November 9

4 comments

Creative Ideas Don’t Live At Your Desk

By Dan

November 9, 2011

Ryan Miller backcountry skiing, Cameron Pass, Colorado

Sometimes you sit there at your desk, mousing and pounding away on the keyboard, writing blog posts, editing images, surfing the web, tweeting, reading Facebook and generally racking your brain about how to improve your photography.

How do I know you do that? Because I do it too.

However, that’s not where creative ideas come from. They don’t live at your desk, They live out there in the world, hiding in all the places where you love to be, and in the places where you’ve never been before.

They’re out there waiting for your to come find them, and the only way to discover them is to get away from your desk and go outside, where you’ll feel the wind on your face and the sun on your back.

So, next time you feel bogged down with your creativity, just get up and head into the outdoors. Go take a walk, get on the bike, or clip into a pair of skis. Don’t even take your camera. Just take your empty, tired brain, and I promise you, by the end of your little excursion, it will be full of new ideas and creative inspiration again.

About the author

Hi, I'm Dan Bailey, a 25+ year pro outdoor and adventure photographer, and official FUJIFILM X-Photographer based in Anchorage, Alaska.


As a top rated blogger and author my goal is to help you become a better, more confident and competent photographer, so that you can have as much fun and creative enjoyment as I do.


  • You know us too well Dan! One desk-based activity I have found to help with creativity originally comes from The Artist’s Way (which I haven’t read, would love to hear from someone who has) and that is “morning pages”. Writing out three pages or 750 words first thing in the morning, or anytime really, of whatever comes to your mind. It doesn’t take long to do, and I find it really helps to clear my mind, and I’ll often go back over what I’ve written at the end of the week and there will be hints of ideas to further develop into future photo shoots.

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