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I've been researching places to sell my work this week, tidying my Etsy store and just generally lurking my way through the many photographic worlds that exist online. The more I looked, the more i convinced myself that i didn't fit in anywhere in particular; my work seems to exist in a space between photography and art. I make arty photographs. And yet, I'm inspired by so many different genres, those influences creep into the way i look through the viewfinder. I find myself wanting to do it all – to take hundreds of Polaroids and create arty pictures for interior design clients and exhibit a series of portraits and develop a body of work that truly represents how I see the world. To position myself as an artist while still working in the commercial world. And I could do all this, and indeed I try, but as i travelled through the different sites this week I could see I'm spreading myself too thin, and perhaps I should pick a style and run with it.
All the photographers i respect have a very definite style and have nurtured it as their USP, and in a world filled with so much talent (and so much choice) we need that special something to help us stand out from the crowd. I've been wondering if my work lacked focus, but what i suspect is actually going on here is that I lack focus. The work is doing its own thing at its own speed, but I'm the one who is trying to do everything all at once, with every item on my to-do list a priority. It's almost impossible to get anything done when everything is a priority! Where do you start?
So as i ponder this lack of focus (a de-focussing tactic in itself) i have to acknowledge the other reason for my chaotic way of working: i put off the things i don't want to do. Like trying to sell my work to other human beings.
It's hard to sell yourself. To stand before the world with your work in your hands and say: here, this is what i do, this is how i see things. Please hire me! I feel confident in my abilities as a photographer but i fall down when it comes to promoting myself. I've spent too many hours wishing i had an agent who could do all the hard work for me while i sit back and create. And that's always the grumble, isn't it. To make art is not about sitting in an ivory tower dabbing paint on a bit of canvas when the muse strikes. No, as a very wise friend said to me last night, making art is WORK. Once in a while you may get a lucky break, but you'll increase your chances of success if you work your socks off. And part of that work is the boring stuff – the admin jobs and promotion.
I'm working at it, and i think it's time to take it up a notch. To be bold and brave. To give it my best shot. And to learn how to be my own agent – it's such a fantastic metaphor for living your best and most fulfilling life.
Be your own agent!
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“The more I looked, the more i convinced myself that i didn’t fit in anywhere in particular.”
Don’t let yourself be boxed in by society’s rules – do your own thing!
I think you DO have your own personal style, Susannah. Maybe it’s a matter of printing out more images and seeing them in groups? I believe 100% that if you were to show your portfolio of portraits in Bath (maybe through commercial shows or in public areas like a cafe), you’d have a lineup of clients wanting you to take their portrait. And from there, word will get out and more clients will book you. So make sure you always carry updated business cards on you at all times.
I do like your idea of taking it up a notch. I can use that advice myself! A designer friend of mine gave me some good advice a while back when I was wondering whether to stay focused on photography or to try different mediums. She said “It all comes from the same place”. I think she’s right.
Anyway, there’s lots more I want to type but I think I’ll save that for an email. You are a smart woman, Susannah, and you’re going to do well.
First thing coming to my mind when I heard of the ‘arty photography’ I thought…yes!! She is fulfilling a dream…she did not even knew she had…it’s fabulous! and great! and exciting! you know all the feelings…just open your heart and do what comes out…you’ll be great!
And yeah! the admin and marketing sucks! xx
Oh! I so relate. I have been trying to write a siimilar post on my lack of focus. Its such a challenge, and I find that the balance between artist and business woman is also one that I resist, which makes it feel harder then it probably is.
I love you Arty Images love. The transport into other worlds…
I think we all feel the way you do about this so you are not alone. Who says you have to be pidgeon-holed into one box? Isn’t it about stepping outside the box and taking a risk? If you don’t succeed, you can always try something else. It doesn’t have to be soley Poloroids. We all want to sell ourselves but I am not a salesman. I learned I do a pretty damn good job of networking myself as I did w/ the recent art show. You know you can do this to and you have… you have sold your soul to us readers from the beginning and we keep coming back to see what you are up to now. You were into blogging heavily after you loss then you lost yourself into your photography. I know you will be successful in whatever you do. It will all come. Don’t ever give up your dreams. One day when you least expect it, something magical will happen I just know it. Remember to be gentle with yourself which I learned from you.
Oh, how I relate to this post. Not the arty photographs comment per se, because, really, I wouldn’t (couldn’t?) describe myself that way. But the seeking focus, clarity and finding ways to build up the… What is it? Hope? Self-assuredness? … to market yourself. I so relate. That’s my goal this year, too. As a writer and photographer and, and, and… I’ll keep reading to see how it progresses!