“The way I learn the best is just to do stuff,” Wu said. “So I will just take an assignment and learn along the way.”
This thought from Tony Wu came near the end of my post yesterday, and I thought I better elaborate on it, both for the sake of clarity and to fend off the likes of Gail Mooney, a photographer who has spent years mastering video and multimedia and who has told me more than once (understandably) that she gets very irritated by photographers (and clients) who downplay the difficulty of creating video and multimedia.
Where did I learn to photograph on a train at high altitude? Um, that would be, on a train at high altitude. (Nearing 15,023 ft., heading to Huancayo, Peru, from Lima.)
Tony Wu is as conscientious of his professionalism and the difficulties of creating multimedia as Mooney. Also, to be clear, this was just one brief thought from him in a very long conversation. Wu didn’t make a big point of the idea that photographers should take on new challenges while on the job. However, I will.
I don’t think it goes against best professional practices to suggest that on-the-job learning should be a critical strategy embraced by still photographers venturing into multimedia. As Wu suggests, why not go out an get jobs that require a slightly higher level of expertise?
Professional Photography IS On-The-Job Training
Offering services that force us to take our game up a notch is not the same as someone who has never held a camera going out and bidding for a major photography job. Clearly, that would be unprofessional, and ridiculous. But to bid for a photography job that requires honing skills is part of the profession. (If you’ve ever flown back from another country with undeveloped film — even if shooting only for pleasure — you’ll recall that photography, by it’s nature, is a constant, hardly-ever-get-second-chances form of risk taking.)
Let’s look at a simple example. You are a skilled still life photographer but have little experience photographing glass, which, if you ask me, is a real bitch to do well. However, you are aware of the challenges. Would it be irresponsible of you to offer services photographing wine bottles if you had the the time needed to conquer this specific skill set within your broader base of capabilities?
I think it would be smart. I think it would just another day in the office that is professional photography.
Gail Mooney, a consummate professional, has told me that this kind of on-the-job learning has been a way of life for her going back three decades.
Photography has always been about on the job training. We just need to be careful not bite off more than we can chew — for the sake of our businesses, our clients and out of respect for other professionals.
Mulimedia and Video: More Room To Grow on the Job
Video and multimedia have traditionally been collaborative projects, and still almost entirely are. So photographers can always outsource specific services — from videography and sound capture to editing video compression — both to get the job done and, you got it, to learn from another skilled professional.
Wu has been working hard for years to increase his multimedia production skills, and he has a very clear understanding of the skills he’s mastered in relation to the skills he still needs to learn. This clear perspective is what allows him to know what it will take to produce a given multimedia piece, even if he cannot yet do it. And so he can bid for multimedia jobs in a professional manner that will foster his learning.
This is not unprofessional. This is a smart way to tackle new technology.