As I sit here and organize my photography website for the new decade I was reminded of how far one can come if given time. I think it might be helpful to look back at your work and see how far you’ve come, whether you want to admit it or not:
A Facebook memory popped up as I was working on my website and I was pleasantly surprised (and embarrassed) at how far my photography has come in 9 years. I remember experimenting with that first new DSLR and taking images using HDR software because I thought that was pretty cool. My images were all so over saturated, and over edited. As I dug in the archives everything looked like I was screaming and grasping at straws. They also lacked a style, and did very little to tell any cohesive story. My images were like a shotgun approach, and I would not really care to share them now. I did get nostalgic about those early days and really miss that feeling of being excited about every new piece of gear and every new technique I learned.
I really believe that photography comes in a 3 act narrative (see graphic) and the hardest and most difficult stage comes after you figure out how to take pretty pictures. I have written about this before, but the third stage of any creative endeavor is the photographer against themselves. What will you do with your new found skills? How will you move humanity forward and what can you do to help us all? How can you tell your truth and also bring us all with you, using your camera as a tool?
The best part of this FB memory popping up is today I started to line up some of my longer term projects and also get them more solidified in my mind. It’s a small start, but I can start to see my work firming up into something and that is a great feeling.
No matter where you are photographically, enjoy your stage and look back to see how far you have come today.
