To be a photographer is to grow. Photography is as much a technical skill as it is a creative escape yet we fall hard in the trap of how much gear matters and how important certain aspects of photography are that we get lost and have a hard time finding out own path which leads to losing the creativity. Today I break down the 3 biggest lessons you need to learn in 2020 to grow as a photographer.

Lesson 1: The Gear Does Not Matter

When building the fundamentals it does not matter if you use a $25 camera or a $2500 camera. Your results will look the same. I would argue that the more you limit yourself when getting started the stronger the photographer you will be later on. You can see examples of my iPhone 3G camera photos below. Use what you have to Make more.

Lesson 2: There Is No Competition

Competition seems everywhere. Coke v. Pepsi - AT&T v. Verizon - Ferrari v. Lamborghini. Sure each of these companies offer the same thing but they are all unique in the way they do it. There are a million other photographers out there, but some stand out, why? Because they are different, they don’t keep up with everyone else, they follow their passions and explore their creativity to create unique pieces. Don’t worry about others, do what feels right to you.

Lesson 3: You Don’t Have To Be An Expert to Start

An expert is someone with the knowledge and know how to create something in just about any situation. That knowledge and know how comes from experience. You don’t gain experience unless you actually do something, practice. You have more access to gear with whats in your pocket than ANYONE just 20 years ago. Make what you have work to gain the experience and grow into the photographer you want to be.

Become A Premium Member to access to more in-depth questions that help move you forward!

Did you enjoy this episode? Check out more recent interviews with other great guests!

Full Episode Transcription:

Disclaimer: The transcript was transcribed electronically by Temi.com and may contain errors that do not reflect accurately what the speaker said. Because of this, please do not quote this automated transcript.

Raymond: 00:00 Welcome to the beginner photography podcast. Today I'm going to teach you the three hard lessons that you need to learn in the upcoming year in order to become a successful photographer. So let's get into it.

Intro: 00:14 Welcome to the beginner photography podcast, a weekly podcast for those who believe that moments matter most and that a beautiful photo is more than just a sum of its settings, a show for those who want to do more with the gear they have to take better photos today. And now your host Raymond Hatfield. Welcome

Raymond: 00:34 Back to this episode of the beginner photography podcast. I am so excited right now because it's just this time of year, this time of year, you know, the end of the year, the beginning of a new year. It's always my favorite time of the year. Years, years, or I guess in the beginning and the end, the end of the last one in the beginning of the new one, it's always like my favorite time. And it wasn't so much growing up because, you know, perhaps it's interesting, I just thought about this. Maybe it's the seasons. I, I really harp on snow a lot. I don't like snow. Not a fan could go the rest of my life without it, but it hasn't been since living here in Indiana that this change in seasons really becomes like a, a, a change in my life because just my normal everyday pattern is kind of interrupted.

Raymond: 01:25 I have to change things up a bit. I'm not shooting as much just cause it's cold. Nobody wants to go outside in the cold. So therefore I am forced to kind of take a different look at things. I'm always more open to new ideas, to new techniques to thinking in a creative way of how I will spend the other you know, eight months of the year or so actually being better in those eight months. It can be hard because I'm busy, you know, whether it's shooting or, or, or doing whatever, it's summertime that I don't want to take on a lot of new ideas or take on a lot of new commitments I suppose. So I just don't look into doing those things. Maybe I'm not as open creatively to, to, to hearing these things. So therefore, this time of the year is always really exciting for me.

Raymond: 02:20 And I'm not sure if I'm alone in that, but I hope I'm not. I hope I'm not. Again, you know, growing up in California, there really wasn't that much of a change in seasons. Your life didn't really change that much. At least where we lived. It was either, you know, a warm in the summer and then kind of wet in the winter. It didn't snow. But therefore, like your life didn't really change. It just got a little wet and that was okay. But also, you know, it was my, it was my years growing up, so, so maybe I didn't, I wasn't naturally going to take that introspective look as I am today. But regardless, this is good. This is getting way too deep in the me personally and my life. None of that matters to you. But today, today what we are going to do is share with you the three hardest lessons to learn or for you to understand, I suppose if you really want to see success with your photography in 2020 and let me clarify that by success I don't mean a commercial or successful or I'm sorry commercial or financial success, but being able to take a photo of that you are more proud of than the photos that you're taking today.

