….I read it, but for some reason the quote stuck in my mind and I remind myself of it everyday-especially on the days I am hard on myself but it came to mind particularly today when I received an email from a fellow photographer. She mentioned that there was a photographer in her town that was constantly “bashing other local photographers, putting them down and being really negative”.  As I read thru the rest of the email, I couldn’t help but smile. WHY? Well because she sounded just like me……have I ever been the target of “bashing”?…. Ummm, yea! Are there photographers in the area that are negative and love to spew their negativity all over the web and put down other photographers for wanting to be better at their craft? That’s a BIG Y.E.S. In any town, you probably don’t have to look very far to find a few of them. If it were up to me, I’d put all of the Debbie Downers, Bob Bummers and Bitter Betty’s and send them away on the Bitter Bus-but in real life, that’s not an option.

I’ve always tried to have a positive outlook on life….even in my darkest days…and trust me, I’ve had my fair share. I think having a positive outlook on life AND a positive attitude is a CHOICE. I make the choice everyday to be positive, happy and I make a point to laugh A LOT-sometimes too much! I can’t imagine a life without the ability to laugh at myself.  I also believe that the energy you put out into the world will come back to you-maybe not immediately but it does reflect itself itself in lots of forms: money, relationships, your job/business etc, etc.  So while you too may be getting some ” not so positive” feed back from other photographers/peers/etc.  just remember, that energy they are putting out will come back. Not only in the business world but also on  a personal level. Most of the time someone feels the need to make a negative comment about anyone, it comes from a place within themselves that is insecure. I know this because I’m not perfect and in my life time I have made some pretty mean comments-I’m not perfect. But when I sat down and thought about WHY I said the things I said, I found that it was out of a personal conflict and had nothing at all to do with them. So when people make mean/negative comments on my Facebook page, I keep this in the back of my mind. When they make those comments, their words are a reflection of what they look like on the inside because you see, there is a difference between negativity and constructive criticism. Constructive criticism comes from a different place-a positive place. Negativity isn’t a good color on anyone!

My advice: Do your own thing, surround yourself with positive people and smile………..and laugh at yourself OFTEN.

“A good photographer must love life more than he does photography”

 

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