Juggling Two Jobs: Photographer & Artist

As a professional photographer, my duty is to get the shot. Bang on! But as an artist, my personal goal is to craft a beautiful image without resorting to manipulation. That’s the beauty of photojournalism, where you let events play out. And in all those ebbs of highs and lows, something beautiful will emerge from it. Why is that so difficult?

In a recent assignment, my job was to cover an afternoon event by Big Brothers Big Sisters, a national mentoring program that helps youngsters with their goals. In particular I had to shoot AmeriCorps VISTA participant Melissa as she’s going to be part of an article on the internship program. Here’s the problem: the event turned out to be a round table sharing of their goals with their mentors. Doesn’t make for exciting shots.

Now, professionals shouldn’t grumble. And no matter the circumstances, I have to get the shot. Kill the artist, and put on the professional’s cap. But as I crept nimbly around the round table, snapping away, the scenario started to get…boring. Only their mouths and hands were moving. Soon, I had shot every must-have photo and was struggling to find new angles and fresh perspectives.

Swapping lenses helped a little, but variation in content can only be so much considering they weren’t doing much other than talking. What was I to do? I tried incorporating other elements apart from just faces and half-body portraits. The local scenery went into shots, not to mention the files and papers they were using during their session. Attempted a couple of low shots too to bring in more of the sky.

So even though I may have accomplished what I needed to do as a professional, the artist inside feels somewhat starved, and close to death. A teacher once told me exceptional photographers can get one great shot a day. Did I have that with this assignment? Maybe. But there’s no consistency. I certainly don’t have at least great shot in all my recent shoots. It’s not about tech. Buying more lenses and gizmos (though I definitely have enough) won’t solve the problem. I need an injection of creative adrenaline, and some self-taught training to change my view on the world. Only then can I get one great shot on every assignment.

If you are natural spark of creativity, I’d love to listen to any advice you could give!