RE: [Leica] Photo school or what?

["B. D. Colen" <bdcolen@earthlink.net>]

Tristan - Allow me to be brutal:

Decide what kind of photography you want to do, and then compare the best of
your work with that of the top dozen - or top 100 - people in that field.
Sure, photography school will improve your technical skills. But either
you've got an eye or you haven't. So make the comparison keeping that in
mind. If you think your work will compete that way, go for it. If it won't,
then consider what you will be doing with photography to earn a living - and
whether that will be any more fulfilling than what you are doing now. A job,
after all, is still just a job, whether it requires you to spend your day
responding to help-desk requests, or shooting Moms and babies in shopping
malls.

I know there are those who will vehemently disagree with me, who will say
that I am discouraging budding talent. But I would suggest that what I am
doing is urging you to focus on whether you have the talent - and drive - to
make it in a highly, highly competitive, and some would say dying, field.
Perhaps you do. Or, perhaps you should look for another line of work and
just spend more time on a photo hobby, or part-time photo business.

B. D.

- -----Original Message-----
From: owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us
[mailto:owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us]On Behalf Of Mitch
Zeissler
Sent: Wednesday, January 02, 2002 4:23 PM
To: tristan@tristantom.com; leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us
Subject: RE: [Leica] Photo school or what?


Tristan...

I did the exact opposite when I was 30; I left the pro photography madness
after a ten year run and entered the IT field.  I am now able to do
photography when and how I choose, to my standards and no others.  Based
upon my own experience, I do not recommend it, especially in this day of
hyper expectations, critically short deadlines and clients that cannot
verbalize what they want.  The all-too-important demands of my photo career
greatly assisted the demise of my first marriage and was driving my second
marriage towards the same result when I left.

Just my own two cents worth...

/Mitch Zeissler

- -----Original Message-----
>From: "Tristan Tom"<tristan@tristantom.com>
>Sent: 1/2/02 1:17:47 PM
>To: "leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us"<leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us>
>Subject: [Leica] Photo school or what?
>
>I'm toying with the idea of going to photography school. I'd be interested
>to hear people's thoughts on this idea.
>
>I'm 30, and hate my current career path. I work in the tech.support field
>and while it pays the bills, it sure steals some of my soul. My passion is
>photography and more and more it seems like that's all I want to be
>spending my time doing.
>
>I do know that I need to change something because if I continue on my
>current path I fear I will become mad.


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