showed me this cool technique using low shutter speed and the zoom lens. All you do is lower the shutter speed to around 0"5. When you take the picture, during the shutter closing, move the zoom lens in and/or out. This then makes the image seem as if it is coming at you or moving away. A similar effect can be made by moving the camera sided to sided or left to right when taking the picture on a shutter speed of around 0"5.

 

So thank you Laura for teaching me this, I do it all the time now!

 

If you want to see Laura's amazing photography and art work check out her brilliant instagram @lauradeasyart https://instagram.com/lauradeasyart/ 

 

This is a photo I took using the low shutter speed and zoom technique at the Saatchi gallery. I will definitely blog about the Saatchi gallery!

 

This is of a lantern using the same technique.

Remember the lower the shutter speed, the lighter the image will be because more light is being let in. Therefore, the higher the shutter speed, the darker the image will be because less light is being allowed to pass through.

 

Low Shutter Speed with Movement

 

This effect was created using a low shutter speed. The shutter speed was set to 0"4, therefore, it was able to capture more of the tube passing at a speed, this creates this super amazing effect.

 

I recommend doing this it was so much fun!

 



 

Light and Shadow

 

I used the natural light of windows to create light and shadow. I thought this created quite an intense, warm atmosphere in the photos.

 

 

 

Close ups (fur)

 

Here I did a little photo shoot with my wonderful little rabbit, Teddy. He was a brilliant little model and loved the camera!

 

I did this to test out the clarity of the camera. I think the photos turned out really well and clearly captured a lot of detail in the fur.

 

 

 

Daylight

 

The intensity of the colours in daylight is really effective. I played around with different settings in the creative mode to really define and draw out different colours.

 

 

 

Focus

 

I also practised focusing on different parts of the picture to exaggerate specific details.

 

(By the way, this burger was delicious!)

There we go! I Hope that this was useful to any of you first time photographers like me, or those who are thinking about getting a camera (I really recommend the Canon EOS 1200D DSLR for first timers).

 

Here's a link I used to choose the right camera for me http://www.whatdigitalcamera.com/roundup/camera-roundups/best-entry-level-dslrs-2015-10162 

 

Be sure to check out Laura's instagram @lauradeasyart https://instagram.com/lauradeasyart/  and while you're there, feel free to check out my instagram @_.kxtherine._ https://instagram.com/_.kxtherine._/ 

 

If you have any other helpful tips for photography then please share your knowledge in the comments and we can all inspire each other in this creative adventure!

 

Thanks for reading, enjoy getting creative and have a great day!