July 22, 2025 • 31 mins
#582 In this episode of the podcast, I take a deep dive into how comparison can seriously derail your progress and enjoyment as a photographer. Inspired by my own experiences learning new skills—like learning to juggle and nurturing my lawn—I share how easy it is to fall into the trap of comparing yourself to others, especially in the age of social media. I remind listeners that success in photography, or any art, isn't reserved for those who started young or have the best equipment—it's all about showing up, being consistent, and putting in the work over time.
I discuss the myth of overnight success by highlighting stories of people like Morgan Freeman and Stan Lee, who found their big breaks later in life. I emphasize that wherever you are in your journey is exactly where you need to be, and it’s totally normal to have doubts and setbacks. What matters most is your willingness to keep going and focus on your own growth, not what others appear to be achieving.
KEY TOPICS COVERED
- The Perils of Comparison in Photography - Raymond explains how comparing one’s progress or results to others—whether it’s speed of learning (like juggling), gear, or social media metrics—can steal the joy from personal growth. He urges photographers to focus on their individual journey and celebrate each step forward.
- The Myth of Instant Success and the Power of Consistency - Using stories of well-known figures like Morgan Freeman and Stan Lee, Raymond underscores that it’s not too late to start or improve at photography (or any art). He highlights the importance of steady effort, practice (“putting in the reps”), and embracing the “gray areas” of life and art.
- Setting Intentional Goals and Noticing the World - The episode shifts towards actionable advice—encouraging listeners to discover what draws them to photography, rather than chasing external validation. Raymond introduces a practical seven-day photo diary challenge, urging listeners to capture images that make them “pause and notice,” fostering mindfulness and personal vision.
IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS & CONCEPTS
- Comparison Trap: The tendency to measure one’s worth or progress against others, leading to dissatisfaction and doubt. Relevant throughout the episode as Raymond identifies it as a major hindrance to creative growth.
- Reps (Putting in the Reps): A term borrowed from training, here meaning to consistently practice taking photos. The more you shoot, the better you’ll become—emphasizing process over perfection.
DISCUSSION & REFLECTION QUESTIONS
- How has comparing your work to others affected your enjoyment of photography?
- What motivates you to pick up your camera—validation from others, or personal fulfillment?
- In what ways can you adopt more consistency in your photographic journey?
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Thanks for listening & keep shooting!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Raymond Hatfield (00:02):
The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago.
The second best time is today.
So the idea there being thatwherever you are, that is
exactly where you need to be.
We romanticize this idea that tobe a photographer.
You have to fall in love withphotography at a young age and
(00:22):
grow up with a camera in yourhand for it to count.
And it's just not true.
Plenty of people get intophotography later in life.
Plenty of people start creatingart later in life.
Hey, welcome to the BeginnerPhotography Podcast.
I'm your host, Raymond Hatfield,and today.
Well, today I am learning how tojuggle.
(00:44):
Yeah.
like literally, juggling,beanbags.
I bought these on Amazon.
I'm serious.
juggling has been something thatI've, I've always seen and
admired, and I've wanted tolearn how to do it myself.
so I thought, Hey, you knowwhat?
I'm gonna give it a shot.
So, to learn how to juggle, Ifirst went to YouTube to Google
how to juggle.
(01:06):
Bear with me.
I know that this isn't after thestrongest photography start, but
I think I watched like a dozenvideos on how to juggle.
And the ones that I wasgravitated towards were the ones
that were titled to like learnhow to juggle in under 30
minutes.
So naturally, we are going onday eight now, where I'm still
(01:27):
learning how to juggle, which ismuch more than 30 minutes.
Right.
And I remember thinking tomyself the other day, like, Man,
maybe I'm not cut out for this.
I suck at this.
This has been way more than 30minutes.
I should have figured this out along time ago.
What is wrong with me?
But here's the thing.
I think that if I didn't watchthose videos, on how to learn
(01:52):
how to juggle in 30 minutes, Iwould have nothing to compare
to.
I would have nothing to comparemy skills to, my progress to.
I would have nothing to compareto, but exactly what I'm doing,
and I think I'd be thrilledtoday on day eight to see my
progress of still only beingable to, to do two balls at a
(02:12):
time.
I haven't even got to the thirdball yet because that's
progress.
That's more than, than one ball.
But comparison.
Comparison has been the thief ofjoy throughout this entire
process of learning.
So here's where we get into thephotography part.
If you've ever wondered, why dosome photographers get thousands
(02:34):
of likes and I just get six.
Maybe you felt the pressurethat, every time you go out and
shoot, you have to capturesomething incredible.
Otherwise you are wasting yourtime or maybe you felt the fear
of, what if I'm not actuallygood at this and maybe
photography isn't my thing.
Then this episode is gonna bejust for you.
(02:55):
Here's the thing.
That fear that we feel, thatmaybe this isn't for me.
That, why is this taking so longthat is not rooted in any sort
of objective truth.
it's purely based on comparison.
There's this quiet part of thejourney of photography that
(03:18):
nobody really talks about.
It's the shots that don't work.
It's the shots with missedfocus.
It's the shots with awkwardcompositions.
It's what creates, it's doubtand because nobody posts those
photos, right?
(03:39):
Because those photos aren'treally communicating a message.
So it's natural that youwouldn't be posting those
photos.
But because nobody posts thosephotos, we assume that the only
ones who are struggling is us.
And maybe we're just not cut outfor this.
We are the only ones who lookthrough our Lightroom catalog
(04:00):
and see all the photos with the,the missed focus, the poor
moment, the awkwardcompositions.
But trust me, when I tell youthat every photographer, I mean,
every single one ever has beenthere.
The difference maker here isthat those who break past that,
that doubt the fear and becomeprofessionals, the ones who
(04:24):
grow, simply keep going.
That is the only difference.
And I know how tempting it is tojust, scroll through, your feed
and compare your Tuesdayafternoon backyard shot.
that got four likes to some, Idon't know, nomad influencer.
(04:44):
There's sunrise shot on top of amountain.
who seems to somehow have justthis uncanny ability to find and
photograph the most perfectlyphotographic strangers, that
you've ever seen in your entirelife, right?
