(Photograph by Tom Seibert taken as on assignment at the Cincinnati Workshop)
It’s been a while since I have done a post from the pool. Sorry about that. Hopefully this little treasure trove of images will be fun to peruse as you go about the first of November. We’ll get to those images after the jump. I am getting ready to head to the airport as I write this. Heading home from the Norfolk workshop. This is a dual post, so something for all.
Lately I have been have had some fairly long conversations with several photographers about the business we all love. I love to talk about photography (as anyone who has taken a workshop can attest to – heh) and the changes that are coming so fast and furious are having a destabilizing effect on many. Constant bombardment about how terrible things are from a media that has lost more credibility than they can ever hope to gain back only drives the conversations to blank walls. Believing in ‘the demise’ of anything will only hurry it along.
I don’t think it has to be that way. The hype is not met by the reality.
I hear all the time about how this is a terrible time to start a business. It is simply too hard with these bleak economic times. It is terrible out there and look at all the failed businesses. Yeah, it is not a good time to start being a photographer.
One word for that: bullshit.
When times are good, you are told that “there are too many competitors and you have a great job after all.” “And look how many fail”, they say.
When times are not so good the mantra turns to “look how many fail” and “the competition is fierce, and you should be happy to have a job.”
I sense a confusion there. It cannot be the same for both situations, and yet no matter what, people who want to start a business are bombarded with the message that it is ‘way too damn hard’ to make it.
And that comes from a basic meme that doing anything for yourself will only end up in ruin. No one can succeed in anything without being ‘special’. Play it safe, don’t try. The good part about not trying is that failure is never an option. “We don’t want you to be disappointed.
It is hard for me to imagine how many people feel that way. In reality failure is always an option. To think that a job with the corporation is a win forever is to ignore the plain facts of the world. It isn’t. Disappointment is a fact of life. Deal with it.
Does that mean that opening your own photography business will be a huge success? Heck no! There is nothing in life that is guaranteed. Nothing. Wait… there are a few guarantees that I missed:
1. If you don’t try, you will NEVER fail. Guaranteed.
2. If you don’t try, you will NEVER succeed. Guaranteed.
Which is better for you? I made my choice to always try long ago. I have failed and succeeded. Some wins / some losses. Given the choice of working for someone else and having to live or die on their wonderful or stupid decisions doesn’t work for me. It never has.
I have met some wonderful people who have lost those cushy jobs they thought they had for life. Some of them are in desperate times, hoping for rescue and salvation from somewhere/someone. Some have started their businesses and are finding more success than they thought they would ever of had. In a couple of cases, they are projecting income to reach the level of what they were making before in a year or so.
I can’t tell you what ‘magic’ the successful group has over the other. But I can give you a hint… they don’t listen to the naysayers – the supposedly ‘well meaning’ people around them telling them that failure is the result of every venture. They take that information for what it is… pure and unadulterated bullshit. They look instead to those who are successful, working hard and getting it done. Role models are a choice. I would suggest choosing those who are successful.
They move constantly and consistently toward their goals without paying heed at all to any of the imagined obstacles those folks want to reveal. There are plenty of real obstacles out there, no need for the imagined, conjectured or simply made up to be added.
I am so proud of anyone who takes up the mantle of entrepreneur and starts to make their own life their own. Photography is a wonderful business. It will remain so for a long time to come. Things have changed… some for the good and some for the not so good. Can you name any industry or endeavor that could not make that claim today? Of course not. Change for the good and change for the bad are constants.
It is, as they say, what it is.
This little discussion was due to a conversation with a photographer who had been to Photo East this past week. Gigantic booths. New lighting gear. New cameras, tools, lenses, and a plethora of extraneous gear showcased in a venue that was huge by anyone’s description.
That, folks, doesn’t sound like an industry in decline, does it?
Nope.
On to the 22 images from the Flickr Pool.
As with all of the Flickr posts we do on LE, click the image to be taken to the photographer’s stream. And leave them a note that you saw their image on LE.
Love this shot. It just makes me smile. Lighting seems apropos, and within a genre that makes it viable. Great talent too!
Great light and gesture here. Well composed in a classical sense, and the subject seems to confront the viewer with a genuine intensity.
Lighting is applied well to bring this subject to life. Well styled, well composed and presented. Classical composition is in keeping with the feeling of the image.
Powerful presentation of light and dark. Subject sells the shot with a very strong expression. Clean and strong work.
I like this. Lighting is within the genre, and the overall feeling is quite strong. Nice, quirky composition.
Strong compositional element of negative space. The light on the subject is very powerful as well. Adding in strong gesture and expression and the resulting shot is quite strong.
Beautiful introduction of shadow as a compositional element. The strongly graphical balconies are broken up by the sharp point of the shadow. Plus I am a sucker for facades with cool light.
I love everything about this shot. The quirky model, the pose, the composition and the exquisite light. Film has a look, doesn’t it? One I love.
Classical compositional elements with a very contemporary pose and expression collide to present something different. The light is sublime, and the model’s expression pulls you into the shot.
Fun with light.
The power of extremes. Gesture and composition combine with the rim/side light to make a graphical – and yet very personal – statement.
Strong elements of composition and lighting. The strength of the subject is shown so well with the gesture and the element of anonymity adds a bit of mystery.
I like the black and white approach to this image. The ‘random’ lights and darks are a perfect pallet for the subject to ‘pop’ from.
