Attention span of a...

[Box Brownie]

Hi Adrian,

You have peaked my curiosity and reading the thread what I may have missed is what is your day job.

I have worked with many different personality types over the decades and they all have strengths and weaknesses when it comes to the possibilty of turning an idea into a business opportunity.

In one sense photography is irrelevant in what you are experiencing, there are folk who exhibit the butterfly approach to what they do and never settle on the one flower that satisfies them.

Business is business.......simply a way to get a monetary return for your product. The business intention will not be affected by this "product" if you have something to sell, sell it. If it does not sell move onto the next product.....that is (in part) what motivates the entrepreneur. Is it possible that what you are experiencing is prevarication??? I.e. reluctant or unwilling to take the plunge and use the "excuse" of wrong product as the 'reason' to move on to the next one...........because that will be the ONE but it never is!

 

[=ReBeL=]

Hi Adrian,

You have peaked my curiosity and reading the thread what I may have missed is what is your day job.

I have worked with many different personality types over the decades and they all have strengths and weaknesses when it comes to the possibilty of turning an idea into a business opportunity.

In one sense photography is irrelevant in what you are experiencing, there are folk who exhibit the butterfly approach to what they do and never settle on the one flower that satisfies them.

Business is business.......simply a way to get a monetary return for your product. The business intention will not be affected by this "product" if you have something to sell, sell it. If it does not sell move onto the next product.....that is (in part) what motivates the entrepreneur. Is it possible that what you are experiencing is prevarication??? I.e. reluctant or unwilling to take the plunge and use the "excuse" of wrong product as the 'reason' to move on to the next one...........because that will be the ONE but it never is!

Not entirely because I have been advertising my services a while in two of my projects (both online and offline). The fact that it brought no clients (with small exception) and almost no enquiries in a space of time got me thinking that there must be something wrong with my offer. The process of working a long time on my website, modifing it, creating blogs posts etc with no return and no interest from people whatsoever, each time killed my motivation and I have moved on.

I work in a whisky industry. In a not very exciting job.

Give me a day or two to work on the website to add more content. I'll think about postin the link.

 

[=ReBeL=]

Well I've had a think about and I don't really want my website to be associated with this thread as I intend to use it as my portfolio website and don't want people to find this thread when searching for my name. However, if somebody is interested and / or curious I can PM you the link. But please don't post it here.

 

[DuncanDisorderly]

Hi Adrian,
Like you I drifted from subject to subject for many years.
I thought about making money from my photography but the advice (sensible) was that I needed to concentrate on what sells and stop taking so many random subjects.
After some serious thought I decided I actually liked what I was doing and stopped trying to actively monetise my photography which led to me being far more adventurous in what I tackled.
I've now shot festivals, promo for arts trails, a couple of weddings and occasionally still get out to take landscapes.
I'm loving photography even more than when I first picked up a camera.

Years later and I've now taken up the sport of caving and my photography skills are being put to good use capturing something I'm becoming increasingly passionate about.
It's the first time I've applied my photography to something I love doing, and the results are markedly different.
It's not what I expected to happen, but it's the best thing I've ever done.

 

[=ReBeL=]

Hi Adrian,
Like you I drifted from subject to subject for many years.
I thought about making money from my photography but the advice (sensible) was that I needed to concentrate on what sells and stop taking so many random subjects.
After some serious thought I decided I actually liked what I was doing and stopped trying to actively monetise my photography which led to me being far more adventurous in what I tackled.
I've now shot festivals, promo for arts trails, a couple of weddings and occasionally still get out to take landscapes.
I'm loving photography even more than when I first picked up a camera.

Years later and I've now taken up the sport of caving and my photography skills are being put to good use capturing something I'm becoming increasingly passionate about.
It's the first time I've applied my photography to something I love doing, and the results are markedly different.
It's not what I expected to happen, but it's the best thing I've ever done.

Hi Duncan,

Cheers for that. I'm leaning towards the same conclussion. That's why I created a single website and uploaded 3 portfolios there (I was considering a fourth but I think it would be a bit much) and plan to just keep working at them in a spare time (on whichever I fancy at the time). No pressure, no marketing, etc. If somebody comes with a querry I'll see what I can do. If not. Oh well.

 

[velocette]

Not being a photographer and just having banged away at anything for 50 years + I'm just in it for enjoyment and fun with absolutely no real end in view but many well intentioned 'projects' along the way I'm firmly in the sod the thinking just enjoy it school. Probably a school of one but at least we all agree and still tremble to our Janis Joplin recordings. How sad...

 

[=ReBeL=]

Not being a photographer and just having banged away at anything for 50 years + I'm just in it for enjoyment and fun with absolutely no real end in view but many well intentioned 'projects' along the way I'm firmly in the sod the thinking just enjoy it school. Probably a school of one but at least we all agree and still tremble to our Janis Joplin recordings. How sad...

Maybe it was a bad idea to try hard to make money on a hobby.

 

[a1ex2001]

Maybe it was a bad idea to try hard to make money on a hobby.

I would totally agree with this statement I once really enjoyed computers now I can't stand them to the point I don't even really enjoy pp'ing photos!

I took a decision when I started to like photography that I would never get money involved in it to the extent I have given photo's away that I probably could have charged for!

 

[Pookeyhead]

It might not be a massive problem for somebody who treats photography as a hobby, but if one wants to develop the skills further and maybe think about something more, then it becomes a problem. I invest months of training and practice into a specific thing, only to lose interest after a while and move to something else. And the whole process repeats itself.

Yes, one could argue that it still makes me better photographer in general, but it not brings me any closer to my goal.

I've already told you. You are interested in Photography rather than the subjects. You will always get bored and want to move on. Photography is a means to an end... a vehicle for what you want to say. Being interested in Photography alone will usually only produce very clichéd and derivative work. Choose a subject you are passionate and knowledgeable about, and then use photography to explore it.

Read chapter 3: Selecting a Subject, starting on page 28 of this book.

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/23953768/On Being a Photographer, 3rd Edition, CD version.pdf

It will make things very clear.

 

[=ReBeL=]

I've already told you. You are interested in Photography rather than the subjects. You will always get bored and want to move on. Photography is a means to an end... a vehicle for what you want to say. Being interested in Photography alone will usually only produce very clichéd and derivative work. Choose a subject you are passionate and knowledgeable about, and then use photography to explore it.

Read chapter 3: Selecting a Subject, starting on page 28 of this book.

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/23953768/On Being a Photographer, 3rd Edition, CD version.pdf

It will make things very clear.

Fascinating and very thought provoking. Thank you for taking time and posting it.

PS. please excuse late reply.

 

[Pookeyhead]

You're welcome.

 

[DeadpanDodo]

Pookey,
Since your return from exile I've really enjoyed your posts, and they have made me consider what I want to achieve from my own photography. The link posted above is particularly thought provoking, especially the mother and child on the beach example, and the resultant "85%".

 

[Pookeyhead]

Pookey,
Since your return from exile I've really enjoyed your posts, and they have made me consider what I want to achieve from my own photography. The link posted above is particularly thought provoking, especially the mother and child on the beach example, and the resultant "85%".

It's quite possibly one of the best photography books ever printed IMO. It's essential reading for my students. There's endless wisdom in this book.