Personal Stories and Career Growth
We all create stories about ourselves and often believe them to our detriment. How often have you seen or thought the following?
I can’t do that because I don’t have the background/degree.
I’m too old to learn something new/start a new career.
I’m a natural light photographer; I can’t do studio shoots.
I only shoot inanimate objects and refuse to do portraits.
And the list goes on and on for each of us. Sometimes we’re comfortable and don’t have a real desire to grow, but far too often these stories are fear-based, and that’s when I confront them head-on.
Before I made the leap to "professional photographer,” I was intimidated by artificial light and limited myself to only photographing food with natural light. And it’s a legitimate way to shoot if that’s what you truly love! But when I decided to pursue commercial photography for a living, I knew I needed to step up my skills to offer the best possible service to my clients. So I invested and studied, played and sometimes screamed in frustration, and ultimately became comfortable working with strobes, speed lights, and constant lights.
My career has been an evolution and I’m a perpetual student, always learning new lighting techniques, new post-processing techniques, organizational structures for my business and methods of brainstorming ideas that’ll bring real value to any person or company that hires me. One of the ways I keep challenging myself is by taking workshops — some free, some paid. The latest one is a free eight-week adult beverages workshop taught by Don Giannatti over at Lighting Essentials. We’re given an assignment on Saturday, shoot it during the week, and post it for a live Zoom review the following Saturday. I always push myself to create something at a tangent to these briefs, just to see how far I can take the assignment and use it as an opportunity to grow.
Our first task was to photograph brandy in a snifter and make sure the colors were true — a very open-ended assignment! While researching the snifter, I learned that it was designed not only to be held in the hand and warmed by body heat, but also to lie on its side without spilling the liquid within. I knew positioning the glass this way would be a unique approach to the shot, so I thought more about the story that could be told with an overturned glass. Why would it be lying on its side? When might that happen? Well, late nights sipping brandy could certainly lead to accidents, but how do I light the scene to tell this story while staying true to the creative brief?
This seemed like the perfect time to break out my new gobo for window blind light. I imagined a very noir-inspired scene — inky shadows, a stark setting that felt lonely and sad, and the color of brandy drawing the eye like a beacon. I set up a light stone surface and started lighting the scene with just the gobo; after adding more light and playing with different camera/glass angles, I decided that a single light was the only one necessary. The final is no beauty shot, but it wasn’t meant to be; it sets the scene for the story I wanted to tell and creates a mood, which is all I ever asked.
Next up is a pour shot, which I’ve been meaning to do more of, anyway. I’ve sketched out an idea I think will be strong; come back next week to see where I landed on this one.
Pushing beyond those tired stories I used to tell myself has been life- and career-changing and I’m constantly pursuing greater clarity and shedding limiting beliefs. Is there a story you’re looking to change? Any self-imposed barriers you’ve pushed through to grow as a person or in your career? I’d love to hear about them. Leave a comment below or drop me a line to start a conversation.