But, let me ask you something.
How many of those people do youthink actually exist?
(05:06):
I mean, how many of those peopleliving this dream perfect, ideal
life do you think actuallyexist?
And then, going deeper, how manydo you think are actually making
a living, doing that?
So as a, podcast host, I cantell you that I receive loads of
(05:26):
emails.
And I've, I've received a lot ofemails over the years from
people, pitching themselves tobe interviewed on the podcast.
A lot of them claiming to beliving that exact life.
actually found one of the emailsright here.
There's a lot of like personalidentifiers in here, and I don't
want to do that.
But here's the gist, right?
This photographer is a balletbased, former private jet pilot,
(05:52):
a cancer survivor, and now acultural portrait photographer.
A cultural portraitphotographer.
So when you go to thisphotographer's website, all you
see are photos that are justlike breathtaking.
It feels like intimate portraitsof people opening up to this
(06:12):
stranger.
And of course, it's in thisbeautiful location that is,
Bali.
And from the outside, it lookslike, wow, this is what success
looks like, who doesn't want tolive this life?
But the deeper I've found thisout, the deeper that you start
looking into, these people whoportray this lifestyle, you'll
(06:34):
find out that many of themalready had previous successes,
financially and now they'reliving off of their previously
earned money or, they areessentially building some
lifestyle and business likeMastermind program where they're
kind of living on credit now andthen hope to pay it back once
(06:58):
they launch this course ormastermind or whatever.
And need my help to get the wordout there that there are some
successful nomads spinning theirdays, wandering around the
world, in these beautifullocations and capturing these
compelling photos so that youwill give them your money.
And there's a lot of people likethis.
Anyway, I'm kind of on mysoapbox right now.
So I apologize.
(07:19):
I'm not saying that these arebad people.
But there's a lot of people outthere who portray a certain look
and once you peel back thelayers of the onion, you realize
that's probably not the case.
So, long story short is, myguess is that not many people
are actually earning an, honestliving, doing that, living this
dream life that you, imagine islitmus test for success as a
(07:40):
photographer because exposure isjust simply not the same as
income.
So what I'm trying to get athere is wherever you're at in
your journey, you are in theright place.
And yes, even if you're notliving in valley, capturing
cultural portraits of theindigenous people.
You're in the right place.
(08:01):
I mean, could you be further?
Sure.
we all could, but at what cost?
Think about what you would'vehad to have sacrificed or, um.
No, nevermind.
we're not gonna play this whatif game there's this quote that
I love and I've shared it hereon the podcast many times
before.
That is the best time to plant atree, is 20 years ago.
The second best time is today.
(08:23):
So the idea there being thatwherever you are, that is
exactly where you need to be.
You can always, could have beenfurther, but you're not.
You are here right now.
So the second best time istoday.
We romanticize this idea that,to be a photographer.
(08:44):
You have to fall in love withphotography at a young age and
grow up with a camera in yourhand for it to count.
And it's just not true.
Plenty of people get intophotography later in life.
Plenty of people start, creatingart later in life, I'm always
blown away by the fact, andpeople are usually blown away by
the fact when I share this, thatMorgan Freeman did not become
(09:06):
Morgan Freeman, the quoteunquote Morgan Freeman that we
know of today until he was 52.
52 when he co-starred in drivingMiss Daisy and even then at 52,
he had been trying to make itand get a break in acting for 20
(09:26):
years.
Imagine having startedphotography in 2005 and only
today getting your first bigbreak.
Like most people, myselfincluded, like we're not that
patient, but look at what'sshowing up every day did for
him.
Look what putting in the repsdid for him.
(09:48):
It seems like a lot of time of,of no payoff, how many other
people became successful starsin that 20 year period that he
was putting in those reps.
It must have been exhausting.
know?
It must have Another example is,is Stan Lee.
Stan Lee didn't start drawingsuperheroes until he was 43.
(10:09):
He's like one of the fathers ofMarvel, like an estimated$50
billion franchise, and he didn'tstart drawing until he was 43.
The thing with art is that likeit doesn't care how old you are,
it just wants you to show up.
Art is not perfection.
Art is simply trying somethingnew.
(10:30):
Something new to the world.
Something new to you.
New is new.
And yet I could go on Instagramright now and find a hundred
people who are fantastic atdrawing or at art, and they're
16.
And that can feel almostimpossible to break through.
As many of you know, I leftweddings, to get back into, the
(10:54):
world of video.
So as my day job now, I'm avideo producer for a company
that manages senior livingcommunities.
And I can't tell you how manypeople I have met in their
sixties, in their seventies intheir eighties who started
learning something like paintingor writing or ceramics and have
(11:14):
become really, really, reallygood at these things, what most
people would consider very latein life.
it's not about age.
Art isn't about age.
it's simply about showing up.
But again, if we were to compareourselves to those who have been
doing it for a long time, it canbe discouraging.
(11:34):
And that is why I encourage youto take a camera with you
everywhere you go because itincreases your chances of
showing up and taking thephotos.
It allows you to put in morereps.
That's all it does.
By simply bringing a camera withyou places doesn't magically
mean that you're gonna be takingbetter photos.
(11:56):
It just means that you're gonnahave more opportunities to take
more photos, and the more photosthat you take, the better you're
gonna get.
That's how I end every episodeof the podcast.
And yet when you scrollInstagram, you brain does not
say, oh, I'm looking at 30different photographers with
literally centuries worth ofcombined photography experience.
(12:18):
Your brain just, it can'tcomprehend all that.
And it just says, wow, look atthis crazy diverse, I don't
know, amazing, portfolio.
But we forget about the learningcurve.
We discount the time that thesephotographers have spent behind
the camera.
and what we do is we try tosimplify it as much as possible.
We just think, oh, beautifulsubject plus, expensive gear
(12:41):
equals, validation that I'm aphotographer and that's it, but.
Here's actually a dirty littlesecret from behind the scenes in
the world of photographyeducation or, what have you.