Raymond: 03:36 Even if even if you love the quality or even if you love the photos that you're taking today. You know, I want you to have success by taking better photos. But quickly before we get into that I just wanted to tell you all how excited I am for 2020. I think that you can hear it in my voice and you know what it is that I've been saying now while I'm always a fan of the new year. There's something about this year in particular, something about it feels different. I'm not sure what it is, but it feels like there is some more momentum. And for me, a large part of that is, is simply just you listening right now. You showing up, you tuning in. It's really something special to me. So I just wanted to take a moment and tell you all. Thank you.

Raymond: 04:28 You know, for from the bottom of my heart, you being here in a small way, you know, choosing me to be a part of your photography journey. And I hope that this episode proved to be your North star in 2020 so again, thank you. So with that, let's go ahead and get on into the meat. I suppose you could say of these three lessons. So we're just going to dive into this first lesson and the first lesson is that the gear, your gear does not matter. Your gear does not matter. And I'm starting here because I believe that it is the easiest for you to understand gear, you know, and buy gear. I mean cameras, lenses, memory cards, computers, all of these things. Gear, it is great but it is not everything. Your camera, which is primarily what we're focusing on here is simply a tool.

Raymond: 05:31 It's a tool, just like a hammer and just like a hammer, you know, there may be a right hammer for the job. But even so, you know, the hammer does not build a house. It's you, you build a house, maybe not you, but a contractor contractor builds a house, a person builds a house and it is not the hammer itself. And I feel like it is the same with photography. Sure you can have a camera with a full frame sensor and it's going to be better in low light conditions. But that doesn't mean that you can't make your camera the one that you have worked for you. I'm sure that you've seen videos on Facebook or you know, Pinterest of, and I'm only thinking about this because we were thinking about getting the a, the kids a like a, like a, like a craft desk for upstairs because their rooms are just, it's always a mess.

Raymond: 06:28 And if we had one spot to do it then, then just one spot would be a mess then. And then us, you know, several locations in the house. But scrolling through Pinterest and there's always like really crafty organizational ideas for around the house that somehow get really high end results. Like I dunno, an old Mason jar and the cardboard tube from your paper towel roll. You know, I, I don't know, but you think, you know, you see something like that, you think like, wow, that is, that is crafty. Why didn't I think of that? And my point being is that people will find a way to make what they have work if they want it. If there's something that you want, you can make it work with what you got. But part of that is that you need to have that vision. You need to have something that you need to make, right.

Raymond: 07:22 So with, I wish I could remember what that Mason jar, you know, cardboard tube thing was, but let's just say that they were making a game for their, for their kids. Okay. With these things, you wouldn't just take a Mason jar out of nowhere and then put a cardboard tube in it and then decide what it is. Oh, it's a toy. What you're gonna do is you're gonna wish, I wish that we had some sort of toy that did this and then you can go about making that. And it is the same with photography. Just because you have a great camera doesn't mean that every photo that you take is going to be great. And then you think, ah, this is why it's great. That's why it's great. Here's why I love this shot. It doesn't work like that. You have to have some sort of vision already, some preconceived vision for the photo before a shot is taken.

Raymond: 08:10 So therefore the gear does not matter as much as the vision does. But you know, because we see professional photographers shooting with those full frame cameras shooting with ultra fast lenses that we just discount their skills and assume that it is the camera, you know, and it's not the years of work that they put in. And therefore, because of that, we think that it is our camera that is holding us back. But just like using, you know, an expensive toy or purpose-driven product rather than that Mason jar with the cardboard tube in it, it's not necessarily better, but it does make your life easier. So having a shot in your mind, right, maybe somebody is silhouetted against a, a beautiful backdrop in natural conditions, you would have to wait for the sun to get to a certain point or you know, you would just have to wait for conditions to be perfect for you to be able to take that shot.

