I have to tell you the response to Monday’s post absolutely blew me away. It clearly hit a nerve and that tells me there are a lot of photographers out there that have been told one thing in the face of a very different reality. And the truth is that the bulk of the pros I know routinely do some …
Confessions of a So-Called PRO.
Shot in Senegal. Long shutter speed. Dawn. Through the windshield. Moments before driver drove off the road, through the ditch and stalled in the bushes. A while back I wrote a piece about the “I’m only an amateur” mentality. In brief it was an unashamed rally call to photographers everywhere to stop seeing themselves as merely an enthusiast, not yet …
No Vision Without Passion
My friend Yves on safari in Kenya. Yves will travel with me to India this year too, and I can’t wait to hang out with him again. He’s a surgeon, but his passion for photography would humble many of the pros I know. I think it was Zack Arias who recently said that if he hear the word “passion” one …
Sustaining The Practice of Art
“The practice of art isn’t to make a living. It’s to make your soul grow.” ~Kurt Vonnegut Chase Jarvis recently posted about his Create-Share-Sustain paradigm. I’ve referenced it, linked to it, quoted it several times this past year. In that paradigm, the notion of sustaining the create-share cycle is generally seen as a financial one. It’s the grease on the …
Christmas 2009
I had a simple “Merry Christmas” post planned for today. I scrapped it. I’m wavering between my desire to let this holiday pass with a simple Christmas greeting and something more personal. I had the same struggle last year and in the end I said everything then that I wanted to this year too. It’s an unusually low-key year for …
A Somewhat Foggy Ethiopian Meditation
I wrote this earlier this year to stave off the insanity of jet-lag one night while on a particularly challenging assignment in Ethiopia. It’s a little stream-of-consciousness and I offer it for what it is. In my defence, my mind was a little foggy from the jet-lag. If you’re looking for wisdom, move along – nothing to see here. The …
Credit Where Credit is Due. Or Not.
I got this email yesterday, and I’m quoting it here in full with only a few edits to protect the identity of the one who sent it: Dear David, What do you know and think about stock photography, and which stock photography company would you recommend using? Really any information you have about stock photography will help. I’m seriously thinking …
Woulda ~ Shoulda ~ Coulda?
I think there are two kinds of photographers among those who are honest enough to admit they compare themselves to others. The first looks at the work of another and says, “I wish I could do that.” The second looks at the work of another and says, “I could have done that.” So because I’ve been, alternately, both of those …
JUST?
At least a couple times a week I get a great email from someone with something nice to say, some piece of advice they’re seeking, or just a general “hey how are ya?” and that email will say something like “I’m just an amateur photographer, but…” Just? That word elicits some pretty mixed responses in me. It makes me angry …
On The Poet & The Geek
My buddy Chris Orwig, a man who combines the poet & geek with grace. A few quick quotes this morning to bring us all back to thinking about the uneasy – but necessary – connection between the artistic and technical sides of ourselves, or our craft. It seems everywhere I look as I study creativity and the creative process, I …