… it knows what the heck is going on. That place deep inside you where you just know something is not right. Listen to that feeling. It is right more than it is wrong.

Now I know that your head will be arguing with you the whole time. There is a reason for that is ego, romance, “passion”, a fondness for gazing at one’s own navel… the list is too long to imagine. But all of those things make it difficult for that ‘gut feeling’ to get through. And it is the one that is the most important.

And perhaps your initial gut instinct is wrong. Fine, by listening to it you can make better choices, investigate the situation and come to a more rational conclusion.

For instance…

I often see posts by people who have gotten an email that reads something like; “I have seen your work online and it is perfect for us for our project. We have not been able to find a photographer that we like as much as you and we need you to do this for us…”

Right.

Because we know how difficult it is to find the ‘rare photographer’ out there in the world.

And when the email comes from somewhere in LA or New York, it of course makes everything perfectly clear. There are no photographers in LA that can shoot ‘the project’ like you can. This is true even though you have never met the ‘clients’, they do not know anything about you, you live 2400 miles away, and no one has even mentioned what the damn project is. Nope – YOU and YOU ALONE are perfect for this ‘project’. It says so on the email.

Your gut says… “WTF” and your ego says “Wow, this major corporation/agency thinks I am better than all those LA photographers. Yeah! Sucks to be them!” A good thing to do is to ask your FB friends how to proceed now that you have been anointed into world class at-least-better-than-them-LA-fools status. They will offer loads of good ideas on how to land this big fish client.

But your gut says “wait – this doesn’t make any sense. All I have is a Model Mayhem account with 11 hand-bra shots of girls in stripper heels posing on railroad tracks with caution tape wrapped around them and there are certainly better photographers out there in LA who have done this ‘project’ work before…”

Yes… that is absolutely true – however your head is all wrapped in the stars. And your ego.

Now. Listen. To. Your. Gut.

—

The guy was dressed impeccably. He sat in the studio with a beautiful custom leather briefcase, wearing some very expensive shoes, and a Pierre Cardin suit jacket casually thrown over the back of the conference room chair. He was spreading layouts and marketing stuff all over the conference table. This was going to be the next big thing. This was gonna rock the world. This… thing… that he needed photographs of for “marketing and investors and other PR needs.”

This was looking pretty damn good. I could hear fees that would pay my expenses for over a year or more being bandied about with casual flair. Oh man… I wanted this job.

And then – I got it. He called his partner, told him I was the guy. Awesome.

I walked him to the door and he turned to me and said “We have been looking all over town, talked to the agencies and met a ton of photographers but we want to go with you because we couldn’t find anyone who was any good in town.”

BAM… and there it was. My gut knew it… my bullshit meter exploded.

There are fabulous photographers in this town. And while I was pretty good, I was not the top of the totem pole. No way.

I asked who he had seen, and he tossed out a few names as being uncooperative and not the kind of photographer they needed. I knew those guys.

And I knew right away something was stinky like fish in Denmark.

When we get to his car, a brand new Mercedes four door, he begins to explain their ‘cash flow’ crunch. Yes, they needed these images right away, but the first round funding had a snafu and they were waiting for funds to come in from their investors and so they were unable to post any upfront money for the gig and can we shoot tomorrow?

At this point my brain was conflicted with my gut. Damn it was a great gig and of course I would be paid… next… week or month… and damn… he likes me better than those top shooters and – shut up gut, this is a great thing and Immagonnaberich…

My newest workshop starts January, 2015. Only 25 slots available.

After he left, I had a long talk with my inner feelings and came to some realizations.

My gut won. I called him later that day and told him the expenses for film and processing had to be covered before the shoot (Approximately $900… what… you think 8×10 color and Polaroid was about the same price as a 16GB card?) Something didn’t feel right, the comments about other photographers, the new car and ‘funding’ snafu… I just didn’t feel that it made sense to me. I didn’t share that with him, I just became a little more protective of my thousand dollars.

He said “oh, no problem” and told me he would call his partner, work something out and get right back to me.

He didn’t. He found another photographer in Mesa who was thrilled to be considered better than all the other shooters. And, no, he didn’t mind fronting the gig and paying for expenses.

Do I have to tell you the end of this story? How the ‘funding’ didn’t come in, but the company was sold and another company (with the pictures this guy had done) who didn’t pick up any liabilities and since there was no contract with the new company… do I really have to explain that?

Photographers for some strange reason have this affinity for being fawned over and praised. Playing the ego of a photographer takes the same skill levels as playing the radio it seems. And our egos are, collectively, idiots.

A few things about real life to keep your ego in check when somebody is getting ready to play you like a cheap violin:

1. If they do not have the money to pay you today, they will not have it tomorrow.
2. If they tell you that they couldn’t find another photographer, you know instantly that they are lying. There are photographers EVERY where.
3. If it sounds too good to be true, it is actually too goddamn good to be true! Is that hard?
4. Business people have business things… like, you know, contracts and timelines, and a plan.
5. Emails who want to hire you without a conversation first are suspect INSTANTLY. Check them out right away. It can and does happen… but it is sorta rare. (A lot more rare than a photographer in LA, that’s for sure.)
6. Praise is great – Bullshit is for lawns. KNOW the difference or be prepared for a tough journey.
7. The moment you think you are ‘all that’ – you aren’t. There are better photographers out there no matter WHO you are.
8. If the ‘client’ is wearing a suit that costs more than your 85MM f1.4 lens and says they have no money, that is code for “you a damn fool to take this gig.”
9. Crooks and shysters leave a trail. Ask for references… and call around.
10. Never let your ego over rule good old fashioned common sense. There is nothing to be lost in doing some research, asking questions and putting your ‘self esteem’ aside.

—

I had a partner once.

Once.

Along the line things started to ‘feel’ wonky to me. I brushed those feelings aside and attributed them to the stress of running a million dollar business. A year or so later I found out that I should have listened to my gut. At least I would have asked some questions and sought some clarification.

Perhaps I might have even called our accountant. (That would have been an enlightening call.)

It cost me a lot, including some major hits to health and finances. I recovered, thank you… and I take responsibility for not listening to the feelings inside that were telling me what I didn’t want to see.

These days I listen to those innermost feelings, those little pangs of WTF that are sometimes merely a vibration deep in your stomach… and I ignore the ego stuff. That crap is for kids.

And hey, listening to your gut always works for Gibbs – and he always gets his man.

—————–

PHOTO INFO:
Polaroid Type 55 negative untrimmed and contact printed on Seagull #2 for a low contrast print. Toned in Selenium, then re-toned in very diluted Bronze toner for 20 minutes. Camera was a Speed Graphic with a 150MM Schneider lens at f5.6. Handheld “grippest” style. Client: Fiesta Mall