Lately, I've been getting a pinch frustrated because it seems every "OMG BRILLIANT" idea I've had has been done already. And I don't mean the usual Google image search result-type shots - I mean really specific pictures.
Then this evening I noticed another person commenting on a photo saying that they were thinking to do the same thing - and strangely enough, I had a similar idea recently (and took the shot too, but didn't post it here) and it got me thinking - does anyone else ever feel like that? You're convinced that it's not been done before only to sign in and see it on your homepage or pp or wherever.
:) all the time... but I find that's the way of it. Brad had posted a pic once of a painting, and I had been convinced it was work by a friend of mine until I read the caption with the name of the artist. Truly I think it happens to everyone in all different genres of art, and even music.
@indiannie_jones I find that happens with only certain people on here--ones that share your vision, if that makes sense. I used to stress over it, but now I think it's kind of neat.
@indiannie_jones ~ its really strange the way u almost dream a shot have it totally clear in your head then see exactly what u envisioned and a little annoying too !
what i find strange is theres a group of 4 of us who chat in fb doing this project together and so many times there have been massive similarites or same ideas floating around ! with the 4 of us tho we all execute the ideas differently so its not a bad thing :)
Totally agree. Last week, I saw 7 of the shots that I was "planning" three days in a row. I plan to still try them, but felt it was better to wait awhile....I genuinely could not believe it!
@indiannie_jones I guess if you see theirs before you did your photo, that would be different. It would seem like copying. I usually find the shots after the fact. I like to think of it as kind of a creative connection across the miles...
Ok - they are differnt colours/flowers, but me and Vikdaddy posting similar shots, both splashed with water and at similar angles within a couple of minutes of each other...
@clarissajohal That's just it though, I think it and before I can do it, I see theirs :(
There's one that was posted yesterday or the day before floating about, which is actually different from what I had in mind on Monday but I didn't have time so I was going to leave it until the weekend. The set-up is the same, only the message is kinda different. Blah.
@indiannie_jones i would do the shot anyway especially as you have seen one like it,it would make it more of a challenge to put your spin on it, be it with the set up or editing
Yes all the time :), to get a truely authentic shot you have to think so far outside the box that you cant see the box anymore, maybe you could take a photo of the box from outside :D hmmmmm even that has got me thinking of an idea :D
anyway it doesn't really matter if the idea has been done the resultant photo will never be the same, everyone has their signature style and spin and a change of a microcosmic amount really can change the world
@asrai Hahaha, I'm glad the thread inspired you :P but I hope you don't wake up tomorrow to find that someone else has already photographed the box from the outside :)
@indiannie_jones Oh yeah! That would be crazy, but kind of cool too! I once heard or read that there are only seven stories in literature and people are always saying there's no new music left to create. But i keep enjoying and being inspired by great books, albums and of course photos!
@indiannie_jones LOL yeah I will wake up and find everyone has created a box shot now :) but hey that doesn't matter because they wont be taking photos of my box :D
@asrai Hey I was going to do a box shot tomorrow, lol. Only kidding.
I have a shot in my mind just now I want to do. Was thinking about earlier today but it really depends on weather etc whether I'm in or out to do the shot. If it's nice out I will leave it till later as it's an indoor thing. I tend to think up ideas but I don't look for them on here as it would put me off doing it if I see it so I hope none of you has done this idea in my head. I'm telepathically telling you not this shot. If only, lol.
It has happened to me a couple of times but not enough to get annoyed at yet. If I go out I don't think about what others have done I just shoot and hope the image is good. If it's indoor shots there is more thinking involved and I find they are more difficult to "not copy" even though you aren't copying iykwim.
I prefer to go with the flow and if there are similar shots so be it.
@indiannie_jones@andycoleborn I can't remember where it all came from, it's late now, even in the UK! What I do know about the photo side is that in general i have a few types of picture that I'm happy with taking (call%
I don't get to look on here at other poeple's pictures every day, so the first thing I do is upload my own picture.
I'm just taking each day as it comes, and see what comes my way. Past couple of days have been crazy, my house has been turned upside down by builders, and they are still hanging about now fixzing the damage they caused :o/ So I've done rush pictures in the evening. But it's all okay :o) I'm doubting I will have the same pics as anyone else or vicer versa, or if there are, like my heart shaped pages book, they are never exactly the same. I didn't notice anyone else's turn of this till ages after, but it's really nice to see the different ways people have done it. Mine was a pain in the bum to keep the pages as a heart haha!
I used to feel the way that you are feeling, but now it doesn't bother me. I actually kind of like it. Because no matter if you set it up in the same way, and photograph the same thing, it will still be different. Your spin on something is not going to look exactly identical to my spin on something. And it is kind of neat to see how someone else interprets the same thing. I think it defines the differences in people even more, because you can look at it and see how visions differ on a similar level. There are ton's of "finger people" shots on here...they are similar, but different. it's fun to see what someone else will do with the same idea. make sense? i feel like i may have gone off on a ramble here, but i'm hoping I got my point across.
