John Robertson Photography - My Blog

Jul 18, 2025

Finding Light in Still Moments: Creativity at Breakfast

As a photographer, the rhythm of work ebbs and flows with the seasons. Summer, especially during the school holidays, often brings a noticeable slowdown in commissions. Families go away, and many commercial clients take time out. The calendar opens up in unexpected ways. But what I’ve learned over the years is that creativity doesn’t follow the same schedule. It doesn’t take a break just because the bookings do.

This Friday, with no early shoots or meetings, I took the opportunity to enjoy a quiet breakfast at my local Café Nero in Market Harborough, Leicestershire. Normally, the café is bustling — a popular pitstop for commuters, families, and shoppers. But this morning it was unusually peaceful.

As I sat with my coffee, I noticed the morning light slicing through the window, casting long shadows across the tiled floor. The floor itself — a geometric, black-and-white pattern of diagonal triangles — suddenly came alive in the sunlight. A nearby table had a simple wooden chair pulled out, its curved back catching the light just so. There was a graphic quality to the scene that stopped me mid-sip. I reached for my iPhone — the only camera I had on me — and captured the image you see here. It’s a simple photo, taken in a fleeting moment, but it reminded me that creativity doesn’t wait for a booking or a client brief. It shows up in quiet cafés, over coffee, in the ordinary places we go every day. Photography, at its core, is about seeing — really seeing — the world around you. So yes, work may slow down in the summer months, but that doesn’t mean the creative thought process stops. These moments of calm are an invitation to observe, to notice, and to create without pressure. The light will always find a way in — even during breakfast!