Creative Block

As an individual who likes to indulge in creative activities, I often go through periods of creative block. I never feel a steady flow of "making" things- it always seems like I'm either churning out products or like I'm stagnant. Stagnant times like these really kill my self confidence. Not only do I feel like I can't make anything, but I feel like my skills have drained. It's got to be the worst feeling in the world, but I think what helps is one thing I have been thinking of for a while-
What if creative block was not the lack of creativity and ideas, but rather the overwhelming supply of them? I sometimes look at a blank sheet of paper and I am filled with anxiety. It's not that I can't think of anything at all to put on it, but rather that I can't choose one perfect thing to do with it. I think that creative block might be stemming off of being a perfectionist. I can't choose the perfect photo for a reference, or I can't choose the perfect medium to use. Maybe it's that I think that in the end it may not be worth my time. To get rid of this, I have to get rid of the doubt. The perfection. I need to realize that even if I mess up or "fail" in my own eyes, the process has taught me much more than the final product ever will. I'ts hard to remember, but very important.

Where do you think creative block stems from, and how do you try to cure yours?

-Alyssa

Instax Wide 210 : Review and Sample Photos

Hello! I recently dove in and bought the Instax Wide 210. I have been wanting one of the instax minis, but I thought they were just too small to do the kind of photography that I wanted to do. I bought a "working" polaroid land camera 104 off of ebay, but it didn't actually work and it cost as much as I paid for it to send it back. It's still a lovely little camera (well, large? haha) to take photos of and makes a good prop for photoshoots. You can see in the photo I shot below how simply gorgeous the red is!

Anyways, I stumbled upon the Instax wide from my favorite blogger, Kaylah. I always go to her when I'm trying to find a new camera to buy and play with haha.

I was afraid that the fact the flash doesn't turn off (it's automatic, and turns on whenever it wants to...)
would prohibit me from getting any actual nice photos. All of these photos were taken outside, and many in the shade. I feel like I got really lucky! Maybe it is just luck, but none of my photos came out as total duds.

I was also really surprised how gorgeous the colors were. They had incredible contrast, which I love. The photos I have seen from the Instax mini always seem to be washed out and over-exposed, but always super light and soft-looking. I was stunned by how different these came out. The focus is measured in distance, and you have two modes- .3m-9m, and 9m-infinity. I thought this would be limiting, but my photos never came out too blurry. Everything was relatively sharp.  

Pricing:

For film (which I purchased off of amazon) each picture is 80 cents. (US currency.) Versus .74 cents for an instax mini, it's more expensive at face value for the wide, but the photographs are twice as wide. The camera itself (Instax wide 210) Is 79.99, which is approximately only 10$ more than the mini. I think it's most definitely worth going up a few bucks for such a size difference! I think that if you are into photography, this would be a great instax camera to get. The mini might be better if you are wanting more of a portable, novelty camera for taking cute pictures with friends. This camera is not heavy, but it is incredibly bulky and goofy looking. I love it anyways! Just extra character :)

I have had SO much fun taking this camera with me, and can't wait to show you more photos!