Just yesterday i posted a shot of a building with clouds and sky reflected, and then saw someone I follow (sorry can't remember who) had posted one a day or two before, that I had not seen. If I had ...I probably wouldn't have posted mine....lol...her's was SO much better.
I like Paul's @tolpol answer...Synchronisity
Given that I hate the idea of selfie's I'd always thought I'd round to doing shot of being covered all but for the eyes. When I scheduled to do it, there were at least three others at the same time, either just before or after. I have noticed a little flurry of other subjects and it's like something goes out on the etha and everyone gets an idea at once. It happens but it shouldn't be a problem because everyone has such a different take on any one subject. Nothing quite as similar though as @spaceman.
I always get the feeling of deja vu, but with the amount of media we now see everyday, I think our brains store all those images but never recall when, why or what we really saw. That could be part of the recognition issue.
If not just blame it on Quantum Physics since I could never explain that.
Also, do not worry what others are doing, just take the photos for yourself and enjoy making your mental images a reality. At the end of the day, my opinion should not really matter, but your work and your ideas should.
@indiannie_jones It is funny that you posted this now because tonight I saw a photo posted by someone on my homepage that I had been thinking about doing for weeks now. She did it SO well!! I'll probably drop the idea because hers is so fantastic. But sometimes it is pretty crazy... I guess there are just sooo many of us on here that it is bound to happen! =)
There are so many people on this site taking photos that it is inevitable that repeats happen. I just took this pic this evening, posted it, then saw a similar one on the Pick 65 page that was taken in January and I KNOW I didn't 'copy' it.
Yeah has happened to me. Can remember at least 2 times in particular where I took a shot & not a prepped shot something spur of the moment, & came on to post & saw something almost the same. I posted it anyhow because it maybe a fire shot but it is my fire shot & this is for me.
Happens to me all the time.. I get all excited because I'm thinking I'm clever but of course I'm not.. Still take the picture tho.. Might as well have fun :)
i once saw a photo that another person posted, and i was SURE that she stole it from me. it looked exactly like one i had posted just a couple of days prior. i checked her EXIF and everything! but upon closer review, i saw that she has actually posted her photo before mine AND i ended up liking hers better than mine.
but in seriousness, i say, who cares? everyone sees/captures things through a different set of eyes/lenses. there are plenty of folks on here (like @mattyb and @louish) that take wonderful and really creative shots, and they give you step by step instructions on how to replicate them! and i'll bet that even if someone tried to reproduce the shot, it would come out a little bit (or a lot) different with their own personal spin on it.
i say, take your shot and post it so we all can see and be inspired!
Originality is but one quality of a photo or any piece of art and in my opinion not the most important. It might be important if one want to promote a product or if your main interest is in being very conspicuous. No doubt any creative or original idea one has, has been done before here either now or in the past or in many other sites, schools, countries etc. Seeing it here only makes it more obvious. I am still figuring out and struggling in my mind what is important for me in my photographing. At the beginning (not here) it was only illustrations to words and stories. Now I aspire to let my photos speak by their own ( and frustrated to discover they are still far from that). I guess what I am looking for is an aesthetic value and sentiments or emotions at the same time. I see this project as a process of learning for me and love to see others works and interests and talents.
Happens occasionally, but I don't really care about it. If I think it's a good idea I'll do it anyways. As long as it's not exactly the same concept no one can say it's stolen. Which it isn't. :)
But that's art- it's not about the subject, but about how you show others what YOU see in the subject. Photos are like fingerprints- at first glance they might look similar, but on closer inspection every one is different, personal, unique. That's the beauty (imho)
I get inspired by others on here, and since I am still very much in the learning phase, when I see something I really like, I intentionally "copy" it just to challenge myself. I usually try to credit the original though when I do that. Done it a few times matter of fact..
OOh, but forgot to add that once a friend of mine on here and I posted nearly identical pics one day and didn't know till we'd each posted.
Here's mine...
Oh yes, I've had it a few times and it's so frustrating cause I don't want people think I'm a copycat or something. So I don't post it then and go think of something else.
Great comments. My concern is 'copying' other photographers. I see something I like and try the technique myself. They always turn out different, but I feel guilty. On the other hand, I can't believe the AMAZING ideas and techniques I've found her that have really helped me grow as a photographer.