It's that photos of gear tend toget so much more engagement than
photos that that gear produced.
(13:02):
Why is that?
Why?
I saw this quote that absolutelylove.
I'm not sure who said it, so Idon't know who to attribute.
In fact, I probably should haveGoogled it, but I didn't.
Sorry.
I think about it a lot.
It's that it says, yourcompetition isn't other people,
or other people with fancy gear.
Your competition is yourprocrastination, your
(13:23):
competition is your negativethoughts, your competition, is
your comfort zone competeagainst that?
That's something that I have toremind myself of constantly.
Our brains are really good atwanting to come up with stories
(13:44):
in our head, find a villain,find a way, you know, a
shortcut.
And it feels like, yeah,expensive gear is a shortcut.
The villain is other people withexpensive gear.
And I'm not saying that youwould, that they're actual
villains or bad people, butlike, that's how our brains
work.
We're just simple, simplehumans.
(14:06):
But the truth is like, you don'thave to be, an Ansel Adams to
call yourself a photographer.
You don't have to be a VivianMaier or a Pete Souza or a
Vanessa Joy, which by the way,happy Birthday Vanessa.
You don't have to be thesepeople to be a photographer.
You don't need galleryrepresentation.
(14:27):
You don't need some viral reel.
You don't need some$4,000 lensto call yourself a photographer.
All you need is a desire, adesire to look at the world just
a little bit closer, and clickthat shutter button with
intention by picking up acamera, by being interested in
(14:51):
the world around you, and usingthe tool in your hand to capture
something.
Well, you're a photographer.
That's it.
That is it.
Some people shoot more.
Sure.
Yeah.
Some people have access to,cooler subjects.
Sure.
That doesn't make their workmore worthy.
(15:12):
It doesn't.
What separates somebody whogrows in photography from
somebody who doesn't isconsistency and approach each
time that they shoot with adesire to learn and grow.
They show up, they shoot, andthey try to be 1% better each
and every time.
That's all that it is, and overtime, over years, over decades,
(15:33):
guess what?
That desire to learn and grow tobe 1% better every time turns
them into the photographers thatwe admire.
Because photography is a long,long, long game.
In fact, it's lifelong.
So these things take time.
It takes a lot of time.
We're gonna take a left turnhere.
But stick with me.
So during the pandemic, I gotreally into lawn care and I know
(15:57):
like it's useless, right?
And I know it's useless to havea good looking lawn.
I think I just like the quiettime and the simple task like
when mowing and doing yard workthe most.
But anyway, my lawn looks reallygood, right?
Like I'm not gonna sugarcoat it.
I'm not gonna hold back lawnlooks good.
And if I had to give you the 8020 of having a great cool season
(16:21):
grass lawn, it's this, mow twicea week and over seed in the
fall.
There you go.
Those two things will give you80% of the results of a perfect
lawn with only 20% of theeffort.
The remaining 20% of the resultsthat you want to a perfect lawn
(16:41):
require 80% of the effort.
But mowing twice a week, notonly cuts down on weeds, ability
to grow and spread, but theclippings from the grass
provide, much needed nitrogen tothe soil when they start to
break down, right.
And then overeating in the fallwill just fill in all of those
bare spots of soil with moregrass, making it harder for new
(17:03):
weeds to pop up and boom, thereyou go.
A lush grass lawn with not manyweeds.
But even if you do those thingsconsistently, it takes, I don't
know, two to three seasons tostart to see real results.
So again, humble brag, but likewhen neighbors stop by and say,
oh, I'm mow consistently, and Ilaid down some grass seed last
(17:26):
month, and my yard still lookslike garbage.
They say it to me as if I'm likehiding something.
How come your yard looks goodand mine does not.
And yet I'm doing the samething.
The answer is it just takestime.
It just takes time.
Like great job mowing and layingdown some grass seed now.
Just keep doing it for threemore years and then come back
(17:47):
and talk to me if you're nothappy with the results else.
if you think that you're gonnaget along like mine, which I've
been working on for five yearsnow in just a few months, like
that's insane.
That is insane.
And yet that is exactly what wedo to ourselves in photography.
I mean, we think, oh, if we havethe same gear, we should be able
(18:10):
to capture the same photos asphotographers who have been
working consistently on theircraft for five plus years, I'm
like, get outta here, man.
What are you talking about?
That's ridiculous.
Ridiculous.
But I get it because i've doneit too.
You know why?
Because I'm a human and thehuman brain loves black and
(18:33):
white thinking.
It is so much easier on thebrain to think if this than
that.
If I buy this lens, then I'llfinally be able to get great
photos.
If I'm not progressing superfast, then I must not be good.
But life as you know, is not inblack and white.
(18:56):
There's a lot of gray.
And that gray actually, is themost important color in
photography.
I don't know if you know this,but gray is how your camera
determines what is a correctexposure because it's the middle
point between too bright, a purewhite photo, and too dark, pure
(19:17):
black.
It's the middle point, it'sgray.
The gray area is so important.
There's a song that I used tolisten to in my younger years to
where, if you, I don't know,graduated high school in the
early two thousands, you mightknow the band Circa Survive.
They have this song called TheDifference Between Medicine and
Poison is In the Dose.
(19:39):
What does that mean?
It means that it's not all ornothing.
It's all about balance.
It's all about nuance.
It's.
It's gray.
It's gray.
There's gray area.
Embrace the gray area.
Understand that there's grayarea.
Can somebody progress as aphotographer faster than you?
Yes, of course.
(20:00):
But guess what?
Maybe they don't have bills topay.
Maybe they don't have two kids.
Maybe they don't have a job withthe security of medical and
retirement.
They're at a different point intheir lives.
That's gray area.
Does it suck when you seesomebody brand new to
photography, like newer than youwith like flagship gear costing
(20:21):
tens of thousands of dollars?
Yes, it sucks.
Are they gonna get better photosthan you?
It sure feels like that.
I've been to weddings where, aguest will show up with better
photo gear than what I have as aprofessional wedding
photographer.
And I'm telling you, havingnever met this person in my
life, having never seen any oftheir photos, there's an
(20:42):
inherent idea that they must begreat at photography.
