How do you resolve the conflict of the Engineer vs. the Creative? Do you even have it? I struggle with it constantly. I am the epitome of the "too much analysis leads to paralysis" syndrome. I find myself too worried about the technicalities of a shot, be it gear or technique, to the point that I feel it seriously blocks my creativity.
— Andy Garcia
Your question is couched in the language of technique (or technology) compared to the creative muse, but your use of the word paralysis makes me wonder if you might be describing a touch of perfectionism. This is a true paradox for all of us involved in the creative life. We create not just to be productive, but rather to be productive in a certain sort of way. We strive for excellence. For many art makers, it is the pursuit of perfection that drives us. And that's where a potential field of quicksand awaits.
Perfection is a worthy goal. It's opposite is sloth and production with a careless attitude. Even if we aren't aiming for perfection, we are certainly not aiming for sloppiness. So, we set goals and targets out of our reach — on purpose. We push ourselves and our materials to create things that are, by definition, difficult. We equate success in our art life with the achievement of perfection — or at least coming damn close. By itself, there is nothing wrong with this, except . . .
The fear of failure. The engineer in us — I suspect a very strong component of many photographers — then wants to test the thousand on one variables in the process so as to eliminate any flaws. We want control. We lust after precision and predictability. And, if we are not careful, we are sucked down that quicksand in pursuit of the impossible. (There is a story of Ansel Adams deflating a student's perfectionism by remarking, "It's the Zone System, not the Pinpoint System.")
This all fits too nicely with the only practical outcome of obsessive perfectionism — and that's procrastination. Perfectionists want perfection and will tend to interpret criticism (self-inflicted or otherwise) as a failure to reach perfection. Of course, the one sure and infallible way of never falling short of one's goal is to never finish (or start) the work. Procrastination becomes a perverse form of survival. I've often seen this in a workshop scenario where a student puts up work while deflecting any comment upon it with the excuse that it's not yet finished. This is a handy game that allows any challenge to one's creativity to be deflected by the engineer who is "still working on it." It takes courage to say, "It is done" precisely because nothing can be done perfectly. (Remember the words of Goethe, "Boldness has genius in it.")
Back to your question — the engineer is a handy persona for figuring out stuff. We all need to wear that hat from time to time. But, the engineer is also a very handy tool for the procrastinator. There are always more tests that could be run before the artwork is engaged. Always.
Being an artist is a battle of epic proportions played out on a personal gridiron. Perfectionism versus the pursuit of excellence. The procrastinator versus our creative drive. Self-doubt versus self-realization. The drive to create must engage the forces that resist creation, even if these forces are self-imposed or even subconscious. Balance between the (necessary) engineer and the creative self is difficult to maintain, but it is one of the core challenges of being an artist — at least a product and perhaps even satisfied one.
For me, the release from perfectionism came when I realized that art making is a process, not a destination. The artifact is a by-product of the process. If today's product can be improved, that's acceptable when one realizes that learning, progressing, moving, changing, improving, and growing are all part of the artist's path. This goes hand in hand with letting go of the products we've created. But, that's another topic for another day.
Hope these thoughts at least offer something to ponder.