Color Cleanup

When it comes to photography, I approach it much like a sketch, and only work in small bursts of time.

When photographing a new series or concept, I'll shoot for awhile ... but "put a pin in it" halfway through, to save finishing it for another day. I do this because I like to cycle a handful of concepts at a time, and believe that giving the process some "time to breath," helps keep the joy in discovery. It's rare as a creative to work without deadlines, so I give myself that gift when working on inspiration images.

I usually max out at an hour of working, put the camera (or phone) down (Point A), and walkaway to see what I've captured and edit it (Point B)

But there is an important transition between Point A and B. Part of my creative process is digesting what I've begun to create (through photography), and letting my subconscious feed me where to take it. And physically cleaning up after myself in the studio is part of freeing up my creative mind to do its thing. 

Admittedly, I'm a bizarrely tidy and organized person. There are a lot of theories behind it (upbringing, my nature to control what I can, or I simply feel most comfortable in tidy spaces).

So how does this bring me to Color Cleanup? 

Well, I find the incidental captures I take while tidying up, are sometimes my favorite. They don't make it into a formal post, but I personally still find inspiration in them. 

That had me thinking about how it would be fun to share some of my favorites here on the blog :) Perhaps the confetti waiting to be packed back up, and the jelly soaked papers may trigger a little inspiration for someone else as well.

What about you?  What creative rituals do you find integral to your process? Does cleaning help you in your process? Or do you thrive in the chaos?