The Photography Journey
I did some digging through my digital archives and found that I purchased my first DSLR camera in November 2011. It was a Canon Rebel T3, and buying it didn’t make me a photographer, just like buying a hammer doesn’t make me a carpenter. However, it was the beginning of my photography journey.
My first few years of owning the camera were rough. I would “spray and pray” as they say, meaning I would take photos of everything without considering the subject matter, color, time of day, or composition. Even my “final” images after processing them (which were also rough) were random.
However, that being said, it was crucial to make those images, understand the camera settings, and how learn the correct way to process an image. I’m guessing most photographers have a similar story. After taking images for over 11 years, I have found that the journey has been full of inspiration and full of doubt. If I was to visualize the journey it would look like EKG waves.
The most difficult obstacle is when you hit a valley as a mature photographer. You have no excuse, it’s all on you. The best thing to do during these times is to give yourself grace. Know that it’s just a season, and give yourself room to fail or take a break.
As 2023 rapidly comes, I’ve been reflecting on my recent journey and experience. From 2017-2019 I was traveling 3-4 times a year for enjoyment and for work. In those situations, it’s easy to get excited about photography and get some real portfolio-quality images. Then 2020 came.
A person would think 2020 would have been a terrible year for photography, but it wasn’t for me. 2020 gave me the opportunity to really enjoy my local areas. Work was all from home and super flexible, so if the conditions were right, I could drop everything and go shoot. 2020 also slowed everything down. My schedule wasn’t filled with things to do, instead, I would go explore. On top of that, I followed a photographer named Thomas Heaton on YouTube, and he inspired me to slow my photography down and use a tripod for every image. You can check out his channel here.
Who we follow and who we collaborate with makes such a huge difference in our journey.
In the next following weeks, I’ll talk about how 2021 was one of my worst years and how I overcame a bad mindset.
This is my first ever image that I was really proud of.
Taken June 26, 2013. “Only” two and a half years after purchasing my first DSLR.
I would love to see the first photo that you were really proud of! If you’re open to it, please share it!
