Don’t give up…  Don’t ever give up!

And I mean this on so many levels…

Apologies to the late Jim Valvano. I had occasion to meet and talk with him briefly once… Class guy.  Sad for his loss way too soon.

So.. for photographers… and our work.

First… and most importantly… as a photographer.   You work hard, you develop, you learn, you expand, your work is improving… don’t quit.  Don’t give up.  There have been times, even recently, I wanted to throw in the towel.  Frustrations.  Not having the ability to go shoot.   Not doing well in competitions.  Not being motivated to pursue and create.   Feeling like the effort, time, money and the soul spending wasn’t paying off (and at times, certainly not!)

Those things happen.   Success as a fine art photographer, any kind of photographer, doesn’t happen over night.  Ok.. sometimes they do… but for most of us, nope.  It takes more than a month, a year.. more.   But to be true to yourself and to your art, you must preserver…  keep pushing yourself to improve and expand… to exhibit your vision out there.

I hope to get “there.”  Where what I am investing in every sense of the word, is worthwhile.    That is the end game… I can tell you that the journey to that is wonderful, and in and of itself, worthwhile.   That helps keep the “investment” in perspective, and the disappointments

AND TOO…

This applies to a shot.   You stood there, considering the scene… you looked at angles, motion, light, composition.  You plopped the tripod down and firmed up your camera.  Move to the left a foot.   No… More… Arrrrgggg.. Back 5 feet or so and refocus…  Ahhh… , well, just as that and no more.

Back home…   BOOOORRRRRIIIINNG (Boring.. to simplify)

I took the first image in January of 2016.    Passed on it.   Boring!!!!

Cleaning up the hard drive in January 2017…  Hmmm.

I didn’t give up.  The shot meant something when I took it.  I just didn’t understand then how to make the image evoke what I felt at the time.   I… needed time.  To learn, to develop, to work.   And I still do.

And I perhaps next January, I’ll redo this one… even better.  But for now, a lesson learned, both in post-processing possibilities… and as a fine art photographer, in process.

It’s a reminder… and a kick in the butt…

Don’t give up… Don’t ever give up!!

This goes out to a dear friend who is struggling with the same issue.. but, don’t give up.  You are too talented to do that.