Help me find subject inspiration in my backyard!

[jacknimble]

I have a problem. I have a tendency to think that I have to take an exotic trip in order to find interesting subjects to photograph,which translates to not taking nearly as many pictures as I should with all this expensive equipment. I just can't seem to find interesting subjects in my city, although i'm open to the possibility this is only because I have lived here for so long. How can I look past the usual for me and find the unusual for someone else?

[Jim G]

Go out for a walk with only a 50mm lens... see what you can see through a limited FOV.

I always find that just walking around provides nearly endless photo opportunities... interesting bits of graffiti, bits of buildings, people, vehicles, sign oddities, you name it.

[rral22]

Simply decide to shoot 100 images of your back yard in half an hour. After about image 75 you will be doing things you have never done before.

[oaktree]

I'm lucky that my backyard is 100 ft x 100 ft, with large trees on all 3 sides and a empty lot to the East. I have birds, raccoons, squirrels, evil cats :), and occasional bats roaming through or above the yard. I also have a lot of fruit and shade trees, flowers and vegetables in the yard.

So I get to shoot all the flowers/plants any time and as much as I want. They don't move (except when it's windy) and I can catch them with good lighting if I just wait.

The wildlife takes much more patience. Birds consistently come and go, but they may be hiding or the lighting is all off. If I move very slowly, I can get pretty close to them, especially if they're in a tree busily eating fruit. Squirrels and raccoons are rarer and many times I don't have my camera ready. Cats? I throw gravel at them since they're usually going after the birds and squirrels. Bats? Very rare and usually at dusk so, even if I had my camera ready, this would be a very difficult shot: BIF = bat in flight :) My only chance would probably be a silhouette against a darkening red sky.