There are so many things that go through my mind as I’m photographing a client. Posing, expressions, body language, my camera settings, background, and lighting. Oh….and that tiny piece of hair that is just sticking out below her chin on a silhouette or his fingertips just sneaking around her waist.

Who would notice? I notice! I see everything!

A hair, undone buttons, or a slightly tilted frame—I’m obsessed with the little details that most people never see unless you pointed it out to them.

I’m sure you have spent some time in Photoshop, and if not, you at least know its power when it comes to editing an image. When I’m in the world, I wanna edit everything! There is a smudge on that wall in a restaurant that I could take care of with a little clone stamp or that lampshade that’s a little crooked. How about the spot on your buddy’s shirt or the scratch on your car door? Content aware fill to the rescue!

I don’t feel alone though. My daughter is a graphic designer and a bit of a font snob. Open a menu or a brochure and listen to her grumble about the misspelled words, poor layout, or the still overused font Helvetica. It allways makes me smile when a fellow creative obsesses over the “little things”.

I embrace my obsessiveness as a superpower.

With my superpower, elements like symmetry, color harmony, and lighting are revealed to me. Scenes like a hallway, leading lines of a path through the trees, a staircase, repeating patterns, or a shaft of light all catch my eye. Did I mention repeating patterns? That’s like visual crack.

Embrace your obsessive nature

Devour all of those things in your world that you love and obsess over. What can set you apart from other photographers might be those obessions, like your images having less clutter or a better composition, shooting in unique lighting, or utilizing a non-standard angle in location most would walk by.

So if you’re a little obsessive about the things that drive your creativity, embrace that nudge and harness your superpower to see the world a little differently and create something amazing! Now, go now……create something now! Stop reading, don’t scroll anymore, don’t look at your phone, grab your camera and follow the tug!