Reaching my goals

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about my photography and what I hope to achieve with it which has ultimately led me to questions about how to simply achieve something. I find myself in the great conundrum of so many American immigrants: how do I make my dreams come true? So please allow me a few minutes to take you on a guided tour of my thoughts.

Getting Organized
It seems that the first step to achieving anything with my photography is simply getting organized (an enormous endeavor). I feel like I'm constantly being tossed in a typhoon of tasks. There is just so much to do.

I really need to organise my Flickr photostream so that the crappy everyday photos are not viewable to everyone (just family and friends) but that means going through around 4,000 photos and changing the permission on them. Just thinking about it makes my stomach churn. But in the process of thinking about doing this, I've realized by changing those permissions, I will also be deleting photos from my blog as some of those crappy everyday photos are of my life and I want to share them all with you. So where is the balance?

This whole photostream thing came about when I read a discussion group comment by an administrator who won't invite people to join exclusive groups if their photostream isn't a collection of their best work. Of course all of my best work is there but I guess it does require a bit of digging and the truth is, no serious buyer will ever dig deep for long to find something worth purchasing.

I also need to organize my back-up files so that things don't get lost, destroyed or copied over (all three of which happen with some degree of frequency). Unfortunately, that requires a lot of disk space which means I also need to be a bit more ruthless when it comes to what I keep and what I delete. I guess that part all comes down to my work flow: the process from closing the shutter to making it live online. Currently my work flow is sporadic and incomplete at best and non-existent at it's worst. That REALLY needs to change. So many times I've found color burns in my photos after some hasty photoshopping and wanted to redo it only to discover no original was saved.

I'm just an amateur. I haven't sold anything and no one is really taking too much notice of my yet. But if I want to one day crank out 200 sale-ready photos a month, I really need to get a hold on the work flow thing while it's still small and manageable. I believe part of the solution is getting my own computer (I would just arm wrestle Jeremy for more time with our shared one but I think he'd win).

Getting Online
So, I've taken the first step by keeping a blog and upgrading to pro on Flickr, allowing me to store and display unlimited photos. However, that just isn't enough. I need to get my photos into other public directories too. The more places you are, the more likely you'll get noticed. That means more time. More tasks. It means I REALLY need to be organized if I'm going to manage several simultaneous accounts and not double or triple my photos in a single directory (which is a current problem with my Flickr account--partly because the uploader craps out sometimes, partly because I crap out sometimes).

A big part of getting online means making the jump from blogger to the world wide web. Yes, I need a website. I've come to realize that blogger--though great for it's simple interface--is quite limited. I need an about me page, more links, a gallery plus a blog. I need ways to increase my SEO ratings by putting keywords into the coding and google analytics. I need ways for people to order my photos directly from me on my site. I really need to make things all around more professional if I want to be considered professional. I don't want to look like a hobbyist but rather someone who is serious about photography as a profession.

Another part of getting online is getting more and more of my stuff into stock photo pools. Now, there is a big downside to stock photography because you get very little reward for your artistic vision, however, it does inevitably give you more exposure. It also gives you a little bit of money too. I've been really lazy about this and still haven't completed my application submission to iStock Photo (I'm going on... 3 years now?). But selling a few of your plain or less-amazing photos at $5 to $200 each may add up to a new lens or a new camera body in a few short months--which I find kind of motivating. I really need some new gear. After 5 years, around 100 flights, 7 months backpacking, extreme temperatures, lots of beach days, and a few drops (I hate myself for that), things are starting to come out less than perfect. If I could make this camera pay for it's own replacement and preserve my soul, I think it might be worth it.

Getting Noticed
I've also been pondering how to get noticed. This, to me, is the most confusing component. So far, my only real idea have been to get in to Getty Images, get in to some more exclusive Flickr groups, start my own photo groups, seek out and add good and established photographers as contacts, continue advertising in places like Gumtree and Craigslist, submit more photos to newspapers and magazines, getting a galley showing (starting small in a restaurant or cafe), and really building my familiarity with local groups, organizations and gallery owners. All of that seems so daunting and intimidating. I know that some people are bound to see the beauty in my photos but there will also be people who couldn't care less. How do you deal with rejection? I'm afraid I'm not always good at it. I can do the constructive criticism part but when people just say no without consideration of your effort, it can be devastating. It's hard opening up your soul--your art--to other people's opinions.

Of course, the other two components will undoubtedly lead me to more exposure, but I'm still looking for more ideas. Do you have any?

So, that's what I've been doing while I've been away from my blog. I've been thinking about my dreams and how to achieve them. Hopefully in the next few months I'll be able to put up some results like a new website.

How about you? Do you have a plan to achieve your dreams?