They must be able to take greatphotos.
Even as a professional whoteaches that gear does not
matter as much as we all saythat it does.
I still think those things too.
I thought those exact samethings.
It's because I'm human.
(21:03):
You are human.
This is what our brain does.
Okay, but it's gray area.
It's all gray.
After talking to him and findingout that, oh, he's just going on
a once in a life trip to Africa,to a safari, he wanted to buy
all the best gear and he got itearly, so he brought it to his
niece's wedding.
Oh, this guy doesn't know how touse a camera.
(21:25):
He's not taking better photosthan I am.
His circumstances were differentthan mine.
And that's fine.
That's great.
You know, whatever.
It's all gray area.
It's all gray area.
We have this idea that toeliminate this noise in our
brain that says, we're not goodenough.
We tell ourselves that we haveto know everything about
(21:46):
photography, otherwise we knownothing, right?
We have to know our camerainside and out.
We have to know everything aboutlenses and apertures and focal
lengths, and we have to haveshot in every lighting condition
and know how to do everythingwithout a hitch every single
time.
That's just not possible.
(22:07):
That's just not possible.
Asking yourself, how do I getbetter at photography is such a
big, huge, massive questionbecause the world of photography
is not only ever changing, butthere's also so much like you
don't need to know.
So instead of asking yourself,how do I get better at
photography?
Ask yourself something morepointed.
(22:28):
Why do I photograph?
What draws me in?
What moments make me pause?
And there's no right or wronganswer here.
It's personal to you.
Ask yourself those questions.
Why do you photograph?
What draws you in?
What moments make you pause?
It's personal to you.
Is it to get likes on Instagram?
Is it to sell your photos formillions at auction?
(22:51):
Is it to be the world's mostsought after portrait
photographer?
Probably not.
Would it be nice to have thoseother things like sure.
Whatever.
Like, I'm not gonna say no, butlike, is that why you
photograph?
Probably not.
I think that the goal ofphotography is to take notice of
the world around you.
Life is fast and the cameraallows us to slow it down just a
(23:15):
bit.
Maybe your motivation is, beingable to capture that person and
their reaction.
Maybe your motivation is gettingthat shot of a valley in the
morning with fog and cows atsunrise.
Right.
With photography, you canpreserve this moment in time
that sounds like a trope, butit's, it's true.
(23:37):
With photography, you can notonly connect with friends,
connect with family, connectwith your environment, but you
connect with yourself.
That is the most powerful thingthat photography has to offer,
is the ability to allow you toconnect with yourself.
With yourself in a camera, youcan create something that has
(23:59):
never been created before andwill never be created again,
'cause you can't recreate amoment.
The photo that you take will bethe only one.
Even if there's somebodystanding right next to you
taking a photo of the exact samething, the photos are going to
feel different.
(24:19):
They're gonna be composeddifferent.
They're going to be different.
The photo you take will be theonly one.
That's what I mean.
So today, rather than askingyourself, how do you get better
at photography?
Ask yourself, why do Iphotograph the things I
photograph?
Why do I photograph at all?
Seriously, sit down and askyourself that question.
(24:40):
Why do I photograph the things Iphotograph?
Why do I photograph at all?
Somebody who bought a cameralike a few months ago and has
been shooting long exposuremacro photos, whatever, is gonna
be way better than I would beshooting long exposure macro
photos, even though I havedecades more photography
(25:04):
experience than they do.
Photography is not about knowingeverything about photography,
it's about knowing what you needto know for what you wanna
shoot, and then you optimize forthat and you don't worry about
the rest.
I had this, this exact idea, uh,conversation in last week's q
and a episode.
Like raw versus jpeg and like,listen, RAW is a superior file
(25:29):
format to jpeg.
There's no question.
That's not up for debate.
But if you're optimizing forspeed.
Optimizing for pure joy ofshooting and optimizing for the
least amount of time, editingyour photos.
I think guess what?
JPEG's gonna be the answer foryou.
And in that case, JPEG is betterthan raw.
(25:51):
You're optimizing for whatmatters most to you, and then
you don't worry about the rest.
So this week I've got achallenge for you.
I want you to create a seven dayphoto diary.
What does that mean?
One photo a day, whateversubject you want.
Whatever camera you got, right?
DSLR, your phone, point andshoot from 2010, whatever,
(26:13):
doesn't matter.
But there's one rule.
Every photo has to be ofsomething that made you pause
and notice.
Now that doesn't mean that yourphoto has to be mind blowing.
In fact, it probably won't be.
The other day I was drivinghome, and as I was going up,
over an overpass, in the sky,there was this hawk.
(26:36):
And I don't know why I lovehawks so much, but there was
this hawk in the sky, and Idon't know if you've ever seen a
hawk do this, but a hawk has theability to just like hover in
the air by flapping its wingslike really fast and it will
stay in the exact same spot andits head will not move.
Its entire body is moving, butits head is like locked on a
(26:57):
gimbal.
It is amazing.
And around this hawk were likefive or six other like smaller
birds, either trying to attackthis hawk or trying to distract
it.
I'm not entirely sure what itwas, but I've never seen it
before.
And that like that was mindblowing to me.
I was like, wow, look at thislike this, I'm witnessing this
battle to survive within nature.
(27:19):
It was so cool.
I really wanted to get a photoof it, but I didn't.
And you're not gonna see thingslike that every day.
So don't, you know, imagine thatevery photo that you take has to
be mind blowing.
Some days you're just gonnanotice the way that there's a
reflection of light or maybeyou're on an evening walk, and I
saw this the other day, an oldman sitting on a bench who was
(27:41):
on his phone just like lost inhis phone next to a young kid
who is just totally contentwatching life move by.
And I was like, oh man, thatjuxtaposition right there is, is
fantastic.
Point is sometimes you noticethings that again, aren't mind
blowing, but you take notice ofthem.
(28:03):
The way your dog always tends tofind that spot of sunshine so
that they can take a nap.
Again, it doesn't matter what itis that you notice, it just
matters that you notice.