Raymond: 09:16 Because while you know, it does depend on the settings that you're using, it's more a silhouette is more about the light and where it is coming from. So instead of waiting, you could use off camera flash to get that in there, get the shot almost no matter the conditions. So, but that off camera flash or didn't make the photo, it made the, it made achieving that photo easier. It is simply a tool and that is it. So if it makes your life easier, right, we're talking about these things, if gear makes your life easier, then why doesn't it matter? Again, it kinda does. And it kinda doesn't, at a certain point, there has to be a level of, you know, being able to, to do something with it. But beyond that, it's all just extra. And if you're still learning photography, I would say that I would say that the gear doesn't matter because if you're still learning how to do something, having a tool that makes the job easier is almost just just going to go to waste because you can't utilize it properly.

Raymond: 10:18 And I know, you know, maybe you're thinking back to that tool or that toy example. Well, yeah, but if I just buy the right or if I just buy the best tool, if I buy the best toy that by the time, you know, I get to the point to where I can use it, then I'm going to be set. I'm going to be ready to go. But with photography, with, with cameras, with digital technology, by the time you learn how to use it properly, I promise you that that camera is going to be obsolete and it's going to be timed upgrade. So therefore don't worry about it. Don't worry about that gear. It's, it's funny I was just talking to another photographer yesterday about how some of my favorite photos that I've ever taken were actually taken with just an iPhone three G like the, like the second, like the second iPhone that came out back in, it must've been 2007 or 2008.

Raymond: 11:14 I mean, this thing was, it was garbage, right? The, the, the photo quality is absolute garbage. But having that camera, there was something so liberating about having such a minimalist setup and minimal controls and having S having such, you know, little gear really leaves your mind feeling free to focus on the creative of the photo rather than the technicals of the photo. Every decision that we make uses mental energy and if we scale back the number of decisions that we have to make, the more power our brain has to make other decisions such as purely creative decisions. And for me, I think that was instrumental for me to learn. And while today, you know, I look back at the quality of those photos, they're not the best, you know, I bet I wouldn't see the world the same way that I do today if it wasn't for that, you know, crummy iPhone camera.

Raymond: 12:26 And if you want to see some of those photos, I put them in the show notes of this episode. So, so check them out again, you can see they're not great photos, but they are they're what they, they, they have, they have a, there's a, there's a, there's a level on top of it that is pushing through and trying to achieve something creative, whether it be through composition or seeing certain lighting or even in the editing. So check those out. I'd really I'm not going to go back and find those so that I can put it in the show notes, but check them out. Let me know what you think. So my point is simply use the camera that you have now. I want you to learn photography. You can learn photography with an old camera. Just take note while you're shooting of whenever you feel like the camera is holding you back and not your skills.

Raymond: 13:19 That's a, that's a very important distinction that you're going to have to make for yourself. Are you taking a photo and it's not turning out because of the camera specifically or is it because of your skill level? And then when you jot those down, that's where you know or that's how you know where to focus. And when it's time to upgrade, you're going to know the main features that you need in a new camera so that when you go buy it, you're going to be more prepared to make the best decision to buy the perfect camera for you. So that is tip number one. The gear does not matter. Okay. Tip number two, tip number two is that there is no competition. So this one is going to be a hard lesson to truly wrap your head around. But out of these three lessons, I think that this one is honestly the most important.

Raymond: 14:16 So let me start by saying that, you know, you may think that there is competition everywhere. You know, there's Coke and Pepsi, there's at and T and Verizon. There's you know, Ferrari and Lamborghini. And on the surface, the fact that it seems like there's competition everywhere. It may seem absolutely true. Soda, soda cell phone provider is a cell phone provider and a supercar is a supercar. But these companies, they're not the same. If they were the same, there would be no reason to choose one over another. And yet if you look online comparison videos, you know, everywhere that makes it feel like there's competition. But again, if, if they were all the same, you would pick one because it's because it's all the same. You would just pick it, but they're not, they're not. One does not clearly dominate over the rest. So to make their Mark in their industries, what they have to do is they have to find out their own way to stand out.

Raymond: 15:21 They have to be unique in whatever it is that they offer. Now it may not be obvious, you know, but ask yourself the next time you go to buy a soda, why are you choosing Coke over Pepsi? Or, you know, vice versa. Is it the taste? Is it nostalgia? Is it your favorite color? There has to be some reason why you're choosing one over another. Thinking about next time you go buy a supercar. No, just kidding. I wish that, I wish I wasn't kidding, but I'm just kidding. But my point is, is that you need to stand out. Each company has to do something to make them unique. And this right here, it's not about business. It's not about business. It's just the easiest example of that. You know, it's the first example that came to my head. If photography is purely a creative pursuit for you, then the message, it still completely applies that you need to create unique work.