I guess there is nothing wrong having the same idea, but still although we have the same ideas, the focus, the composition, the colours may still be different... I always remember this favorite quote... We see things not the way they are but the way who we are. even do we are taking photos of similar object, but we always put something into it that is really we can call our own original ideas we put our own stamp to it. Like the two sunflowers above shown by Terri (@girlincamo) both photos are photo of a sunflower, but as you can see the composition of the photos are totally different from each other. Although maybe we are thinking the same subject, but the way we see them are totally different. Cheers everyone and enjoy taking photos. Have a nice weekend!
@indiannie_jones Thanks for starting this interesting topic! Great Minds!
@christiq Thanks for the shout out and you are absolutely right. Step by step instructions will still yield different results every time. Each person has their own style to put a spin on things.
It's happened to me, only once. I chalked it up to the fact that I'm so new to photography that just about anything I come up with has probably already been done by one of you seasoned photog's. It is kinda surreal though when it's very specific.
I frequently habe the same.thoughts too nnie, i think we see things without realising sometimes and it sits there in our minds and comes through as our own idea :-)
Unless u do a direct copy, its still YOUR own work :-D
Great thread, happened to me one day. I was taking a photo of a light bulb, went to look at the peeps that I follow and someone had posted almost the identical photo, I liked theirs better than mine, so I never posted mine. Our minds were on the same subject that day. I had others to choose from that day also so I posted a completely different photo subject. Great minds!
Tweets ahoy!
Join the Group
Pin With Me
so now what i try to do is put a spin of some sort on it , ok sometimes it turnss out its still been done but sometimes not :)
There've been two just today! Maybe four this week. It's absurd.
what i find strange is theres a group of 4 of us who chat in fb doing this project together and so many times there have been massive similarites or same ideas floating around ! with the 4 of us tho we all execute the ideas differently so its not a bad thing :)
It doesn't bother me as such and I always praise theirs, but it makes me have to think of something else which doesn't always work out so well :s
@superal182 I'll still do them anyway :)
There's one that was posted yesterday or the day before floating about, which is actually different from what I had in mind on Monday but I didn't have time so I was going to leave it until the weekend. The set-up is the same, only the message is kinda different. Blah.
anyway it doesn't really matter if the idea has been done the resultant photo will never be the same, everyone has their signature style and spin and a change of a microcosmic amount really can change the world
http://365project.org/nicklynne/365ace/2010-11-27
http://365project.org/alecio/365/2010-11-27
How crazy is that? Pure coincidence
I have a shot in my mind just now I want to do. Was thinking about earlier today but it really depends on weather etc whether I'm in or out to do the shot. If it's nice out I will leave it till later as it's an indoor thing. I tend to think up ideas but I don't look for them on here as it would put me off doing it if I see it so I hope none of you has done this idea in my head. I'm telepathically telling you not this shot. If only, lol.
It has happened to me a couple of times but not enough to get annoyed at yet. If I go out I don't think about what others have done I just shoot and hope the image is good. If it's indoor shots there is more thinking involved and I find they are more difficult to "not copy" even though you aren't copying iykwim.
I prefer to go with the flow and if there are similar shots so be it.
I'm just taking each day as it comes, and see what comes my way. Past couple of days have been crazy, my house has been turned upside down by builders, and they are still hanging about now fixzing the damage they caused :o/ So I've done rush pictures in the evening. But it's all okay :o) I'm doubting I will have the same pics as anyone else or vicer versa, or if there are, like my heart shaped pages book, they are never exactly the same. I didn't notice anyone else's turn of this till ages after, but it's really nice to see the different ways people have done it. Mine was a pain in the bum to keep the pages as a heart haha!
The sun was starting to set and I had no photo for the project.So I just ran out and took a shot.I edited it a bit,and this is the result:
Only to quickly find out that a new "friend" from here took this shot,only hours before:
It`s not exactly identical,but the resemblance is obvious.
I like Paul's @tolpol answer...Synchronisity
If not just blame it on Quantum Physics since I could never explain that.
Also, do not worry what others are doing, just take the photos for yourself and enjoy making your mental images a reality. At the end of the day, my opinion should not really matter, but your work and your ideas should.
but in seriousness, i say, who cares? everyone sees/captures things through a different set of eyes/lenses. there are plenty of folks on here (like @mattyb and @louish) that take wonderful and really creative shots, and they give you step by step instructions on how to replicate them! and i'll bet that even if someone tried to reproduce the shot, it would come out a little bit (or a lot) different with their own personal spin on it.
i say, take your shot and post it so we all can see and be inspired!
Here's mine...
and Kayla's @txgirl
ps. beautiful pictures above!
@indiannie_jones Thanks for starting this interesting topic! Great Minds!
Unless u do a direct copy, its still YOUR own work :-D
i wasnt sure what to take of this...
heres mine... http://365project.org/sam_cr/365/2011-01-28
and heres the other one i stumbled across today... http://365project.org/holly_kate/365/2011-02-19
I put it down to great minds think alike!...