You notice something and themore that you take notice of of
what you notice, the more intune your photographic eye
(28:25):
becomes.
It's not about being the best.
Best is so subjective.
It's so stupid.
Unless you're like playingsports or like have something
that you can accurately measure.
Best is so subjective.
The only thing that you canmeasure against is yourself.
(28:46):
You are the only circumstancethat isn't gonna change.
You can't compare yourself tosomebody younger than you with
more freedom than you, with moretime freedom than you, with more
money than you, with more accessto a cool location than you.
You can't compare yourself tothose people because you are
you.
You are you.
You're not behind, you're notlate.
(29:09):
You are exactly where you needto be.
And here's the best part aboutthat, it's that you've already
started.
All right?
So keep going.
Be consistent.
Keep showing up.
Put in the reps, and channelyour Morgan, your inner Morgan
Freeman for the next 20 years.
(29:29):
Imagine that nothing is gonnahappen for you in photography,
and see if you're really readyto make that commitment to be
the best that you can be.
That's all that I got for youtoday.
Until next time, remember, themore that you shoot today, the
more reps you put in, the betterof a photographer you'll be
(29:50):
tomorrow.
Talk soon.
The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago.
The second best time is today.
So the idea there being thatwherever you are, that is
exactly where you need to be.
We romanticize this idea that tobe a photographer.
You have to fall in love withphotography at a young age and
(00:22):
grow up with a camera in yourhand for it to count.
And it's just not true.
Plenty of people get intophotography later in life.
Plenty of people start creatingart later in life.
Hey, welcome to the BeginnerPhotography Podcast.
I'm your host, Raymond Hatfield,and today.
Well, today I am learning how tojuggle.
(00:44):
Yeah.
like literally, juggling,beanbags.
I bought these on Amazon.
I'm serious.
juggling has been something thatI've, I've always seen and
admired, and I've wanted tolearn how to do it myself.
so I thought, Hey, you knowwhat?
I'm gonna give it a shot.
So, to learn how to juggle, Ifirst went to YouTube to Google
how to juggle.
(01:06):
Bear with me.
I know that this isn't after thestrongest photography start, but
I think I watched like a dozenvideos on how to juggle.
And the ones that I wasgravitated towards were the ones
that were titled to like learnhow to juggle in under 30
minutes.
So naturally, we are going onday eight now, where I'm still
(01:27):
learning how to juggle, which ismuch more than 30 minutes.
Right.
And I remember thinking tomyself the other day, like, Man,
maybe I'm not cut out for this.
I suck at this.
This has been way more than 30minutes.
I should have figured this out along time ago.
What is wrong with me?
But here's the thing.
I think that if I didn't watchthose videos, on how to learn
(01:52):
how to juggle in 30 minutes, Iwould have nothing to compare
to.
I would have nothing to comparemy skills to, my progress to.
I would have nothing to compareto, but exactly what I'm doing,
and I think I'd be thrilledtoday on day eight to see my
progress of still only beingable to, to do two balls at a
(02:12):
time.
I haven't even got to the thirdball yet because that's
progress.
That's more than, than one ball.
But comparison.
Comparison has been the thief ofjoy throughout this entire
process of learning.
So here's where we get into thephotography part.
If you've ever wondered, why dosome photographers get thousands
(02:34):
of likes and I just get six.
Maybe you felt the pressurethat, every time you go out and
shoot, you have to capturesomething incredible.
Otherwise you are wasting yourtime or maybe you felt the fear
of, what if I'm not actuallygood at this and maybe
photography isn't my thing.
Then this episode is gonna bejust for you.
(02:55):
Here's the thing.
That fear that we feel, thatmaybe this isn't for me.
That, why is this taking so longthat is not rooted in any sort
of objective truth.
it's purely based on comparison.
There's this quiet part of thejourney of photography that
(03:18):
nobody really talks about.
It's the shots that don't work.
It's the shots with missedfocus.
It's the shots with awkwardcompositions.
It's what creates, it's doubtand because nobody posts those
photos, right?
(03:39):
Because those photos aren'treally communicating a message.
So it's natural that youwouldn't be posting those
photos.
But because nobody posts thosephotos, we assume that the only
ones who are struggling is us.
And maybe we're just not cut outfor this.
We are the only ones who lookthrough our Lightroom catalog
(04:00):
and see all the photos with the,the missed focus, the poor
moment, the awkwardcompositions.
But trust me, when I tell youthat every photographer, I mean,
every single one ever has beenthere.
The difference maker here isthat those who break past that,
that doubt the fear and becomeprofessionals, the ones who
(04:24):
grow, simply keep going.
That is the only difference.
And I know how tempting it is tojust, scroll through, your feed
and compare your Tuesdayafternoon backyard shot.
that got four likes to some, Idon't know, nomad influencer.
(04:44):
There's sunrise shot on top of amountain.
who seems to somehow have justthis uncanny ability to find and
photograph the most perfectlyphotographic strangers, that
you've ever seen in your entirelife, right?
But, let me ask you something.
How many of those people do youthink actually exist?
(05:06):
I mean, how many of those peopleliving this dream perfect, ideal
life do you think actuallyexist?
And then, going deeper, how manydo you think are actually making
a living, doing that?
So as a, podcast host, I cantell you that I receive loads of
(05:26):
emails.
And I've, I've received a lot ofemails over the years from
people, pitching themselves tobe interviewed on the podcast.
A lot of them claiming to beliving that exact life.
actually found one of the emailsright here.
There's a lot of like personalidentifiers in here, and I don't
want to do that.
But here's the gist, right?
This photographer is a balletbased, former private jet pilot,
(05:52):
a cancer survivor, and now acultural portrait photographer.
A cultural portraitphotographer.
So when you go to thisphotographer's website, all you
see are photos that are justlike breathtaking.
It feels like intimate portraitsof people opening up to this
(06:12):
stranger.
And of course, it's in thisbeautiful location that is,
Bali.
And from the outside, it lookslike, wow, this is what success
looks like, who doesn't want tolive this life?
