Tools, Are Just Tools

Sometimes I wonder if I have been taking the easy way out. Do I work as hard as I can on the things I create? Do I take as long as I need to bring the ideas I want into the world? The concepts I shape into visuals and sound — are they really me, or am I letting the tools I use leak into the work?

Of course, the software I use is going to influence what my ideas become. Am I okay with that? I think I have to be, at least to a certain extent.

I’ve had a saying for most of my creative life: tools are just tools. But in the digital age, are they really just that?

Maybe this kind of retrospection is useful. Deep down, I want the things I create to feel representative of me. And maybe acknowledging that the software I use will always have some influence on the work is part of the process.

I think I just need to keep checking in with myself as I go. Making sure what I’m creating still feels like me.