something I'm noticing increasingly in the world today is how we are addicted
to instant gratification we want pictures without any work when you look
on Facebook and social media you may notice there's all these ads coming on
for programs that will take your crappy landscape picture and turn it into
something astonishing well how much gratification is there in
that because you haven't done it and somebody else has done it for you a
bunch of programmers somewhere else did it for you
there's people who want to take stunning images they buy the most expensive
camera excuse me and then go for a walk with the dog in the park on a drizzly
day somewhere in the UK in the autumn and expect a breathtaking picture well
no you need to put a bit more work and effort into it than that you need to go
somewhere where the cool stuff happening but you also have to know your
camera you have to know what it is that you're doing what it is that you want so
how do you learn photography well that is also part of this journey because
camera manufactures will tell you that if you buy their camera with this doodad
gadget or whiz-bang thing then you're going to be brilliant to it photography
well it's not true there's only about five controls on a camera you actually
need to know how to use and they're covered in my beginners course for
goodness sake they're really not that advanced and all the cameras doing is
juggling those around it's about how much effort you put in so how did I
learn photography it's a question I get quite a lot well I was into photography
as a hobby I wasn't particularly good at it but then I had a life-changing
conversation with somebody that led me to to think yeah you know I'm gonna take
this on so basically I spent a year I I was unemployed so I was on income
support I told the Employment Services what I was doing so they want to get any
trouble I said I want to retrain and they said in those days they were very
helpful they said yeah no worries so I spent a year just reading books and
practicing I got myself a number a job carrying the bags for a professional
photographer because I just wanted to be in that environment you know
I just wanted to see what it was like when I did get a little bit of money for
the occasional job I went and told him ployment services because I want to get
in there any trouble and they were completely brilliant as long as he
declared it now an interesting thing I find in this is confidence because for
many many many years actually after I got going I really had trouble saying
I'm a photographer of just standing tall and going you know it was sort of said
what do you do for a living I'm a photographer I would get really rather
hung up and say things like whoa no no I take a few pictures and stuff like that
and kind of squirmed a bit I don't know why maybe it's because that goal that
dream was possibly a little bit too big for me initially the thing is you
mustn't be scared of your goal or your dream I had spent what six months
photographing weddings with my then mentor Billie passatti at part for the
graphics in Southampton who is just a loveliest guy and he was sort of my
surrogate father sadly he died some years ago but we were having loads of
fun and I used to photograph weddings with Billy but I didn't have to take the
responsibility I was really confident we were shooting great pictures I'd learnt
loads but then I had that first wedding on my own where I did have to take
responsibility and trust me it's one of the scariest things I've ever done the
sweat was just running down my back you know I just thought what if I stuff this
out this is a milestone event in somebody's life this isn't just me
taking pretty pictures this is big stuff this is grown-up this is important it's
interesting how we move on from that by stretching ourselves by putting in some
work by putting in some effort not looking for instant gratification you
can then move forward and you can kind of go beyond that fear part you've
probably seen me in various videos over the years with my screensaver on I get a
lot of questions about it and all those pictures going back and forth and you
know what this is the whole news tree sometimes I lean in the doorway of the
office and I just I stand and I stare at that screensaver and I think back to
that first wedding and that's sweat running down the back of my neck and I
think wow what a journey that's what I would say is gratification
you mustn't be lazy you've got a to have that feeling of wow what a journey to
actually stop for a moment and look at yourself and think you know why I have
grown a lot you've got to put in the work you've got to give up the instant
gratification so how do you do that well personally I was always looking for
inspiration I seek it out YouTube is a wonderful place for inspiration is
packed with the most inspirational people from people you know like
climbing mountains but they haven't got any legs to - I don't know what I can't
think of any Tony Robbins as a go-to guy for me I just love listening to him
speak and listen to him tackle things and the way things because remember
everything in the world begins with a thought up in here the very fact you're
watching this video is because at some point in time somebody had a thought
they thought wouldn't be cool if we could watch some videos online if
somebody hadn't had that thought we wouldn't have the internet you wouldn't
be watching this video seek out inspiration a current favorite of mine
right now right at the moment he's Elon Musk I mean for goodness sake you
imagine it he stood there saying I'm gonna create reusable rockets and we're
gonna fly to Mars and to begin with people together yeah right I'm a you
know and they're gonna walk off out the other way and now he's created reusable
rockets and a whole bunch of other stuff how does that man think you know I love
watching you on musk at the moment listening to him because it's a lesson
for me and it inspires me to try and be better to try and go a bit further to
have a purpose and a goal it's important set yourself a goal because I don't know
what that goal might be for you it could just be - I know maybe you want to win
the camera club competition maybe you want to see your work published in a
magazine I don't know what it is but set yourself a goal because it will help you
define your purpose and to reach your goal I recommend you ask yourself some
very powerful questions don't ask other people don't go to your friends don't
give your family don't know other people saying you know what do you think I
should do how am I going to do this is this the best idea should I do something
different ask yourself because only you know what