But the deeper I've found thisout, the deeper that you start
looking into, these people whoportray this lifestyle, you'll
(06:34):
find out that many of themalready had previous successes,
financially and now they'reliving off of their previously
earned money or, they areessentially building some
lifestyle and business likeMastermind program where they're
kind of living on credit now andthen hope to pay it back once
(06:58):
they launch this course ormastermind or whatever.
And need my help to get the wordout there that there are some
successful nomads spinning theirdays, wandering around the
world, in these beautifullocations and capturing these
compelling photos so that youwill give them your money.
And there's a lot of people likethis.
Anyway, I'm kind of on mysoapbox right now.
So I apologize.
(07:19):
I'm not saying that these arebad people.
But there's a lot of people outthere who portray a certain look
and once you peel back thelayers of the onion, you realize
that's probably not the case.
So, long story short is, myguess is that not many people
are actually earning an, honestliving, doing that, living this
dream life that you, imagine islitmus test for success as a
(07:40):
photographer because exposure isjust simply not the same as
income.
So what I'm trying to get athere is wherever you're at in
your journey, you are in theright place.
And yes, even if you're notliving in valley, capturing
cultural portraits of theindigenous people.
You're in the right place.
(08:01):
I mean, could you be further?
Sure.
we all could, but at what cost?
Think about what you would'vehad to have sacrificed or, um.
No, nevermind.
we're not gonna play this whatif game there's this quote that
I love and I've shared it hereon the podcast many times
before.
That is the best time to plant atree, is 20 years ago.
The second best time is today.
(08:23):
So the idea there being thatwherever you are, that is
exactly where you need to be.
You can always, could have beenfurther, but you're not.
You are here right now.
So the second best time istoday.
We romanticize this idea that,to be a photographer.
(08:44):
You have to fall in love withphotography at a young age and
grow up with a camera in yourhand for it to count.
And it's just not true.
Plenty of people get intophotography later in life.
Plenty of people start, creatingart later in life, I'm always
blown away by the fact, andpeople are usually blown away by
the fact when I share this, thatMorgan Freeman did not become
(09:06):
Morgan Freeman, the quoteunquote Morgan Freeman that we
know of today until he was 52.
52 when he co-starred in drivingMiss Daisy and even then at 52,
he had been trying to make itand get a break in acting for 20
(09:26):
years.
Imagine having startedphotography in 2005 and only
today getting your first bigbreak.
Like most people, myselfincluded, like we're not that
patient, but look at what'sshowing up every day did for
him.
Look what putting in the repsdid for him.
(09:48):
It seems like a lot of time of,of no payoff, how many other
people became successful starsin that 20 year period that he
was putting in those reps.
It must have been exhausting.
know?
It must have Another example is,is Stan Lee.
Stan Lee didn't start drawingsuperheroes until he was 43.
(10:09):
He's like one of the fathers ofMarvel, like an estimated$50
billion franchise, and he didn'tstart drawing until he was 43.
The thing with art is that likeit doesn't care how old you are,
it just wants you to show up.
Art is not perfection.
Art is simply trying somethingnew.
(10:30):
Something new to the world.
Something new to you.
New is new.
And yet I could go on Instagramright now and find a hundred
people who are fantastic atdrawing or at art, and they're
16.
And that can feel almostimpossible to break through.
As many of you know, I leftweddings, to get back into, the
(10:54):
world of video.
So as my day job now, I'm avideo producer for a company
that manages senior livingcommunities.
And I can't tell you how manypeople I have met in their
sixties, in their seventies intheir eighties who started
learning something like paintingor writing or ceramics and have
(11:14):
become really, really, reallygood at these things, what most
people would consider very latein life.
it's not about age.
Art isn't about age.
it's simply about showing up.
But again, if we were to compareourselves to those who have been
doing it for a long time, it canbe discouraging.
(11:34):
And that is why I encourage youto take a camera with you
everywhere you go because itincreases your chances of
showing up and taking thephotos.
It allows you to put in morereps.
That's all it does.
By simply bringing a camera withyou places doesn't magically
mean that you're gonna be takingbetter photos.
(11:56):
It just means that you're gonnahave more opportunities to take
more photos, and the more photosthat you take, the better you're
gonna get.
That's how I end every episodeof the podcast.
And yet when you scrollInstagram, you brain does not
say, oh, I'm looking at 30different photographers with
literally centuries worth ofcombined photography experience.
(12:18):
Your brain just, it can'tcomprehend all that.
And it just says, wow, look atthis crazy diverse, I don't
know, amazing, portfolio.
But we forget about the learningcurve.
We discount the time that thesephotographers have spent behind
the camera.
and what we do is we try tosimplify it as much as possible.
We just think, oh, beautifulsubject plus, expensive gear
(12:41):
equals, validation that I'm aphotographer and that's it, but.
Here's actually a dirty littlesecret from behind the scenes in
the world of photographyeducation or, what have you.
It's that photos of gear tend toget so much more engagement than
photos that that gear produced.
(13:02):
Why is that?
Why?
I saw this quote that absolutelylove.
I'm not sure who said it, so Idon't know who to attribute.
In fact, I probably should haveGoogled it, but I didn't.
Sorry.
I think about it a lot.
It's that it says, yourcompetition isn't other people,
or other people with fancy gear.
Your competition is yourprocrastination, your
(13:23):
competition is your negativethoughts, your competition, is
your comfort zone competeagainst that?
That's something that I have toremind myself of constantly.
Our brains are really good atwanting to come up with stories
(13:44):
in our head, find a villain,find a way, you know, a
shortcut.
And it feels like, yeah,expensive gear is a shortcut.
The villain is other people withexpensive gear.
And I'm not saying that youwould, that they're actual
villains or bad people, butlike, that's how our brains
work.
We're just simple, simplehumans.
(14:06):
But the truth is like, you don'thave to be, an Ansel Adams to
call yourself a photographer.
You don't have to be a VivianMaier or a Pete Souza or a
Vanessa Joy, which by the way,happy Birthday Vanessa.
You don't have to be thesepeople to be a photographer.
You don't need galleryrepresentation.
