Recent Work... Inspiration

I have horrible luck. In my photography career it seems like everything that can go wrong has gone wrong.   I've had cameras stolen, broken, all of the above. I've had memory cards melt in July heat. In fact my first digital camera fell out of a locker (2 days after I spent my life savings on it) and smashed into a million pieces in front of me (even the lens was smashed beyond repair!). I've had days where I just felt like giving up. It's interesting how people come into your life for such unexplained reasons and are able to leave such a mark. If it wasn't for my few close friends and supporters, I honestly don't know if I would have had the courage to go into this career. My friend Lisa is one of those people. She has been my constant cheerleader. In fact my first family photo shoot was nearly 3 years ago with Lisa's family! It was so nice to get to spend last Sunday morning with Lisa and her family at the Botanical Gardens. Her kids have grown so much! Here are some of my favorite images from the day...

This is my new inspiration for the week...

“What nobody tells people who are beginners — and I really wish someone had told this to me . . . is that all of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, and it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase. They quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know it’s normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.”

-Ira Glass