Proving what I say about exposure… there is no ‘right’ exposure, there is only your exposure. The dark and haunting tones to this shot make it a stand out. Nicely done.
Composition, light and gesture. There ya go…
Classic and nicely done. BTW, I like the composition just as it is.
I like this a lot. Confrontational gesture and confrontational light!
Wow. Just… wow.
The light and the texture and the composition are all strong… add the gesture from the subject and you have an image that pulls you in.
Heh. Sometimes it is simply a shot of something we see all the time, but in a new and interesting way. This is an example. Composition/light/framing.
Very nicely done.
Composition and framing present a striking portrait. The subject then captivates the viewer with a powerful expression.
Hey – thanks for taking a look at these images. As always, click on the image to visit the photographers Flickr stream. If you love an image, drop on to their site and let them know. It’s fun to participate.
If you are interested in following me around you can choose to legally cyberstalk me at Twitter. Workshop information in on Learn to Light, and keep tuned in to Lighting Essentials for some interesting posts coming up.
Good post.
The thing I would add: Assuming you start out, and given the choice, I’d rather start out in a bad economy than a good one. You might end up with a false sense of success in a good one, and once it turns sour (it always does) you might be unprepared. Other way around is better.
Yes. That reminds me of something Chris Buck said over at Hetherington’s blog. Now is a great time to start in photography. The expectations are lower. That is a good thing, and it can be a very powerful motivator.
Interesting post. As someone still in the corp world and looking to transition to self employment, this article rings so true. And I’ll be honest – I don’t know anymore what the risk difference is between corporate life and being an entrepreneur. See, I’ve read my employment contract. It reads the same as almost every single other one. My employment is strictly at the whim of my employer. It could end tomorrow – for any reason whatsoever – and three times in the last four years it almost has. Doesn’t matter how hard I’ve worked, how many awards I’ve received, how decorated my employment history is – if a spreadsheet somewhere says I’m redundant then so it is. I don’t say this to be negative, but I also try to be realistic. So I’m taking steps forward now to have a foundation in place should that day suddenly come. And if not then I’ll keep moving forward until I can support myself and my family with what I love to do.
In any case, I’d rather rise or fall on my own merits, not on the unpredictability of a corporate analyst. If I’m doing my own thing, and I work hard to make it successful, then I reap the results of that. All of it.
There’s 1000 reasons not to do something at any given time. More often than not, they’re cop outs for people who don’t want to see things through.
Great post Don. Not only true to photography and business, but life in general. I’m someone who has never believed the media hype, and despite the doom and gloom that works for some people, it’s not me. When this year started, I decided to shrug off everyone’s bad energy, and go along with what I wanted. That means not taking Craigslist ads, and most photography forums too seriously. While photography is not my primary career, I made the decision this year for it to be an official side business, and have been focused on steering it in a direction I think it can go. So far, things are working out nicely and I’m learning what is managable. I wanted to thank you for the insight and skills learned in your workshops.
While my clients are the direct consumer, and not commercial; I find too many of them looking for something free. Fortunately for me, my short 13 years in corporate American has been nothing but positive. We’re growing…hiring…and all those good things that happen in an economic meltdown. 😉 That said, I can pick and choose who I decide to work with. If someone starts a sentence asking for rates with, “Due to the economy…”; that isn’t someone I care to work with. As hard as it may be for a full time photographer, you shouldn’t undercut your talent to work with them either.
Also, nice selection from the LE Flickr Pool. It looks like I REALLY need to step up my game!
I am taking this as my kick in the @$$ to get moving on my portrait business. That first step is the hardest and I have too many missed opportunities already in life. Thanks Don for your encouragement! I always seem to finish reading your posts feeling empowered.
Don,
From where I sit, the foremost thing as a new business startup in any economy is that you must accept the business side of photography as critically important – actually you must acknowledge business as the operative word in “photography business”. Paperwork, selling, interfacing with vendors, sky high taxes, computer time, accounts receivable, and even some time behind the camera are what a photograpy business is all about. By accepting business as the key word in Photography Business well before you hang a shingle and you’re going to be a lot closer to success than the next guy who just “dreams” of being a photographer.
Tom
Thanks, Don, this a great honor. Looking forward to next year’s workshop schedule.
@ Tom,
your words of wisdom jumps off the page..
@ Don,
your article is so true.. there is so many uncertainties…. and any small business is a leap of faith..
so i say with photography, you must strive to make the most interesting photo possible, always pushing, being creative, so that your work is different and sought after..
doing photography as a full time business might feel like work or just living the dream.. i don’t know that yet.. because i don’t have the full faith, and being in a company for at least 15 years now. makes it so hard to switch.. ahhhuuugg.. decisions decisions..
but i do like how you spin it.. you don’t try, you will never know…
again.. thanks for putting out quality articles ..
phamster
Phamster.
I would never be so presumptive as to tell someone to quit a job or make a life changing choice like that. There are so many other circumstances and situations that must be dealt with.
I do believe though, that sometimes life throws us a curve ball or two. Being prepared to deal with them is important. And sometimes we just have to believe in ourselves more than in the doom and gloomers.
Thanks for the kind words.
Great article, Don, thank you. It is not easy to get out there, we’re sometimes afraid of negative feedback, but it sure is much more frustrating to bore to death in a “real job” than to know that you at least tried. And the tons of stuff you learn along the way always make the journey absolutely exhilaranting!
greetings from Brazil!
i mean “exhilarating”
such a difficult word 🙂