The Art of Finding Interest in Ordinary Places

For most of us, constantly travelling to new locations for photography is not a realistic option. While we might occasionally travel to somewhere new and exciting, for the most part we will do our photography in places that are well known, well visited, and places that we might consider to be ‘boring’ in terms of photography. Yet this is reality for many of us so I think it is important to discover how to find beauty and interest in the ordinary subjects that we come across on a daily basis.

Over the last few months, due to a change in family circumstances, I haven’t been able to travel much outside my immediate location. Because of this I have started to focus on local photography and on how to make good images in everyday locations, with very ordinary subjects. This has resulted in a few discoveries that I will share for those who might be in a similar position. If you can’t travel far for photography, you can still enjoy your photography and make some good images by paying attention to a few details and rising to a new challenge.

Doing photography in a familiar landscape can be challenging.

Unlike ‘honeypot’ locations, where you can be guaranteed at least a few worthwhile subjects, familiar landscapes make you work harder to find a potential composition. The biggest problem is often finding something you want to photograph in the first place. You may already have a mindset that says there’s nothing interesting here, why bother to take photographs? A slight change of mindset might be all that is required.

Here are some ideas.

1.    Practise the art of noticing.

Often we become so used to our local environment that we take everything for granted and we stop really noticing what is around us. We are over familiar with our surroundings and can't immediately see any photographic potential. But if we are to use our local area as our photography stomping ground then we need to start practising the art of noticing.

We need to look beyond the obvious.

We need to look beyond houses, lampposts, signs and walls, the regular things we see, and notice shapes, patterns, textures, colours and lines.

We need to look up, look down, look beyond the obvious.

Image taken with Google Pixel 7 Pro

We need to notice little details, anything unusual or interesting.

If we practise the art of noticing on a regular basis, even, or maybe especially, when out without our camera, we will soon begin to notice things that we haven’t noticed before even though they have been there all the time.

I like to look for little stories; for subjects that prompt me to wonder and ask questions. They may not be subjects that would normally interest me but when I look at them through the lens of a camera everything changes and I see a potential story unfold before my eyes.

I was drawn to this scene and prompted to ask some questions - What is it? What is it for? Who put it there? There is a story behind the image and I like to search for these type of subjects to add a little interest to what is a mundane set of objects.

2.    Change your perspective.

A good way to elevate your photography is to make use of ordinary subjects but show them off in unusual ways.

Look down on your subject or show it close up.

Photograph a part of the subject rather than the whole thing.

Shoot from the side or at an unusual angle.

Shoot your subject through something else.

Get down low and shoot up.

An ordinary subject can look very different when shown  from a unique perspective and there are lots of perspectives to try.

Sometimes a different perspective just presents itself!

3.    Recognise the importance of light.

Clever use of light is another way to elevate your photography from ordinary to special.

Light streaming through a window, light casting shadows, light providing contrast, are ways that we can showcase beauty in the ordinary.

Photography needs light and good photography needs good light. An ordinary subject in good light can be more effective than a decent subject in poor light. The challenge is to use the available light to our advantage.

4.    Add a splash of colour.

Unless you are doing monochrome photography, in which case you’ll focus on tone and contrast, it is worth looking out for colour in the environment.

As with light, colour can add a touch of something special to an otherwise mundane scene. This could be a bright colour in a dull environment, contrasting colours that stand out together, a splash of colour where you least expect it. When you start to deliberately look for colour you will begin to see lots of examples of how colour can transform a subject or scene.

FINAL THOUGHTS

While it's not always possible to travel to interesting locations for photography, it is always possible to find interest in our local environment, if we look for it.

I hope this post has given you some inspiration to get out with your camera in your local area, practise the art of noticing, and see what you can find.

You might be interested in my previous post 6 Benefits of Doing Everyday Landscape Photography

Happy shooting.