It's been almost 2 years since I left Portland and the PNW. At first, I thought this would be terrible for my photography. Nature and wilderness was all I used to capture, after all.
White it's true that sometimes I miss the landscapes of the West, moving away has also forced me to see and think differently when it comes to photography.
I had to open my mind to new subjects as I moved to the Midwest first and to Europe later. I was out of my comfort zone and like many photographers, I struggled with what I should even photograph.
Embrace your environment
You see, I made the mistake of limiting myself to one genre. I'd dream of images I wanted to create just to end up feeling frustrated because the place I was at didn't offer that.
Eventually, I stopped chasing imaginary photographs and embraced the environment around me. Photography became fun again.
Not only that, but I created some of my favorite images in a place I'd never thought of photographing before.
I am a different person now to who I was 2 years ago, and my photography has evolved along with me. I believe that my images are now more varied and richer than they used to be.
Stay open
If you struggle with what to photograph, I'd say:
Photograph what inspires you the most, like I did when I captured nature and the wilderness. Stay open, though.
Don't impose artificial limits on yourself and your photography. Experiment, capture what surrounds you, document your life... photograph everything.
This will keep your creative mind going and prevent you from burning out. It will also add variety to your photography and who knows, you might even new favorite subjects to photograph!