Minoru Park in Richmond on a cloudy day.
Some time ago, when I was still a photography student, one of my professors said this to the class: “Taking pictures for no other reason than for a hobby is one of the best reasons to be a photographer.”
I didn’t fully understand the meaning behind it at the time. A victim of my narrow-mindedness at the time, I thought there was no way shooting as a hobby could beat doing that, PLUS getting paid for it.
This is how I feel now.
Having been doing this professionally for some time, I have experienced what it is like to be completely caught up in the business side of things by treating photography as nothing more than a means of generating income. I have experienced what it is like to be drained and exhausted by the end of the week, not so much physically, but mentally, as I feel my motivation and passion wither as I climb up and down each peak, realizing there is only one other. wait.
In part this is due to the life of a freelancer. We are often asked to put in much more than just forty hours a week not only to earn a living, but because the growth of our business depends on it. Don’t get me wrong, the feeling of accomplishment is great, but if you don’t take the time to balance yourself by celebrating wins and taking a day or two off, you’re going to be wiped out, mark my words. .
However, maintaining our energy and creativity requires more than just taking time off; in fact, I find that taking a break from photography entirely is not the solution. In his blog post on sustaining our creativity, David duChemin advocates that instead of letting our craft sit for a period of time, we should try taking more photos, to “stir up the paint,” so to speak. Tea important The fact is that this time we do it for no other reason than the act of capturing that moment, not for any public or portfolio, but for ourselves.
As artists who make a living from what we do, it is sometimes necessary for us to trace our roots, to rediscover the passion and joy that helped forge the path that led us to where we are now. Just because we’re lucky enough to get to a point where we can do what we love for a living doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy it as much, if not MORE, than when we started our journey as hobbyists. less than dealing with a fatal blow to the artist in us.