I often hear successful—and satisfied— photographers say that it is critical that photographers are as interested in their subject matter as they are in making images. These same pros say that the smartest business strategy is the path of least resistance: Focus on passion.
I was reminded of this while reading about photographer Jeff Farrell. In a June/July 2007 AfterCapture article profiling Farrell, writer and photographer Peter Kotsinadelis explains that one reason Farrell is having incredible success is because he provides art direction and graphic design services in addition to his photography.
However, Kostinadelis makes it clear that the foundation of Farrell’s success is his love of everything related to the casino industry, which is the market he serves through his Outpost Productions. Farrell told Kostinadelis: “It always felt like a magical world when I was inside those places—an endless visual buffet.”
To look at just a few of Farrell’s images—ranging from architectural images and landscapes to portraits and food photography—there is no indication he is committed to one, underlying theme. But when you look at Farrell’s work as a whole and learn that he has always been enamored by casinos, it all makes sense.
Farrell’s passions for both casinos and image making feed off each other.
The same certainly seems true for wedding photographers Chris and Lynn Jaksa. The “About Us” page on their website features an explosively happy picture of the couple. Part of the upbeat text reads: “We have the greatest job ever – we get to do what we love most in the world with the person we love most in the world. And we get to spend our workdays with people celebrating their own love. . .”
These people aren’t photographing weddings just to pay the bills! And it shows in the awesome quality of their imagery.
I recently had a talk with commercial photographer and the ASMP’s immediate past president, Judy Herrmann. “We were making the photographs we thought we were supposed to make, and we were miserable,” she told me of her first few years in business with her partner, Mike Starke.
Herrmann, who offers consulting services to other photographers, said that she believes that committing to making images that one wants to make, how when wants make them is the single most important step in achieving success.
In my experience, it seems that Herrmann and Starke’s bumpy road to success is more typical than not. What about you? Is your photographic specialty in line with your personal interests? If so, was how did you get there? Any advice for off-track shooters?