Week 2 Free Inquiry

When given this free inquiry assignment I was excited, the chance to do something you are personally interested as a part of class is a blessing. But then I started to get overwhelmed, there are so many things I want to put energy into, so many hobbies and habits I’d like to pick up that I am not able to because of busy school and just… life, so how was I supposed to pick just one thing to focus on.

While going through the planning stage I decided I wanted to do something creative. I really enjoy being creative but often find it slips to the side due to my busy schedule. How am I supposed to be creative when I have to read textbooks, finish assignments, see family and friends, and do all the other so-called “adulting” (and no, I do not like that I just used that word — but it just kind of captures everything). All this aside I know spending time being creative would likely help my mental health and simply increase my quality of life.

Photo by Emma Scholten is licensed under CC BY 4.0

I have narrowed it down to too main ideas: photography (specifically portrait photography) and creative writing (poems and short stories). They are both things I had decided I wanted to focus on this year so it seems fitting to try these out as my inquiry. I think I will focus on photography, but may share some creative writing on here as well (if that’s okay) to get at the question of whether engaging in creativity has a positive effect on my mental health and in if it does, how I can incorporate and encourage creativity and creative thinking in the classroom.

Because I am pretty active on social media, I might also consider how I can transfer from social media photographer to portrait photographer, and similarly, if these portrait photography skills can be applied back to my social media. For example, could portrait photography lead to brand and product photography and how could I leverage that on social media as another stream of income.

For now, all I am sure of is that I want to devote more time to being creative and with more planning and trying out these two options, hopefully I can narrow it down further.