long term
In a world that is constantly trying to sell us shortcuts and workarounds, it's important to realize that the road to great photography is rather unassuming and kind of boring. It is the accumulation of great work made over the years with hard work that we can start building a body of work. It is a very simple path, but not easy to follow.
Nature was the reason why I got started in photography. The beautiful landscapes of Oregon awakened my senses, and I felt like I had to create something with what I was seeing, hearing and smelling. For a long time, that was what drove my photography.
Even though I was documenting my everyday life with photographs as well, I never thought of those moments as situations where I could create art. They were just snapshots.
I was wrong. Very, very wrong. Any moment, any situation, no matter where you are, no matter what you are doing, is a good moment to create art. I shot the image above while I was writing this post, from the window in my bedroom.
Not just that, but anything could be worth of your attention. Why limit yourself to a tiny subset of the world, when there are so many interesting things to photograph everywhere?
Sometimes, all it takes is to try it. Before judging a place or an object worthy or unworthy of a photo, just put your camera up to your eye and try it. Walk back a little and show the whole scene, or get close and look for the details. Try to find the beauty in everything.
Going from landscape photographer to everything photographer was one of the most profound changes I made to my photography. It opened a whole new world of imagery for me, but also showed me that I could do photography at anytime, anywhere. I didn't have to wait to go anywhere, I could do right at home.
All photography is practice. The more we practice, the better we get. And because we don't control most of what happens outside, the more we get out, the more chances we have to make great images.
The most important step is also the hardest: don't stop.
Photography is a long-term game - it takes a long time (perhaps a lifetime!) to have a portfolio full of good images.
But it's a game we must play as often as we can. Showing up every day will give us a much better chance to create what we want.
Create everyday, no matter how small, and your portfolio will end up being impressive.
Be consistent, stay healthy, and put the effort.
Results to our hard work are often delayed; in photography, they can be delayed years in the future. But they will come.
Keep shooting.
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.
I thought she wasn't going to make it. It was just the beginning of another long day in the Camino and she seemed to be struggling quite a bit. With more than 16 miles ahead of us, she was limping. Overcoming the pain, the strong winds, the constant rain and the muddy trail wasn't going to be easy. I was fighting my own battles, and quickly passed her.
As the day unfolded, I ran into her multiple times. Somehow, she'd managed to keep up with me at a much slower pace. I was stopping every few minutes to take photos and film some locations. I didn't see her stopping even once: her pace was slow, but relentless. She ended up making it before me.
Photography is a similar journey. Some days feel like big steps: for me, that's a foggy day or a day spent in the mountains. It feels amazing to know you've just made a great image, but it's what we do in between that sets our pace. Do we stop and wait until the next big leap? Or do we keep going, even if only slowly?
I believe photography is something we must do everyday. This involves much more than just shooting: working on our images, starting that book we've been putting off, planning our next trip, sharing our vision on a blog post or youtube video, and of course getting some inspiration from other photographers and artists.
We are here for the long game. Some days will require putting our head down and push forward, even if it feels like we are limping and not progressing much. We need to be relentless because those days are the ones that will define us and the ones that will make the difference in the end.
