Eternal Awful Truth #1: Authentic selves fail all the time
With all the talk going on in the world about finding yourself, believing in yourself, and being true to yourself, you’d think if you’re just honest and true, it’s all going to work out. Lord knows, I’ve preached the gospel. It doesn’t. There’s no guarantee that the best, most honest version of you is going to hit the market and make a splash. There are lots or products and services in the world created by people who care with values and with beliefs that are simply bad products that shouldn’t have seen the light of day. There are also good products squelched by the market. Almost every indie movie is … Read more...

Never underestimate the value of putting in the work. This sounds like such a simple thing, but how often is it that we really push all the way? What happens when we hit 90%? 95% Do we say it’s not good enough? Do we say that we’re in the final stretch, so we need to push harder? Or do we ease off and let things slide? The difference is huge. Because right up to about 90%, most of us aren’t all that different. And the decisions you need to make aren’t all that different. Certain basic principles apply in sales, marketing, picture-taking, and pretty much anything else. And up to 90%, the basic necessities for execution take precedence. If you … Read more...

In a world of infinite brands the challenge we face isn’t one of possibility. It is one of probability. Not whether something can be done. But what needs to be done to get there. Every business is an opportunity. But chartering a path to get you from point A to point B is harder than ever, and in the face of the uncharted, where all possibilities appear equally probable, it is belief that will power it all.

There will be this system and that. This way and that. And a lot of roads are going to get you to Rome. But Rome isn’t what matters. What matters is how you get there, because that’s going to tell you what you … Read more...

“To be a photographer, one must photograph. No amount of book learning, no checklist of seminars attended, can substitute for the simple act of making pictures. Experience is the best teacher of all. And for that, there are no guarantees that one will become an artist. Only the journey matters.”
– Harry Callahan

Amen. But beware. It’s a truth, but a dangerous one. Because there is practice, and there is practice. There is shooting, and there is learning. There are snapshots, and there are photographs. And the picture imbued not just with the struggle and strife of effort, but the desire to be something more – to have purpose and find meaning – these things are not the same.

In … Read more...

What: The IWMYS Workshop
When: October 22-25, 2012
Where: Brooklyn, NY

Brace yourself! It’s on again. I’m now taking applications for the I Will Make You Suffer Workshop: Cycle 2. This is not your ordinary workshop. You will not see a gaggle of photographers trailing me around with 70-200’s in hand and a model in tow. This is going to be hard, and this is going to be intensely personal. It will push you and prod you, as you shoot throughout. It is designed to crack your eye open. I created it to take what you already have – a vision, a voice, beliefs – and drain every ounce of it out of your body and inject it into … Read more...