Raymond: 16:22 And it's hard to create unique work when you are constantly looking at photos on Instagram, constantly looking at photos on Facebook, constantly looking at photos. Everywhere you go, it's hard to not be inundated with new types of, or new photos. You know, we see, I would say probably thousands of photos every single day and seeing those little pieces, it sticks in us. It sticks in us. We want to go out and we want to create something and it's hard that when you see a photo on Instagram or whatever that is a little bit unique, maybe you haven't seen it before and it has a million likes that you want to go out and you want to create that same thing because Oh, this is what resonates with people. They like this, I'm going to create this, but that's hard because w that isn't coming from you. That's not truly unique that came from somebody else and then this is your representation of it and maybe there's something unique to that, but it's not truly who you are.

Raymond: 17:27 The easiest way to create unique work is by simply focusing on yourself. You guessed it. That was the entire theme of 2019 for the podcast focus on your self and last year at this time I did another episode that was very similar to this one. What you should be focusing on 2019 focused on yourself is a big one because again, there's a lot of pressure on us as photographers with so many other photographers around that we have to create something just a little bit more unique, a little bit better, a little bit different. And surprisingly, the way that we create something a little bit better, a little bit more unique, a little bit different, is by looking at everybody else's photographs thinking right on the surface. Oh well, if I look at everybody else's photographs, all know what they're doing and then I'll know how I can do it different. But what ends up happening is you look at other people's photographs, you see what's popular, you see what is, you know you know, resonating with a lot of people. And then we just simply go do that. And we're not having those unique ideas of our own.

Raymond: 18:34 So I want to ask if you ever heard that phrase, a beginner's mind is a Zin mind. When you're new to something, you're open to anything and you are willing to learn. So if you don't know, I have children, I have two children and I have a seven year old and I have a three year old and whenever they're drawing they come up to me and they say, look at my photo. And I look at it and it's just a mess of crayons everywhere and weird colors and it doesn't make any sense, but they love it. Kids love their work because kids are, are the most creative people ever. They have nothing to compare their work to. They never compare. You know, they never compare their work to the art of others. Then they don't look on TV and say like, wait, how come my photo doesn't look like that? They never do any of that. They just make whatever it is that they want regardless of how it turns out. They love it. And I think that there's something in that that we can learn so much from aside from loving our own work. When you focus on yourself, you grow within that space. You try new things that you come up with. You come up with something unique.

Raymond: 19:52 So in 2020 spend less time on Instagram and more time looking at your own work. Ask yourself, how would you improve this? Next time you do that, you create your new work and just like Coke or Pepsi, you then create this die hard, you know, fan. They would never even think about using your quote competition. Okay? That was tip number two. There is no competition. Tip number three is that you don't have to be an expert to start. So I'm going to share a story here. When I first shifted from cinematography to photography, I dove right in. I learned everything that I could about the different types of photography landscapes with image sharpness you know, bracketing tripod specs, weddings with fast lenses that I couldn't afford using off camera flash portraits with just perfect posing. You know, having an assistant to hold your reflector to get that light just right. And I was looking at all these different types of photography and it was through the lens of, well, what do I need to do this? What, what do I need? What are the, what are these professionals using? And then that's what I need to get started. And then if I didn't have it, then I just didn't do it. So in my head I needed the fastest lens and the best tripod and the whole off-camera flashlight kit just to start.

Raymond: 21:27 I thought that if I showed up without all that gear, I would just simply be laughed at. And I thought that if I, you know, showed up without that gear that my photos would just be garbage. So why try anyway and there there's so much that is just simply wrong with that mindset. And I feel I'm, I'm kind of upset with myself. I mean, hindsight's always 2020 and in a moment it made sense to me, but I really wish that I would have taken more time to just be more free with my photos to just do with what it was that I had. Because today I think that I would be a better photographer. I'd be more suited in better, I'd be better suited in more situations. I would be able to take the photos that I see in my head with less resistance. It wouldn't be as far of a jump because I would have done it before and now I just have extra tools to enhance these things.