(14:27):
You don't need some viral reel.
You don't need some$4,000 lensto call yourself a photographer.
All you need is a desire, adesire to look at the world just
a little bit closer, and clickthat shutter button with
intention by picking up acamera, by being interested in
(14:51):
the world around you, and usingthe tool in your hand to capture
something.
Well, you're a photographer.
That's it.
That is it.
Some people shoot more.
Sure.
Yeah.
Some people have access to,cooler subjects.
Sure.
That doesn't make their workmore worthy.
(15:12):
It doesn't.
What separates somebody whogrows in photography from
somebody who doesn't isconsistency and approach each
time that they shoot with adesire to learn and grow.
They show up, they shoot, andthey try to be 1% better each
and every time.
That's all that it is, and overtime, over years, over decades,
(15:33):
guess what?
That desire to learn and grow tobe 1% better every time turns
them into the photographers thatwe admire.
Because photography is a long,long, long game.
In fact, it's lifelong.
So these things take time.
It takes a lot of time.
We're gonna take a left turnhere.
But stick with me.
So during the pandemic, I gotreally into lawn care and I know
(15:57):
like it's useless, right?
And I know it's useless to havea good looking lawn.
I think I just like the quiettime and the simple task like
when mowing and doing yard workthe most.
But anyway, my lawn looks reallygood, right?
Like I'm not gonna sugarcoat it.
I'm not gonna hold back lawnlooks good.
And if I had to give you the 8020 of having a great cool season
(16:21):
grass lawn, it's this, mow twicea week and over seed in the
fall.
There you go.
Those two things will give you80% of the results of a perfect
lawn with only 20% of theeffort.
The remaining 20% of the resultsthat you want to a perfect lawn
(16:41):
require 80% of the effort.
But mowing twice a week, notonly cuts down on weeds, ability
to grow and spread, but theclippings from the grass
provide, much needed nitrogen tothe soil when they start to
break down, right.
And then overeating in the fallwill just fill in all of those
bare spots of soil with moregrass, making it harder for new
(17:03):
weeds to pop up and boom, thereyou go.
A lush grass lawn with not manyweeds.
But even if you do those thingsconsistently, it takes, I don't
know, two to three seasons tostart to see real results.
So again, humble brag, but likewhen neighbors stop by and say,
oh, I'm mow consistently, and Ilaid down some grass seed last
(17:26):
month, and my yard still lookslike garbage.
They say it to me as if I'm likehiding something.
How come your yard looks goodand mine does not.
And yet I'm doing the samething.
The answer is it just takestime.
It just takes time.
Like great job mowing and layingdown some grass seed now.
Just keep doing it for threemore years and then come back
(17:47):
and talk to me if you're nothappy with the results else.
if you think that you're gonnaget along like mine, which I've
been working on for five yearsnow in just a few months, like
that's insane.
That is insane.
And yet that is exactly what wedo to ourselves in photography.
I mean, we think, oh, if we havethe same gear, we should be able
(18:10):
to capture the same photos asphotographers who have been
working consistently on theircraft for five plus years, I'm
like, get outta here, man.
What are you talking about?
That's ridiculous.
Ridiculous.
But I get it because i've doneit too.
You know why?
Because I'm a human and thehuman brain loves black and
(18:33):
white thinking.
It is so much easier on thebrain to think if this than
that.
If I buy this lens, then I'llfinally be able to get great
photos.
If I'm not progressing superfast, then I must not be good.
But life as you know, is not inblack and white.
(18:56):
There's a lot of gray.
And that gray actually, is themost important color in
photography.
I don't know if you know this,but gray is how your camera
determines what is a correctexposure because it's the middle
point between too bright, a purewhite photo, and too dark, pure
(19:17):
black.
It's the middle point, it'sgray.
The gray area is so important.
There's a song that I used tolisten to in my younger years to
where, if you, I don't know,graduated high school in the
early two thousands, you mightknow the band Circa Survive.
They have this song called TheDifference Between Medicine and
Poison is In the Dose.
(19:39):
What does that mean?
It means that it's not all ornothing.
It's all about balance.
It's all about nuance.
It's.
It's gray.
It's gray.
There's gray area.
Embrace the gray area.
Understand that there's grayarea.
Can somebody progress as aphotographer faster than you?
Yes, of course.
(20:00):
But guess what?
Maybe they don't have bills topay.
Maybe they don't have two kids.
Maybe they don't have a job withthe security of medical and
retirement.
They're at a different point intheir lives.
That's gray area.
Does it suck when you seesomebody brand new to
photography, like newer than youwith like flagship gear costing
(20:21):
tens of thousands of dollars?
Yes, it sucks.
Are they gonna get better photosthan you?
It sure feels like that.
I've been to weddings where, aguest will show up with better
photo gear than what I have as aprofessional wedding
photographer.
And I'm telling you, havingnever met this person in my
life, having never seen any oftheir photos, there's an
(20:42):
inherent idea that they must begreat at photography.
They must be able to take greatphotos.
Even as a professional whoteaches that gear does not
matter as much as we all saythat it does.
I still think those things too.
I thought those exact samethings.
It's because I'm human.
(21:03):
You are human.
This is what our brain does.
Okay, but it's gray area.
It's all gray.
After talking to him and findingout that, oh, he's just going on
a once in a life trip to Africa,to a safari, he wanted to buy
all the best gear and he got itearly, so he brought it to his
niece's wedding.
Oh, this guy doesn't know how touse a camera.
(21:25):
He's not taking better photosthan I am.
His circumstances were differentthan mine.
And that's fine.
That's great.
You know, whatever.
It's all gray area.
It's all gray area.
We have this idea that toeliminate this noise in our
brain that says, we're not goodenough.
We tell ourselves that we haveto know everything about
(21:46):
photography, otherwise we knownothing, right?
We have to know our camerainside and out.
We have to know everything aboutlenses and apertures and focal
lengths, and we have to haveshot in every lighting condition
and know how to do everythingwithout a hitch every single
time.
That's just not possible.
(22:07):
That's just not possible.
