Carving the path, click by click

The only way to improve as photographers, and to build a collection of good images, is to do it... one click at a time.

One click at a time

Building a collection of images we love from scratch can feel overwhelming. Being constantly exposed to the work of thousands of photographers every day doesn't help.

The feeling of falling behind can materialize really quick. And before we know it, we give up.

This is a trap, and we must avoid falling into it.

Photography is a lifelong journey, it does take a lot of time and effort to build a portfolio of good images. It's not going to happen overnight. It won't be easy. But it's something we need to do everyday.

Quite literally, it happens one click at a time.

Remember: you are just one click away.

Catching up

Nothing lasts forever, and this trip wasn’t going to be an exception. I’m back in Indiana after 3 incredible months on the road, a time I spent trying to take it all in as much as I could. I don’t know when I’m going to have the chance to hit the road again, so I gave it all I had.

That means I pretty much put everything else on hold. Among other things, my exercise habits, this blog, and email.

I’m catching up now: I’ve started to exercise again, this post is the first of hopefully many to come here in the blog, and I’ve replied to a few emails that had been patiently waiting for a response for a while. I will be getting back to people on social networks soon, too. If you tried to contact me and I haven’t gotten back to you by the end of this week, please try again.

Being back is bittersweet: it’s great to be with family again, and having a routine makes me feel more energized and healthier. But I miss the road already, all the sunrises and sunsets I saw out west over those stunning landscapes.

As this part of my photography journey ends, the first snowstorms of the season here in the Midwest are already signaling the beginning of the next one. I can’t wait to take my cameras out once the white powder takes over these landscapes.

The blessing of the beginner

If you are just starting out your artistic journey, you are blessed with freedom. You can choose to do whatever you want. You get to build your skills, your style, and your portfolio along with your audience.

A body of work needs some consistency over time, for both the artist and the audience's sake. A singer builds an audience because they stay loyal to a genre and style.

All artists should evolve. But when you've established an audience, change is hard. When a band releases a new album that doesn't sound like them, fans complain. It doesn't matter if it's good or not, what matters is that it wasn't what they were expecting.

Take advantage of your current freedom, don't be afraid of experimenting and sharing the results. Eventually, you'll settle on a style that clicks with you and an audience.

Here for the long term

I’ve been making images for a few years now. Back when I got started, I had no idea where this passion of mine would lead me. Today, I spend most of my days taking photographs, editing photographs, writing about photography, thinking about photography, talking about photography, studying photography.

While I don't know how long I'll be able to do this full time, I do know that even if I had to get another job to pay the bills, I'd still be doing photography.

This project of mine has grown to the point of being the purpose of my existence: to record what I see in a visual form, and to inspire others to do the same.

As I admitted recently, there's something missing in my work, and there always will. The same way a diary is never finished, I will never be "done" with my images which I consider to be my reflection, a part of me.

This is a life-long project. One I'm extremely excited about.