Raymond: 22:22 So today, sometimes I still rely and I still work on this. Sometimes I still rely on my gear to create a unique photo. And you know, sometimes that works. I'm not going to lie. Sometimes it works. Having good gear is, is nice. That's why I have good gear because it makes my job easier. And sometimes I rely on that too much, but I can't help think that if in the beginning I started off with the absolute worst, right? I mean old technology, poor supplies, you know, all of this stuff, the whole world against me. Right? How much better? How much more would I have learned? How much better of a photographer would I be today? And the truth is, there's just simply no way to know. There's no way to know. So I just have to move forward every single day and try to continue to take better photos with what I have now because this is where I'm at, right?

Raymond: 23:16 I can't change the past, but I can give advice based on, you know, how, how, how my past was. And you know why I think it was either good or it was bad. So one of the best things that I did was obviously you know, just practicing as much as I could. I think that that really helped me as well. But, but the point that I'm saying is that there was a lot of times that I didn't just start, I didn't make do with what I had instead of making deal with what I had, I just simply didn't do, I didn't take a photo and I thought that this was the the right way to do it. Oh, I don't have the gear. I'm not going to take the photo and even embarrass myself, but I am going to keep watching tutorials on YouTube.

Raymond: 24:02 I'm going to keep reading books. I'm going to keep, you know, keep doing all these things. And that, that was the, you know, that was the, that was the, you know, proud and honorable thing to do. But in reality it got me nowhere further, nowhere further, because you can learn everything that you can, but if you don't put it into practice, you're not going to learn anything. You don't have to be an expert to start. I had the wrong mindset when I got started and once I got fed up with that, I just wasn't making any progress. I adopted that mindset of progress over perfection. Just start. Start right now. Start with what you have. What you need to do is you need to make and do, make more, do more. Make more with what you have and make do with what you have. Sorry.

Raymond: 24:56 And if you like it, then keep doing it and then guess what? At some point you're going to be held back. That's when you upgrade. Upgrade you kit later. Just don't let anything hold you back because doing is the only way to learn. It's the only way that you are going to grow and the beauty, the beauty I think is in the struggle because the growth, the growth is in the challenge. If you are stuck with something that you've never done before, you don't know what you're doing, you're feeling lost, but you have to get a photo, then you're going to get that photo, you're going to make it work. My stepdad told me growing up that that necessity is the mother of invention.

Raymond: 25:46 And for me that is absolutely true. As a photographer, as a photographer, if I'm out and I can't get something that I want, I have to make it work. So maybe I'd try something a little bit different. Oh wow. I never would've done that if I would've had the quote right. Gear. But now that I tried something different, I actually like how that photo turned out. Now I'm going to do more of that because I like it and I'm focusing on myself and I'm just following what it is that I like. What it is that, that, that I find interesting. And again, I look back at some of my first photos and they're not good. They aren't. But after talking to a hundred photographers on the podcast here, they say the same thing.

Raymond: 26:30 So even if you do have the best gear, chances are your first photos still won't be perfect or even good. And if you don't believe me, again, check out the show notes. I share some of my first photos in there, check them out. But remember, a photo doesn't have to be perfect. It just has to be something and no one bought their way into being an expert in the world of photography experience, forge their skills into who they are today and it formed their, you know, by their skill level. So go out and make something. I want you to make more. I want you to do more and I want you to make do with what you have because chances are it's going to be better than you give it credit for. So that is it. I hope that you enjoyed the first episode of 2020 again, I hope that you can use this episode as a North star in your photography.

Raymond: 27:35 I hope that you can learn and grow from this. I would love if you shared your biggest takeaway with me. What was the, what was the number one lesson that you learned in this episode? Remember, I shared three hard lessons that you got to learn. The first one is that the gear just doesn't matter. The second one is that there truly is no competition, and number three is that you don't have to be an expert. To start, would you share your biggest takeaway with me? I would truly enjoy it. You can do so by sharing it in the Facebook group for the beginner photography podcast. If you're on Facebook, just search beginner photography podcast and you will find it. All right guys, that is it. Until next week, go out and make, do, talk to you soon.

Outro: 28:22 Thank you for listening to the beginner photography podcast. If you enjoy the show, consider leaving a review in iTunes, keep shooting, and we'll see you next week.