is that you love and the only way you're going to discover how to find it is to
ask yourself powerful questions do I really want to do this that's a good one
if the answers yes it's like okay how do I do it don't go straightaway into that
all the reasons you can't so let's say you're thinking you know why I want to
go hiking in the pool and I want to photograph the Himalayas and then
instantly there's a million reasons why you can't do it immediately you just go
off into we go off on sorry I'm not going to say you we human beings go off
into a tailspin about our yeah but it's expensive and I can't get the time off
work and it's probably dangerous and somebody might kill me because it's a
different culture whatever that story may be for each of us as individuals but
the thing is ignore those little voices and just go I want to go and do it so go
and do it because you know what very often when you go to climb the mountain
you find that the mountain is far less scary then your imagination ever made it
to be so what is it that you love and why and where can you find that now I
know that I'm being very life-coaching here but this really is about anything
in life but we're talking about photographers here and trust me
camera settings are just a tiny teeny little step to that purpose to what you
want to do it's no point knowing exactly how you're I don't know hyperfocal
distance works or your camera operates in multi point autofocus mega zillion
mode or something if you're just standing in a car park in the rain
you've got to put the effort in to make something happen to go somewhere that
inspires you Nepal might be nothing for you your idea of heaven might be just
sitting in the corner in the local Zoo watching what the monkeys are doing and
waiting for those great little moments there's a lady called Pauline who came
on my beginners workshop some years ago and if you're watching this Pauline I
know you're squirming but Pauline came on my one day beginners workshop some
time ago she's never done any of my downloadable courses what she has done
is she has worked and worked and worked and worked
she amongst other things works as a shepherd s because she loves it and she
has become a master of what she photographs if I say to you sheet
pitches that just sounds like yeah really pictures of sheep and your mom
just you know look at her Pauline is amazing her photography is brilliant she
has invested the time she's gone to the place where there's things that she
finds fascinating in she loves she's learnt how to photograph it what the
lights doing where it's coming from the optimum moment to press the shutter so
it's important that you understand why you love what you do as well so I know
this could be taken as just being a job but I mean you know why do you love what
you do and I'm talking photography here why is it that you love it what is it
about it that excites you what is it that lights your light I was a general
photographer you know professional photographer for many many years and I
still do the occasional commercial shoot I'm lucky enough now that criteria are
that it's going to be interesting it's going to be enjoyable and I'm going to
like doing it otherwise I'm not gonna touch I don't know how much money you
throw at me I'm not gonna touch it unless it's gonna fulfill those three
but what I've learned now is that I love playing a part in Eureka moments it's
now the teaching of the photography it's the sharing of my knowledge and the
experiences that I've had that actually lights my light I'm incredibly lucky in
that I had an interview with 500px and they okayed who interviewed me said that
many photographers have become trainers because they've had to because the
photography industry as a whole is constrainted but he called me an
educator by choice and I think that's true because I did look at teaching
because I was getting bored with the photography it wasn't a case of I wanted
to do that okay so what does this got to do with your photography well where do
you want to go with it what is your purpose what is your goal ask yourself
those questions and look for the answers within you not in other people not in
other things and don't start looking at all the reasons why you can't achieve
those things and it's not about your camera kit or let me say this it's very
rare about your camera kit very often any old
camera will do a cameras the cameras a cameras a camera every week I'm asked
many times shall I buy this camera or that camera or is the I've got an 18 to
55 so do I need an 18 to 200 mm lens and is that lens but generally
speaking it makes no difference they don't make crap cameras anymore
because social media has done away with that if a company make a totally rubbish
camera and everybody in the world is going that thing's rubbish it's gonna
disappear it's going to go out of business very quickly it's gonna get
recalled so ain't gonna happen just know what it is that excites you and take
steps towards reaching it and stop worrying about the camera so much don't
be lazy whatever advertisers say instant results
have no lasting gratification if you do put your images into some piece of
software that takes a really badly shot in bad light image and it turns it into
something amazing okay you've got very short-lived gratification you might be
able to say this is my photo but in your heart inside you know that's not your
photo that's a picture that was average - okay and you've got a piece of
software somewhere to turn it into something it's not your work that's not
true gratification is it so be careful of instant gratification and don't be
afraid to put in the work because here's the thing instant gratification it just
blows away like a fart in the wind trust me I'm sorry guys you are responsible so
you are the ones who have to take action and choose what it is that you want to
do what it is that you want to achieve and very importantly choose something
where you're going to enjoy the journey now I'm not saying there won't be
setbacks along the way I'm not saying that everything is going to be
hunky-dory and perfect they will be setbacks there will be problems there
will be issues but you know what is those problems and issues and setbacks
the you overcome by doing whatever it takes by reading books by looking at
magazines by watching YouTube videos by buying a workshop buying a course
they're all overcome a ball it's just up to you to take responsibility to do it
and by doing it that is what's going to give you the fulfillment that is what's
going to have you be able to lean in the door of your office and look at the
screen saver r on your computer and just take a
moment and go wow what a journey I've been on