Uncomfortable Places
One thing nice about having a blog is that you have international visitors and can get a different perspective. However, you need not be outside of the U.S. to chime in. 
You’ve heard it so many times before: You have to get out of your comfort zone to improve. What exactly does that mean? Going back to the workshop, Les mentioned that there are rings, if you will, of comfort. In the center, the comfort zone, one ring out, the learning zone, still further out, the panic zone.
He indicated that we should strive to make it into the learning zone. That is, for example, in my interpretation, if we are comfortable with landscape photography, then perhaps we should try photographing macros, or animals, or something along those same lines, but different that we already do. Perhaps it means learning more about Photoshop or Lightroom to be able to express our vision better. The panic zone, of which I have personally experienced, is something way out of the norm, say going from landscape photography to wedding photography – landing in a zone where you are not comfortable at all, nor do you like what you find there.
My question is this:
Is this an American thing? The desire to be uncomfortable once you have reach comfort – to never be satisfied – to always strive for more, bigger is better – more is more! 
It is ever-present in our culture. We want bigger houses, more money, more prestige, an economy that grows and grows. We want the DOW Jones average to go above 10,000 (Yippee, we made it! Now let’s do 11,000, now 12,000, 13,000, etc). This all takes a toll on everyone and consumes resources at an unprecedented rate.
Many years ago, when computers were first introduced, they were to be the saving grace. We could get more done in less time and have more leisure time. Nope. Companies realized that they could squeeze more in in 8 hours, make more profit. Expand.
With photography, we are always being challenged to do more, learn more, never be satisfied with your work. Grow! Grow! Grow! I’m not disagreeing with Les, per se, because I’m usually reading and experimenting to learn more about my skill, or how to refine it so as to make it more effortless, but have little desire (anymore) to branch out into other areas other than those that I am very familiar with.
If you’re a great landscape or people photographer, for example, why take an off ramp to something else, unless you get tired and want a change?
Your take?
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Yes, backing into that image could be an uncomfortable zone.
What is his definition of comfort zone? Anything we take on that requires a risk or learning curve is out of my comfort zone. Approaching people on the street is always stepping out of my comfort zone. I suppose shooting nude females would also be out of my comfort zone. But, I do believe we need to occasionally move into those uncomfortable places, except for the nudes.
Monte Stevens recently posted..Alone on the Horizon
Hmmm, uncomfortable shooting nudes … I don’t know if I would. I might have to think about branching into that zone!
I’m not really sure what the decision of comfort zone is, other than only working within where you are comfortable, but I can’t really see a reason not to do that and seeking to improve in that area – perhaps that is what it mean, continuous improvement, not necessarily ‘changing’ areas.
Paul recently posted..About the comfort zone?
Here in the corporate world we seem to be obsessed with what I call “betterfastercheapermore.” The continuous improvement thing, change for change’s sake. Even if things are working perfectly we insist on changing things for the sake of change. I for one tire of it, but it’s difficult to avoid or ignore. I don’t know that it unique to us, but it seems to be much more prevalent here.
I do believe that Les is referring to the improvement in our work that comes with mastering our skills and refining our vision, but from the standpoint of personal growth resulting in stronger work and not change for change’s sake. Sometimes we need to stretch out of our “rut” just to know what the possibilities are.
Tom Dills recently posted..A Number of Good Points
I tend to agree. One can stay in the same type of shooting, say landscapes, but seek to improve their presentation skills, post processing skills, etc. This would be, I think, getting out of the comfort zone. More food for thought.
Paul recently posted..About the comfort zone?
You know, the more that I think about it, I think that this print group that we are forming is certainly out of my comfort zone. I’ve resisted printing because it seems like a bit of voodoo that I might not want to get in, yet, at the same time, when I see a great looking print, I wish that I knew how to do it. So, away we go, flying directly out of the comfort zone!
Paul recently posted..About the comfort zone?
Sounds like I’d better get started on my proposal then! Planning to work on it this weekend. We’ll see how the schedule looks when the weekend actually gets here!:)
Tom Dills recently posted..A Number of Good Points
I think that my first print will be yesterday’s photo of Hobbs! Now, I just need ink!
It’s a good thing our comfort zone can be as ever changing as we ourselves are. When we venture into an area outside our “comfort zone” and spend time exploring and learning it often then becomes part of that zone and when we are away from something for an extended period of time it may no longer fall within our zone of comfort.
Then there are certainly cases where we never become comfortable with something. Interesting topic and food for thought.
Earl recently posted..In the creative spirit
Interesting topic and relevent to my experiences this past weekend in shooting models – definitely out of my comfort zone! I think humans are naturally curious and desire to learn – and much of what there is to learn can place an individual outside their comfort zone. Back in the 80′s I decided to learn rock climbing, so I took a weekend course with EMS. It was enlightening, and I learned something: I didn’t want to be a rock climber! Still, with the experience under my belt, I’d widened my horizons, and started looking at other subjects. I would love to shoot nudes (tastefully, of course), but first I’d best get used to directing models!
