I’ve been following my passion for photography since I was eight and was given my first camera, a Brownie Hawkeye.  I’ve had multiple careers, but I’ve never lost sight of my love of making photographs.

It is sometimes hard these days to follow one’s passion for photography.  For amateur photographers, there’s the economy, challenges of raising kids or visiting grand kids scattered across the country, busy schedules, and life in general.  For professional photographers, there’s all the above and more.

Last April, for example, a photographer received a mere $30 for a Time cover that he sold through a stock agency. Twenty or so years ago, a Time cover would have brought the photographer $1,500-2,000 in creative fees plus expenses.

What’s wrong with this picture? Doesn’t inflation count for anything? The high cost of health care? Education? Taxes?  And that photographer devalued his own photograph by accepting such a low usage fee.  He hurt the professional photographers and shortchanged others who might follow his example.

Time-Warner has been reported as not paying photographers for six months or so. To make matters worse, they will “escalate” the invoice if you would like to pay a fee. Pay a fee for what should be normal? I think that’s immoral.

There are reports of ad agencies not paying photographers for six months after they get paid from the end client. There are no longer any advances for expenses. For those of you who don’t know, production costs on an ad campaign can run hundreds of thousands of dollars. And the photographer has to carry those expenses on his/her shoulders for a year! The photographer is, in effect, being a banker for the Fortune 100 or 500 corporation. Where’s the logic or fairness of that?

I could go on and on and relay the various stories we have heard and read, but that does not create opportunities, and worse, it stifles creativity and following one’s passion for photography. Didn’t your grandfather say, “Life ain’t fair. Deal with it.” So dream. Take chances. Reach out. Don’t give up. Follow your passion for photography.

I felt privileged the other night to introduce a friend and speaker whom I first met back in 1963, Dick Durrance II, a fine photographer, winner of many awards, and someone who has reinvented himself many times. Starting out as a National Ski champ, he headed into photography when he felt eclipsed by Olympic skier Billy Kidd, got his first assignment with National Geographic while still in college, became an award-winning war photographer in Vietnam, returned to National Geographic, stepped into the advertising arena, did some self-assignments, moved into the golf field, and finally, became an inspirational speaker using a lifetime (thus far) of photographs to illustrate his messages. I’m sure I missed a few steps along the way, but you get the idea.

As one phase of Dick’s life either became no longer viable or limited his growth, he imagined what might be and created his own opportunities for graduating to the next stage, spurred ever on by his passion for photography. This is not the first time I’ve heard Dick speak. Years ago, I brought him to speak to our New England chapter of ASMP (American Society of Media Photographers) when I was co-President there. This past February, he came to speak to our association’s leadership conference and met with a standing ovation. As current president of ASMP/NC, when Dick wrote me, I touted him to our board who agreed his program was perfect for our group. Indeed, our audience, made of up both amateur and pro photographers, warmly welcomed him and was very moved and inspired by what he had to say.

It was wonderful to see the faces of our audience. Some came from out of state. Many have been struggling with buyers who apparently no longer value photography, to wit the stories noted above. Some felt they were in a rut. Others needed a shot of inspiration to get them going again. Whatever their stories, it was clear that all love photography.

For so-called amateurs, many of whose work rivals that of really good pros, it’s sometimes a bit easier. You put in for vacation (or you’re already retired), head off on a trip or to a workshop, and you can immerse yourself in your passion. With pros, it can be even harder in today’s business climate.

That said, we all love to make photographs; in fact, we are compelled to make photographs. So even if times are down, amateur or professional, pick up that camera and go make photographs. The nice thing about digital photography is that you have already paid for your equipment and no longer have that old expense of film.

You don’t have to travel far. Subjects may be in your own back yard. Climb up on something. Lie down. Look around for a different vantage point. Walk around your subject if you can. Remember how you saw as a child? Take yourself back to that time and let your imagination have fun.

Go out before dawn or stay after dusk. That’s what tripods are for! There is a moodiness of low-light photographs that cannot be replicated at noon.

The photos you see here have been made over a period of 25 years. I keep returning to this particular lighthouse that has been part of my life since I sailed the Maine coast summer after summer as a child. I keep marveling at its different moods and the incredible range of skies. I always try to photograph it differently. Sometimes, I am composing with an eye to the way lines of the sky and the lighthouse come together. At other times, I am hunting amongst the tidal pools for yet another, different reflection. You’ll see some of these have a distinctly different vantage point. The last three photographs are ones I made this year.
I always marvel at how the skies are so cooperative with the angles of the clouds.Next spring, Arnie and I’ll return to this area and make more photographs while we’re doing our final scouting. That’s our time to follow our passion for photography.During the workshops, we don’t photograph much at all. Instead, our focus is on our participants and helping them to follow their dreams and passions in making photographs.

Workshop Updates

We already have a lot of sign-ups for our 2010 workshops. There are only a couple of rooms left for People & Culture of Belize and Savannah & Her Lowcountry are our two first workshops of 2010, but we already have people signed up for our last two next fall.

As we always urge, if you are even contemplating joining us for one of our workshops, make your room reservations now. One of the B&Bs that hosts some of our New England Fall Foliage participants is already full … of our people! You can always cancel later if necessary and not pay any penalty! If “our” inn or hotel is full, or if you prefer to stay elsewhere, we always have links to other choices.

Remember, too, that spouses and SOs are always welcome to join us. The 2009 season saw a number of them, and for 2010, we already have a dozen returning. We go to some great locations that they enjoy, even though they aren’t photographers themselves.

Comments from you are always encouraged and welcomed. If you do not see the “Leave a Reply” box below this article, it’s probably because you are still on the Home page. In that case, click on the Comments link at the end of all the tags just above “Older Posts” at the bottom of this box or just click on the article title at the top and the “Leave a Reply” box will appear down at the bottom.

Remember, you don’t need to be a WordPress member to do so. Even if you choose not to do that, we hope you will share this blog and our website with your friends and relatives who love photography.

Alumni-only Workshop to Yosemite

Some of our alumni have been asking for some time now to have an alumni-only tour. We have decided that Yosemite in early December will be our first one. The price will be the same as the other domestic photo workshops, but it will only be open to those who sign up for a regular workshop in 2010. Stay tuned for more information.

Monthly (ish) Newsletter

If you want to be added to our newsletter list (we send them out about once a month), write us through the Barefoot Contessa Photo Adventures contact page.