180 Degrees

The most powerful creative techniques provide an opportunity for you to shift your perspective. The most powerful technique of all is reversal. Shift your perspective 180 degrees. Make an observation or assertion. Then make an observation from the opposite perspective or assert the opposite. Use this as a tool for exploration. Many ideas will come to light. It may take a little practice to find the real utility in any technique, so don’t give up too quickly. You’ll also find every technique has its limitations; this technique leads you towards framing things as dichotomies (either/or choices) rather than dialetics (spectrums of possibilities).
How has this helped me? Let me count the ways! Here’s one. It’s been tremendously stimulating for me to constantly shift between making minimally altered photographs and highly altered images.