“Photography is truth” is Richard’s bio caption on Instagram.
Richard Ashia is a 24-year-old photographer and graphic artist from Ghana. He shares with us his key ingredient to getting inspired as a photographer.
We gotta say, from scrolling through his Scopio profile, we can feel how grounded and rooted he is. He loves taking pictures of humans; in their most vulnerable states, in their comfort zone, and just make them the main subject of his photographs.
But as anything else, to take good pictures, you need inspiration.
How to create inspirational photography in 3 steps
Richard shares with us his go-to’s for photography inspiration
1. Music Who of us doesn’t like listening to music? Whether you’re feeling sad, happy, depressed, nervous, agitated, or ecstatic, whenever you listen to music, you go into a whole new world, a world of dreams and serenity.
So through music, you can get inspired by a melody, a word, a hum, a beat, and a feeling.
You can see musical notes in the pictures you take, a movement.
Take for example, the song Happy by John Legend. Anytime you listen to it, no matter what you’re going through, a big smile is drawn on your face, and happiness fills you from within.
2. Books Whenever I read a book, I directly imagine the setting, the characters, what they are wearing, their body language, their faces, and the overall vibe.
Books are a great inspiration for another fantasy. In books, as well as in photographs, you jump into a different reality, with different circumstances and chances.
So a photographer can get photography inspiration from a character, an action, a storyline…
3. Observation “The eyes chico, they never lie”, a line said by Tony Montana in Scarface.
This is a true statement with a lot of meanings. We, as photographers, can understand it in a way as if our eyes and the camera’s lens. With our eyes, we see numerous distinct things throughout the day. Unconsciously, even our eyes take pictures with our eyes and store them in our minds as memories. How beautiful is that! Such photographs can also be taken with a camera, presenting real life, real movement, and real emotions.
How teamwork can bring you creative success in photography
Richard also talks about how working alone as a photographer is sometimes depressing. So reaching out to other creatives is a great way to connect and get creative together.
“I also get inspiration and ideas from those guys as well.”
Working together is a beautiful thing. Each of you brings their creativity and skills and shares them together, to create unimaginable content. How many times do you get inspired by a picture on Instagram, taken by a total stranger? Or start following an account because of the content it has, that has captivated you?
Working together builds a strong community of photographers who support each other’s talents and work. It creates such a healthy competition, away from all the negativity, jealousy and bad vibes.
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