so it was actually my uncle who told me about this spot
he sent me a photo a few days ago
he thought that it could be a potential good image
and he was absolutely right!
this spot has everything I look for in an image
if anything, I'm just missing a little bit of fog
but still, I think it's pretty good
now, this is not going to be my best image by any means
and I knew that before coming here
but if there is one thing I've learned about photography in these last few years
is that this is a long-term journey, a life long journey
one that we can only take step by step
or in this case, click by click
when I say click, I mean every single click
not just the ones that end up becoming... I don't know, portfolio-worthy images
in fact, in many ways, I'd say that those are the least important ones
because those are the finish line, the end of the path
but it is the clicks that don't work
the clicks that don't make for good images, for good photos those are
the ones that matter because those are the ones that are carving our path towards that finish line
this is something that I think we photographers tend to underestimate, me included
the amount of work, effort and clicks required to make a good image
if there is one thing that the masters of photography have in common
is that they shoot a lot, for a long period of time
you know, when I look at the work of a photographer I admire
the most valuable information to me is not the camera, the lens they used, the settings
not even the location
for me, the most important piece of information is the date
that is because the date tells you much more about how they work
about their process, than anything else
and what I've seen, with almost no exception, is that the work I like
where the date was provided of course
well, it took time to make
those dates give us some perspective
first, they show us that even the best photographer
needs a lot of time to finish a compelling project
several weeks, months, if not years
second, they hint what we don't see: the photographs that didn't make the cut
a couple of images from a trip to Iceland in 2010
tell us that the photographer got rid of a lot of images
there is no way they only made those two on such a trip
they definitely pressed the shutter dozens, if not hundreds of times
they clicked
what I like about seeing those dates is that they reveal something that you can't see
something that you can't know from looking at the images alone
and is the amount of time invested in making them
it's usually a lot of time, but what we must...
be careful with the camera, okay?
hello!
okay, I have to show you the puppy
because it's going crazy
hello, okay
as I was saying, it's usually a lot of time
but what we must realize is that conditions are not always perfect
in fact, they very rarely are
today is a very good example of that
I don't like this weather, I don't like to shoot in these conditions
the light is very harsh, and making an image here for me has been very challenging
because I have to deal with the puppy
but also because yeah, the light is just not right for the kind of images that I like to do
and I know that most of the photographs I'm taking today are no good
probably none of them will ever make it to my website, my portfolio, one of my books
maybe not even my instagram account, or maybe not even this video
but I don't see those clicks as failures, quite the opposite actually
because every time I try to make an image, especially when it's hard to make one
I'm learning, I'm growing as a photographer
the easy thing would be for me to have fog here
it would be very easy to take a photo, to make a good image of these trees here in the water
that would look amazing
and it's an image that I will try to make at another time
but trying to make an image with what I got today is more challenging
it's harder, it's pushing me farther
it's easy to dismiss all of this because luck plays a big role in photography
and even though yes, we might get lucky every once in a while
I do believe that we create our own luck
and we do it by, you know, getting out, and practicing, and taking photos, and clicking away
okay, hello
you wanna come here talk to the camera?
okay
photography can be overwhelming
especially if you are just getting started because you start with zero images
and you are comparing yourself to other photographers
how they're more accomplished than you
so it is very important to be aware that all of those photographers we admire
and the amazing work that they've done
we're looking at their finish line
they they've already gone through the whole path, and through the whole journey to get there
we're still going there, we're still on the way
I'll say even more: I'll say that many of those photographers that you look up to
they feel the same way that you might be feeling right now
I feel that way as well many times, very often
this video, like every other video in this channel
is not just to share my journey with you
but they are little reminders to myself
of what matters in photography, of what I should be worried about
today is the first time in... I don't know, a couple weeks
that I go out for photography, and it feels amazing to be out again
it's important to take breaks here and there
don't you think?
yeah, he agrees
the only way to get better, the only way to improve, the only way to make good images
is to press, to click the shutter in your camera and try...
dude, you are disgusting
I'm gonna have to take a shower now
photograph is not linear
most of the time, our images are not going to be good enough
and that is normal, that is how it's supposed to be
but it is important to get out to practice, to get better
so when the day comes, because the conditions are magical or we go to an exotic location
whatever it is
we are ready
never forget that the most important skills in photography are perseverance
like he's doing... he's very... he perseveres, and this is what we need to do with our photography
and we need to be patient as well
he is not that patient, that's why he's not getting what he wants
you want me to pet you, but this is not the way to do it
not going to happen
we are here for the long term, this is a very long journey
it's a lifelong journey
we just need to be aware of where we are in that journey, and that to keep going
we need to do it one click at a time
before letting you go, I wanted to highlight the work of one of my Patreons, Steve Bennett
Steve has beautiful images on both his website and instagram account that I'm gonna be
linking in the description down below
but I gotta say, that as much as I like his photos of the foxes
they are very, very cute
I really love his black and white work
totally worth checking out, as I said the links are going to be in the description down below
thank you so much, Steve, for your support
to all of my patreons, tomorrow we're going to be hosting another live stream so stay tuned for that
thank you so much everyone for watching, see you in the next one!