[Leica] Re: Don't quit you night job!

["David Medley" <dmedley@whidbey.net>]

Many years ago when I was trying to figure out why I was doing this to
myself and maybe,  just maybe I should go back to work in the Boeing photo
department I would get a call from a friend of mine saying that we needed
to have lunch and talk. He was  (and still is)  very successful as a
freelance.  ( Blackstar etc. )

Over a cold beer I would hear how he had lost a local job because there was
no one in town that was good enough to shoot it. The client would then call
Blackstar in NY  and  have a "good" photographer do the job. Well, you know
who ended up shooting it don't you? Somehow he was much better at his craft
when the call came from NY .

I don't believe there is an answer to the problems nor do I believe things 
have changed much over the years. It is still a struggle every day, you
always have someone lurking about who will do it "cheaper or  faster"  or
they are "better"  because they are from another place.

It dawned on me that it wasn't photography that I was sour on,  it was the
people that I had to deal with. Photography was to personal for me to have
someone else muck it up.

I finally did get out of the photography business  but I still work for
myself (who would hire me with my work record)  and the problems are much
the same. I still have someone lurking about that will do it "cheaper,
faster etc."

I now am the happiest of amateurs. I am working on a couple of projects,
teaching a few workshops during the year and have something very gratifying
when my "day job" is too much to handle because of the people that I have
to deal with.

If I could only get a book deal out of this latest project
........................................

Cheers,
David Medley
Whidbey Is.   WA
USA
dmedley@whidbey.net

- ----------
> From: Myers Pete <MyersPete@aol.com>
> To: leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us
> Subject: [Leica] Multi-Pop
> Date: Thursday, January 15, 1998 12:01 AM
> 
> Donal's post about loosing clients, keeping clients and trying to make it
all
> work, might have made it to the LUG by mistake, but I enjoyed reading it.
Its
> nice to know that we all have the same problems day to day.
> 
> I am a fine arts photographer. That has been my sole profession since
1993.
> Like Donal's clients, galleries and museums are just as insane to work
with
> day to day. And like his experience in wondering if the recession is
really
> over, so too in the fine art world. The galleries have been in a slump
and
> have been running scared for a long time now. When they get scared, they
get
> a&*l retentive. And, they cling to the dead works and dont deal with the
> living. Getting them to return your call, leave alone give you a show,
becomes
> a major challenge.
> 
> But, I have yet to run in to one person that has ever found 'easy money'
with
> their hard work. Its nice to hear others day to day struggles and makes
one
> feel not so singled out.
> 
> Lets hope 1998 brings some sun to the LUG and we all do well this year.
> 
> Pete