I think it’s safe to say that most of us have days where we are REALLY hard on ourselves. I’ve said it in other posts, I have my days where I feel like I suck at photography/business/life/and the list goes on and on. We are our own worst critics and I know this….I certainly KNOW this..but then out of no where something happens that gives you that little pep back in your step.
Back in July 2011, I had the pleasure of shooting a wedding for an AWESOME couple, Vanessa + Bill. I’m not exaggerating when I tell you-she was so vibrant with happiness on her wedding days that you can just FEEL it when you look at her photos….but more than that, the two of them looked so in love. THAT is something that can not be edited in. And I can tell you (if I’m being honest) I have shot weddings in the past that were difficult to make them look like they “liked” each other because they just didn’t have that chemistry that some of my other clients had with each other. I could go on and on about these two all day….but the whole point of this blog post was to tell you how they gave me ” that pep back in my step”.
Late last night-right before I was heading to bed, my phone alert went off that I had a new message-as much as I try to set boundaries and try to only check my emails during certain times of the day..sometimes I fail miserably. This was one of those days. As I’m laying in bed, I begin to read the email that she sent to me. This was completely out of the blue and I was a bit taken back because it had been a little over 6 months since they had been married. As I began reading, I seriously teared up….
Don’t you see?……when we are busy comparing ourselves to other photographers and doubting our skill/talent/craft/art…….what REALLY matters is YOUR client! Continue to learn and continue to aim for improvement…but rock your clients socks off…and that’s really all that matters! Your job is to make the best possible experience for YOUR clients…..who cares what anyone else says!! 🙂
So in the words of Bill and Vanessa….I hope 2012 brings the best in everything to you!!!
Thank you so much for posting such sage advice! It’s something we all KNOW, I think, but rarely DO. With all the great work out there that is so easy to access it’s easy to get down on yourself, especially if you’re just learning the craft. Sometimes I feel like I’m no where near good, much less great. And then I have to remind myself that I’m still in kindergarden and all the people whose work I so admire are..I don’t know… PhD’s.
Beautiful couple. Beautiful pictures.