Step Outside Your Comfort Level

The other day I was speaking with another photographer and we discussing the challenges of different types of photography. The skills needed for someone to shoot product photography in the studio is very different than those needed to be a great sports photographer. However, there are things that can be learned by stepping out of your area of comfort and learning some new skills.

When my studio was in Fort Wayne, I used to accept interns from two of the local colleges. One exercise I liked to do was to take an intern to a local park that was known for waterfowl visiting a lake there. We would go to the park and photograph birds. I would specifically ask the intern to shoot the birds in flight. This is always a challenge as you have to be shooting in right direction so you can get the lighting right and also be able get the image in focus. It’s not as easy to do as it sounds and to do so consistently takes practice and skill.

I had a intern tell me that she didn’t see the reason for doing this, she planned to shooting weddings and shooting birds seemed like a waste of time. I explained that even though she planned shooting weddings exclusively, this skill would prove useful and would increase the number of viable images at a reception or when shooting fun images of the wedding party prior to the ceremony. You often need to get candid photos of people in motion and the skill will translate from shooting birds to shooting people.

A lot of my work has been done in industrial settings. I’ve had interns tell me that they would hate to shoot in that environment. It’s often hot, dirty, and gritty. Sometimes you are shooting older machinery where the challenge is to try to make it look good or at least less bad. While not especially glamorous, you can learn a lot from industrial photography. You are constantly shooting in different environments with different lighting. Space is sometimes open and spacious, other times it’s cramped and restricted. You learn to be flexible, adaptable, and creative. You know, regardless of the circumstance, your client has high expectations and you have to deliver. All of these traits are invaluable in life and in photography.

I guess my point is that gaining some experience outside of your preferred style of photography will only benefit you. At the very least it will give a new found respect for photographers that do other kinds of work and it’s fun.

Thanks for reading!

-Ken.