Asking yourself, how do I getbetter at photography is such a
big, huge, massive questionbecause the world of photography
is not only ever changing, butthere's also so much like you
don't need to know.
So instead of asking yourself,how do I get better at
photography?
Ask yourself something morepointed.
(22:28):
Why do I photograph?
What draws me in?
What moments make me pause?
And there's no right or wronganswer here.
It's personal to you.
Ask yourself those questions.
Why do you photograph?
What draws you in?
What moments make you pause?
It's personal to you.
Is it to get likes on Instagram?
Is it to sell your photos formillions at auction?
(22:51):
Is it to be the world's mostsought after portrait
photographer?
Probably not.
Would it be nice to have thoseother things like sure.
Whatever.
Like, I'm not gonna say no, butlike, is that why you
photograph?
Probably not.
I think that the goal ofphotography is to take notice of
the world around you.
Life is fast and the cameraallows us to slow it down just a
(23:15):
bit.
Maybe your motivation is, beingable to capture that person and
their reaction.
Maybe your motivation is gettingthat shot of a valley in the
morning with fog and cows atsunrise.
Right.
With photography, you canpreserve this moment in time
that sounds like a trope, butit's, it's true.
(23:37):
With photography, you can notonly connect with friends,
connect with family, connectwith your environment, but you
connect with yourself.
That is the most powerful thingthat photography has to offer,
is the ability to allow you toconnect with yourself.
With yourself in a camera, youcan create something that has
(23:59):
never been created before andwill never be created again,
'cause you can't recreate amoment.
The photo that you take will bethe only one.
Even if there's somebodystanding right next to you
taking a photo of the exact samething, the photos are going to
feel different.
(24:19):
They're gonna be composeddifferent.
They're going to be different.
The photo you take will be theonly one.
That's what I mean.
So today, rather than askingyourself, how do you get better
at photography?
Ask yourself, why do Iphotograph the things I
photograph?
Why do I photograph at all?
Seriously, sit down and askyourself that question.
(24:40):
Why do I photograph the things Iphotograph?
Why do I photograph at all?
Somebody who bought a cameralike a few months ago and has
been shooting long exposuremacro photos, whatever, is gonna
be way better than I would beshooting long exposure macro
photos, even though I havedecades more photography
(25:04):
experience than they do.
Photography is not about knowingeverything about photography,
it's about knowing what you needto know for what you wanna
shoot, and then you optimize forthat and you don't worry about
the rest.
I had this, this exact idea, uh,conversation in last week's q
and a episode.
Like raw versus jpeg and like,listen, RAW is a superior file
(25:29):
format to jpeg.
There's no question.
That's not up for debate.
But if you're optimizing forspeed.
Optimizing for pure joy ofshooting and optimizing for the
least amount of time, editingyour photos.
I think guess what?
JPEG's gonna be the answer foryou.
And in that case, JPEG is betterthan raw.
(25:51):
You're optimizing for whatmatters most to you, and then
you don't worry about the rest.
So this week I've got achallenge for you.
I want you to create a seven dayphoto diary.
What does that mean?
One photo a day, whateversubject you want.
Whatever camera you got, right?
DSLR, your phone, point andshoot from 2010, whatever,
(26:13):
doesn't matter.
But there's one rule.
Every photo has to be ofsomething that made you pause
and notice.
Now that doesn't mean that yourphoto has to be mind blowing.
In fact, it probably won't be.
The other day I was drivinghome, and as I was going up,
over an overpass, in the sky,there was this hawk.
(26:36):
And I don't know why I lovehawks so much, but there was
this hawk in the sky, and Idon't know if you've ever seen a
hawk do this, but a hawk has theability to just like hover in
the air by flapping its wingslike really fast and it will
stay in the exact same spot andits head will not move.
Its entire body is moving, butits head is like locked on a
(26:57):
gimbal.
It is amazing.
And around this hawk were likefive or six other like smaller
birds, either trying to attackthis hawk or trying to distract
it.
I'm not entirely sure what itwas, but I've never seen it
before.
And that like that was mindblowing to me.
I was like, wow, look at thislike this, I'm witnessing this
battle to survive within nature.
(27:19):
It was so cool.
I really wanted to get a photoof it, but I didn't.
And you're not gonna see thingslike that every day.
So don't, you know, imagine thatevery photo that you take has to
be mind blowing.
Some days you're just gonnanotice the way that there's a
reflection of light or maybeyou're on an evening walk, and I
saw this the other day, an oldman sitting on a bench who was
(27:41):
on his phone just like lost inhis phone next to a young kid
who is just totally contentwatching life move by.
And I was like, oh man, thatjuxtaposition right there is, is
fantastic.
Point is sometimes you noticethings that again, aren't mind
blowing, but you take notice ofthem.
(28:03):
The way your dog always tends tofind that spot of sunshine so
that they can take a nap.
Again, it doesn't matter what itis that you notice, it just
matters that you notice.
You notice something and themore that you take notice of of
what you notice, the more intune your photographic eye
(28:25):
becomes.
It's not about being the best.
Best is so subjective.
It's so stupid.
Unless you're like playingsports or like have something
that you can accurately measure.
Best is so subjective.
The only thing that you canmeasure against is yourself.
(28:46):
You are the only circumstancethat isn't gonna change.
You can't compare yourself tosomebody younger than you with
more freedom than you, with moretime freedom than you, with more
money than you, with more accessto a cool location than you.
You can't compare yourself tothose people because you are
you.
You are you.
You're not behind, you're notlate.
(29:09):
You are exactly where you needto be.
And here's the best part aboutthat, it's that you've already
started.
All right?
So keep going.
Be consistent.
Keep showing up.
Put in the reps, and channelyour Morgan, your inner Morgan
Freeman for the next 20 years.
(29:29):
Imagine that nothing is gonnahappen for you in photography,
and see if you're really readyto make that commitment to be
the best that you can be.
That's all that I got for youtoday.
Until next time, remember, themore that you shoot today, the
more reps you put in, the betterof a photographer you'll be
(29:50):
tomorrow.
Talk soon.
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Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.