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They\/we bask in the adoration. \u00a0“Ahhh I am loved.” \ud83d\ude42\nAnd if you are a Facebook user, tell me… when you post a photograph you’re really proud of, do you keep checking to see how many “likes” you’ve earned?<\/p>\n
More “Likes” = “I must be a better photographer”<\/p>\n
Would an artist keep doing their art if they only got criticism? \u00a0“Your art sucks.” doesn’t usually serve as a good motivator. \u00a0 In fact, if several people tell you your art is terrible, you probably will be tempted to throw your camera off a cliff, or maybe jump along with it. (But don’t do that.)<\/p>\n
I am a big believer that every artist should, to some extent, resist this yearning to be affirmed, and instead pursue their art for themselves<\/em>. \u00a0Do it because YOU love it. \u00a0Excel because YOU love what you are doing. \u00a0Challenge yourself because YOU want to create even better art. \u00a0 Maybe don’t even do your art the way others do it. \u00a0Be creative. Be different. Be you. You are the WORLD EXPERT on being you! So be good at it!<\/p>\n I think when we tune into that creative force within us, there is something really cool happening. \u00a0Now I don’t want to get all “spiritual” on you\u00a0(and some of you might not agree with me on this anyway) but I think our creative nature is something given to us by God. I see God as a loving force that is in the business of “creating”<\/em> and we are created in God’s image, so we also are creative beings. \u00a0At least that’s the way I see it. \u00a0Regardless of how you see it, I think you’d agree that there is something special and unique about us humans… we seem to be built to create art and music. \u00a0I love it when I see someone create beautiful art, expressing that creative force within themselves.<\/p>\n The Curse of “Going Pro”<\/strong><\/p>\n I am a full time pro photographer. \u00a0 I have to admit, I wonder sometimes why I did this. \u00a0I have been in business for myself for almost 20 years, so I am somewhat comfortable with the unpredictable income varying from month to month. \u00a0I LOVE working for myself. \u00a0 Being \u00a0a pro photographer\u00a0is not as “glamorous” as some people think it is. \u00a0I mean I am not always out doing some amazing photography in the mountains of Colorado or photographing a beautiful model. \u00a0I am also the janitor. \u00a0Yes that is my hand carrying out the garbage from my studio. \u00a0<\/strong>That is a better summary of daily life, just doing what needs to be done because it is my job, not just my hobby. \u00a0And then there is the book keeping. \u00a0Thank God my wife handles that. \u00a0I am grateful for that. I hope she never screws up because I can’t fire her.<\/p>\n I think the hardest thing about doing photography professionally, though, is the fact that as soon as you accept\u00a0money for your service of photography there is an expectation that you will do a good job. \u00a0You are no longer in the business of pleasing yourself. \u00a0You have to please someone else.<\/p>\n Pleasing someone else is kind of tricky. \u00a0It is subjective. You might\u00a0create a photograph that you think is absolutely fantastic. \u00a0The lighting is just absolutely perfect. Then the client says, they don’t like their smile in that shot. \u00a0But don’t they see how beautiful the light is?? \u00a0Check out that bokeh. Isn’t that perfect?? \u00a0Nope, the smile is all wrong. \u00a0Well darn.<\/p>\n The challenge is very real. \u00a0You are placing yourself in the position of creating something that you need\u00a0someone else to love. \u00a0 In this mission, you are BOUND TO EVENTUALLY FAIL at some point. \u00a0And then the temptation is to run over to that cliff with your camera and jump OR you decide you want to be a plumber. \u00a0That’s it. \u00a0You’ll become a plumber. They are paid pretty well. \u00a0And no one can argue with you when you show them you fixed their stopped drain. It’s working now. \u00a0That’s not a subjective thing. \u00a0It is either fixed or it isn’t. \u00a0Yep, I am going to be a plumber.<\/p>\n Or maybe you just had a bad day and you just blew it. \u00a0No excuses. \u00a0You just didn’t do a good job and you know it. \u00a0Again that is BOUND TO HAPPEN SOMETIME. \u00a0 You want to minimize this stuff from happening, but it happens.<\/em> \u00a0Most photographers won’t necessarily admit this can happen but it does. \u00a0Now you are scrambling to see if you can somehow fix the shots in Lightroom or some Herculean effort in Photoshop.<\/p>\n I guess \u00a0am just writing this to say, if you hit an “artist’s crisis” like this, don’t give up. \u00a0You are not a failure. \u00a0Just try to recover and keep moving forward. \u00a0 You are not the only person this has happened to.<\/p>\n I personally know of photographers who I think are OUTSTANDING photographers who have faced this crisis.<\/p>\n If you need a hug. \u00a0Drop by and I’ll give you a hug.<\/p>\n Whatever you do, don’t give up.<\/p>\n I love you artist types. \u00a0Keep making art.<\/p>\n Kevin Gourley<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I have so many photographer friends. \u00a0Many are hobbyists, and others are professionals, either part-time or full-time. \u00a0Photography used to be my hobby, back when I did it simply because I loved photography. \u00a0I think that’s why most photographers DO photography, simply a matter of love. I think most artists are fragile. \u00a0Okay, sure some … Continue reading The Artist’s Crisis<\/span> ![](\"http:\/\/www.kgphotoworkshops.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Screen-Shot-2017-02-10-at-8.59.20-PM-300x256.png\")
Well, for the most part. \u00a0Ok, parts of it I hate.<\/p>\n