Last week I decided to go back to my earliest Adobe Lightroom catalog of photos and review the images I made back when I was first becoming serious about photography. I took my first photography workshop in 2010 and bought my first “big-girl” camera shortly after that first photography workshop lit me up with joy and desire to learn more. Later that same year I took another photography workshop on the North Shore of Lake Superior and fell even further in love with photography.
The Artist’s Journey
Then in March 2011 I went to another photography workshop on the Big Island of Hawaii. At the time I was becoming more and more dissatisfied in my software engineering work and disillusioned by the company I worked for. Taking two weeks in Hawaii to do what I loved seemed necessary for my sanity. Little did I realize that a month later I would be given the gift of a job layoff that allowed me to devote myself full-time to photography.
At the photography workshop in Hawaii I felt like the “baby” photographer of the group. Everyone else there had 10 or more years of experience making photographs. And there I was just getting started. But I loved discovering a new place, and learning to see in a new way. I feel blessed that I didn’t know how much that I didn’t know about photography at that time because I probably would have given up and missed out on all of the joy these years of making photographs have brought me.
“It’s a simple and generous rule of life that whatever you practice, you will improve at.”― Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear
At that time my camera was a little Canon Rebel T2I and my only lens was the kit lens it came with. I had not yet purchased Adobe Lightroom nor did I know much about editing photos.
When I came back from Hawaii and shared some of my photographs with co-workers they remarked that I really had “an eye” for photography. A friend offered to connect me with the owner of a local coffee shop that had monthly artist exhibits. Without my knowledge he set up an appointment for me with the owner of the coffee shop to talk about exhibiting my photography there. That appointment turned out to be the day after my job layoff.
The last thing I wanted to do that day was to go show my photographs to someone I didn’t know. I was still feeling totally shocked by the job layoff though I had already decided in my heart that I was not going to go back to working in the corporate world. At that time, even though my ego was bruised, my heart and soul knew what I needed.
My soul, when I tend to it, is a far more expansive and fascinating source of guidance than my ego will ever be, because my soul desires only one thing: wonder. And since creativity is my most efficient pathway to wonder, I take refuge there, and it feeds my soul, and it quiets the hungry ghost—thereby saving me from the most dangerous aspect of myself.”― Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear
Somehow I made my bruised and shocked self meet with the coffee shop owner to show her my photographs. She liked my work and we set up a September showing of my photographs in the coffee shop.
That is how I came to call myself a photographer
The funny thing is, if I had known at the time how much I had to learn I doubt I would have had the courage to say, “I am a photographer,” out loud, open an Etsy shop to sell my photographs, start a blog about my photography journey, or even to pursue photography.
But I didn’t know how much I didn’t know…
I joined a camera club, went to workshops, participated in online classes, took a photography class at a local art center and practiced, practiced, practiced, all the time learning and developing my craft.
Fast forward 9 years. I now am very comfortable using Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, and other tools like the Nik plug-ins and Topaz plug-ins to edit my photographs to create the look I envision. I’ve learned a ton about the technical aspects of cameras, lenses and photography. My eye and composition skills are more nuanced as I understand much more about composition than I did in 2011. And I have learned to create fine art prints.
Learning from the past
When I began my review of my photos from 2011 I thought that I would find little of interest.
I was amazed to find a group of images from my first Hawaii trip that I really liked. One of the things that I discovered was that my artistic voice has changed little over the years.
The same subjects draw me now as called to me then. And while there were lots of images which could not be salvaged because of blown-out areas, bad composition, blur, or other issues, there were a significant number that I liked enough to re-work with the tools I know how to use now.
While I learned how my voice and vision have not changed a lot, I also saw how much I have learned over these years technically and artistically.
I know that I still have much to learn about photography. But that is the artist’s journey. It never ends.
Learning never ends
If you are beginning to learn an artistic skill and feel like you don’t know what you’re doing, that’s okay! In fact it is to be expected. It’s easy to let disappointment with results stop you from pursuing something that brings you joy. Focus on the enjoyment of the process, not on the results. Time and practice will help you get better.
“You are worthy, dear one, regardless of the outcome. You will keep making your work, regardless of the outcome. You will keep sharing your work, regardless of the outcome. You were born to create, regardless of the outcome. You will never lose trust in the creative process, even when you don’t understand the outcome.”― Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear
If you are alive you are a creator. You are an artist. Do the work. Share the work. The artist’s journey never ends.
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