The Joy of Creativity

Creativity increases our joy in life as well as in photography.

I believe that God is the great Creator. According to the Bible, when God created people, he made us in his own image. That means we have elements in us that are like him. When we create something, we connect to that divine origin, to that part of God that finds joy in the process of creation. In Genesis, it also says that God surveyed his creation and said, “It is good.”

Now, I’m not claiming to be God, but I do know and relate to the feeling of creating something beautiful and basking in the “goodness” of it. I think these are some of the moments when we as people feel most alive, since we’re living out the creative part of our nature that God gave us. It increases our joy.

Photography is not the the only way to be creative of course, but it’s a great one. The beauty of it is that we all have access to a camera, as long as we have a phone! We can step out of our front door and photograph a flower. It’s true we didn’t create that flower, but we have created an image of it based on our own unique viewpoint. We could photograph it from the side, the bottom, the top, or up close. We could then edit that photo to be bright and airy or dark and moody. We could take color away or put more color in it. We put our own creative flair into the process, and we keep working on it until we like what we see, and we like the story it tells.

Building these creativity muscles through photography means that you are more likely to look at other challenges and things in your life with creativity. You could all of a sudden think of something you could create (or do more creatively) at work, in your relationships, or in your home.

Creativity increases our joy as well as our confidence. We begin to realize that there’s not just one way to do things, and that we can create new ways of looking at ordinary things.

So today, head out there with your camera and capture an image of something ordinary in a creative way. It doesn’t have to be a great work of art, as long as you’re looking at it differently and being creative. It’s even better if you can tell a story. If you’re feeling sad, try to communicate that creatively. If you’re feeling happy, communicate that.

In addition to practicing creativity with our cameras, there is always room to create something new in our days, whether that’s a new friendship, a new routine, or a new project. What can you create today?

Categories: Photography inspiration, Creativity