John recently posted..A People Pic
I thought that rather funny, but poignant. How else would you know unless you tried? I took carpentry in high school – I am not a carpenter! No way!
If you would have not tried, you would have always wondered.
I’ll keep checking back to see how you do with your models.
I think you can blame the constant reaching on human nature. Some cultures put a lid on that basic nature, while others celebrate it. What doesn’t change (has no growth) begins to rot and die, after all.
Wouldn’t anything new you attempt put you outside that inner circle of your comfort zone? Beginning to print your work; committing to a blog; publishing work you aren’t certain about; trying new processing techniques; establishing a new web presence; learning new software; switching from mostly horizontal to vertical shots; exploring depth of field; etc. For me, it has meant two big challenges recently: moving to more stylized and impressionist work and diving into art shows to see if I can sell my work. The curiousity to experiment, grow, and test our limits keeps us vibrant and alive. Even a tree keeps reaching for the sky.
Anita Jesse recently posted..The Power of the Pen
Thanks, Anita. You are wise, as usual. I suppose that all of those could be considered getting out of your comfort zone, unless you are really comfortable doing them.
Yes, we keep morphing into something different, daily. We can either flow with the natural changes or create opportunities for changes ourselves, such as taking classes, experimenting, selling, printing and the like.
I’ve heard the expressions “comfort zone” and “think outside the box” for years and after 30 years with a large corporation that was extremely well diversified, I know that there is a lot to be said about the ideals. With that philosophy there is a risk of failure that should be viewed a the learning experience. A failed photo can be a lesson learned.
Back in school, we had 2 assignments to shoot nudes. It’s a posing and lighting challenge and you can’t underestimate the value of a good model.
Ken Bello recently posted..BLUE MONDAY
Good points, Ken. Most everything, I think, is an opportunity to learn, especially those things that didn’t work out the way that you wanted, or expected them to. I should be well versed in photography, though, as many failed photos as I have had!
Paul recently posted..About the comfort zone?
I’m not sure that I buy into the (implicit) argument, that one does not (or even cannot) learn within one’s comfort zone. I spent quite a bit of time teaching students, and in my experience they learn best, while being challenged within their comfort zone.
But of course it all depends on your aims. Why should I even try to step into the definetely non-comfort zone of wedding photography, if I don’t have the slightest ambition or interest to develop skills there?
Learning happens when you are at the borders of your “skillzone”, but still very much in your “interest zone”. Or?
And when it comes to “growth”, I’d say one needs to make a clear distinction between quantitative and qualitative growth….
Thomas recently posted..Scottish st/d-ream
Quantitative growth is easily measured, I think. Qualtitative, on the other hand is very much subjective and difficult to measure. I like the thought and your choice of word, ‘skillzone’. That makes more sense to me.
Wow, seems like this topics speaks to everyone!
To me, it’s one of those external ‘should’ things – you get it everywhere in life, not just photography, you have the idea from somewhere that you ‘should do this’ or you ‘should do that’ and they can manifest in your mind having come from lessons your parents tried to teach you, an echo of a scary teacher from your childhood, un unspoken expectation from society or your neighbours/friends/workplace – and the agenda behind it isn’t necessarily always positive for you. If i’ve learned anything in my life so far, it’s to be suspicious of these ‘shoulds’ and question each one to find out if it’s actually useful to you. If you can do that and think that there’s value to be had from forcing yourself to do something that you have to go out of your way to do, then it’s probably going to make you feel like it’s a learning/growing experience because you’ve gone into it of your own accord rather than from having the blind belief that it’s going to be ‘good for you’.
I had recently come to my own conclusion that I’m happiest with subject matter that’s interesting to me – if someone told me i should go out and shoot a football game (that’d be ‘soccer’ to you guys!) I wouldn’t gain anything from the experience. But what I would like to do is push forward and do something different in how I shoot the subjects I like, because it feels a bit disappointing, almost, if we were to say “yeah I like what I’m doing and I don’t think I need to change anything at all about it”. Why would I do it any more, if i thought I’d reached my goal? Maybe that just gives a clue about why I’m doing it in the first place…
Hmmmm, maybe I could have put that more succinctly, sorry!
julie recently posted..muddy paws and happy faces
I like what you said here, but would put a bit of a different spin on it. I don’t consider my photography a goal, but, to use more cliche, a journey. It’s a day by day thing with no particular goal in mind. I do it just to do it and I enjoy it. Whatever springs from it springs from it so, if there were a goal, I don’t suppose that I’d even recognize it and cease to photograph.
And, of course, I agree with you about the “shoulds”, but I don’t think, necessarily that is what Les was talking about, going into something completely different, but more along the line of improvement or perhaps diversification in an area that you find comfortable.
Like Julie, I have to have an interest in a subject before I think I would learn anything from photographing it. I suppose there is an important distinction between doing something where you don’t know what you are doing and hoping to gain some profound insight or just trying something to break stagnation. I have often thought about how it would be cool to photograph live concerts, but I don’t know if I would learn anything there that would influence the way I shoot nature.
Mark recently posted..Bullfrog in Duckweed pond