Spring fever—you know the drill. It starts warming up outside, trees and flowers start blooming, we start noticing birdsong we’ve not heard since the year prior, and that’s when the itch hits. Suddenly we no longer want to go to work or do anything but run outside to enjoy the sunshine and balmy breeze. And that’s the perfect time to go out and create photographs.
Why? At first glance, it might seem like an ideal time for photography because with the world flushing into full bloom, and you’ll be inspired to create all kinds of spring-themed photographs. It is an ideal time for photography, and spring-themed photos are certainly a possibility, but to my mind, this isn’t the key opportunity that comes with a good case of spring fever.
Rather, I think spring fever encourages a couple of things that are valuable to the creation of photographs in general, regardless of the theme. These would be the spirit of exploration, and a sense of oneness with your surroundings.
That’s the thing about spring fever. As I’ve said, when it hits, all you want to do is go outside. What you do out there seems secondary. The biggest part of the urge is to feel the sun and the wind—and that makes it the perfect time to grab the camera and just go out wandering to see what you might turn up. Enjoy the day, enjoy the sights, scents, and sounds, and while you’re at it, take a few photographs of whatever it is that you happen to be aimlessly exploring.
Let that sense of oneness that I mentioned be your guide as you explore. When you have that feeling of “oneness” with your surroundings, it typically means you’re much more observant than you normally might be. It means, in a nutshell, that you’re immersed in your surroundings. When you’re immersed, you’re actively sensing the world around you. Things like the earthy scent of freshly unfrozen ground and growing plants, the songs of early spring birds, the refreshing warmth of the sunlight, the new colors starting to emerge after winter dormancy.
Now is the time to notice these things and to experience them—and to discover what you can make with them through your lens. Let the scent of freshly unfrozen earth guide you toward creating photographs of new foliage emerging through the soil. Birdsong may inspire you to sit and watch the birds, perhaps capturing a few images of them at play. Floral scents on the breeze may lead you around a bend in the path where you discover daffodils or a flowering tree. Or maybe, if you wait and enjoy the day long enough, some interesting new idea will occur to you, and then you’ll be able to create something you might not otherwise have considered had you not decided to give in to the spring fever. That’s the biggest thing—and it’s something I’ve mentioned before, too. Just go out and experience the world around you. Be an observer, and capture what you observe. Rather than looking wistfully out the window, use spring fever to your advantage.
