Dear Photography: I think we need a little space for awhile, It’s not you, it’s me. We’ve just spent so much time together that we both should explore other things that inspire us… then meet in the middle. Maybe someday we can rekindle what it was we once had, those butterflies are fading. I might go have a fling or two with traveling and painting… but you know I’ll be back. Love always, Me.
Most of us went into photography because we were on fire for creating art. We would take photos of anything and everything (even oranges) and we would be giddy with excitement every time we got to capture something. You start a busy, book up your calendar, become so busy you forget to shower, and somewhere along the way shooting photographs begins to feel like work. You didn’t mean for it to happen, in fact you avoided that notion like the plague but the truth is, we all need a break. This isn’t a bad thing or wrong, it doesn’t mean you aren’t fully in love with your job. (I promise.) The expectation begins that you must always bring your camera to every event and you must always be producing images for those around you and shortly after that happens, you decide that lugging your camera around is work and you should probably just leave work home.
It happens every year, when you pick up your camera and go into auto pilot. You take the shots you know you need to take and never pick up your camera beyond work. You can recite poses, schedules, and timelines in your head and anticipate the moments before they happen. You shoot your heart out, get the great shots, and then let your camera collect dust until the next session or wedding. You don’t pull out your camera for any personal projects, in fact you let it sit until your next gig. You forget what it was like to hold your camera in your hands for the first time or how you would sleep with it on your night stand and read the manual until the wee hours of the morning. You forget what it’s like to create for the pure fun of creating! Every single year, your camera starts to weigh on you and you wonder how you will ever pull yourself out from this un-creative rut you somehow landed in.
It’s bound to happen when you life is centered around shooting thousands of images on a weekly basis, when you have mastered your craft and filled your calendar. You guys, this is why an off season is CRITICAL. I refuse to complain about the winter anymore because this is the time I take each and every year to fall back in love with photography. For real, it’s like a messy break up and a passionate rekindling. After wedding season, I clear my schedule for as many months as possible (usually six months filled with tons of traveling, if possible.) Some may say that I only work half of the year but the hours I put in during wedding season and the screen time I put in during the off season equate for a much more than full time job. Sure, the off season means I am not shooting with reckless abandon but it’s a time for me to refresh my website, blog, client communication, accounting materials while also dreaming up my plan for the next two years (yes, we have to plan our lives two years in advance – please don’t ask when we will have children, we haven’t even considered.)
The reason I am writing this post is to challenge you – the ones who feel like they have lost their passion, the ones who question if they are still loving photography. Take a break – get inspired some other way. Paint, write, nap, read, run, yoga, cook, shower (yes, please shower) and sing, just get inspired beyond the parameters of your camera. See beyond your lens, set your camera away (or send it in to get serviced) and force yourself to see things with your two eyes (not one scrunched and one looking through the lens.) Use this time to see the world differently, to research, create, and fall back in love with the way you see the world. It’s okay to break up with photography for awhile, heck, I do it for a month or two at a time, but then pick up that camera and shoot things the way you see them. Ignore pinterest or other photographers blogs, try to find new angles, techniques, and pretty soon you will be falling back in love with your trusty DLSR. Don’t feel bad if the burn out bug hits you, it strikes annually, but have a plan on how you want to rekindle your romance (even if that includes a steak dinner and candles.) I promise you photography, this isn’t the last of me, I just needed a little me time and it made me realize that you are the only one for me.
Stick around, there’s so much more to see… Don’t go!
Thank you! I needed this article today 🙂
When I look at your work I wish you were around when my husband and I got married and then one of your previous posts made me realize of course you were around, but you were 14 or 15! You are wise beyond your years. Anyone in any sort of creative business should heed your advice and shake things up a bit.
Oh girl, you’re speaking my language. Feeling like this so badly at the moment!
AMEN TO THAT!!!!!!!! Geeeze you spoke my mind.