You’re probably wondering what that heck is “The Size of the Rat” and how does it have anything to do with photography? Don’t worry I’ll explain later. But I came across something on the Internet earlier today and it really got my literary juices flowing to the point where I sat down and pecked away at this keyboard for an hour or so. Somehow what I had started out to write morphed into something completely incomprehensible and tragically different from what I had intended, although I thought it entertaining. Then after a review from a trusted friend it was decided that the best place for it would be deep within the bowls of the round file, and yet there remained a single paragraph that somehow transcended the obscurity of the abundant ramblings and found it’s way back on to my monitor and morphed into this current incarnation. So if any of this sounds remotely interesting to you – Read On!
I recently read a blog article entitled “The Fame Game” by Jeff Ascough. In it he talks about a certain mentality among many photographers seeking to become famous for fames sake and giving seminars around the world while not really learning their craft. It’s a hot button topic to be sure and one that I think I’ll pass commentary on, but it did get me to thinking. What is it that makes a successful photographer, weather it’s landscape, commercial, portrait, or yes, even wedding photography.
One definition of the word success is “The achievement of something desired.” You insert the thing desired then figure out how to achieve it. No doubt we all have desires and different ideas on how to achieve them but that in itself doesn’t make us successful. So we add hard work to the recipe in the hopes that it will be the vehicle that moves us from where we are to where we want to be. Unfortunately there’s no guarantee our vehicle has enough gas to get us from point A to point B. Now what?
Well for some, riding in the wake of others who seemly have attained the success we desire appears to be the answer. While there can be many benefits to learning by proxy, you want to be careful in choosing your mentors especially when your cold hard cash is involved. A good way to judge who is worth the money is the same way discerning brides choose their wedding photographers – good references. In photo communities you will find many photographers who have been to seminars and be able to recommend those that are worth while as well as, and perhaps more importantly, those who are not.
These seminars can be a great experience or a great disappointment. Something to think about when choosing a venue is what are your expectations, what are you hoping to get out of it, and how much are you willing to pay for it? If you want to get hands on then be careful to make sure that the class size is limited. In this way you will be able to get the one on one attention you need if your not quite getting it or have questions. But remember these limited availability classes will inevitably cost you more then the larger classes. Larger classes may not be able to give you the individualized instruction you want, but you will have a great opportunity to meet new people and network.
I once read a book three times; it was titled “The Inner Game of Outdoor Photography”, written by the late adventure/landscape photographer Galen Rowell. Even though landscape photography is as far from wedding photography as the north pole is from the south, he talked about something that transcends not only every aspect of photography but life in general. “The Size of the Rat”.
What in the world does “The Size of the Rat” have to do with photography? If any of you are mountain climbers you may have heard the phrase around campfires at the base of towering granite cliffs as you considered the task that lay before you the next morning. But for the rest of us the idiom is probably as alien as a blobfish.
Simply put, “The Size of the Rat” is what makes one mountain climber succeed where another climber of equal ability and physical condition fails. Yes “The Size of the Rat” refers to the inner person. How bad does he or she want it, and what are they willing to sacrifice to attain it.
Like mountain climbing, building a successful photography business takes time, energy, dedication, and hard work. To this there are no short cuts and no magic bullets. If the size of your rat isn’t large enough to sustain you in the building stages of your photography business then you will ultimately fail. On the other hand if your rat is large enough there will be no mountain to large for you to summit.
If the size of your rat isn’t large enough now don’t worry, if you feed it it will grow. There’s an old saying we’ve all heard that will help in this regard, “Birds of a feather flock together”. If you hang out with people who are in the business and are successful, some of that might just rub off on you and in turn feed your inner rat. And remember a fat rat is a happy rat and happiness is what being successful is all about.
Doing what you love is essential to having a fat and happy rat. If you’re not in love with being a wedding photographer you will have limited success. But if you are in love with wedding photography you will keep at it and learn everything you can. In the movie National Treasure Nicolas Cage asks Riley this profound question – “one step short of crazy, what do you get?” Riley responds – “Obsessed.” Cage shakes his head and says definitively – “Passionate.”
Passion is an absolutely essential ingredient to being a successful photographer. It’s the driving force behind what we do. It’s what makes us leave the security of a well paying day job for the uncertainty of being self-employed. It’s what gets us out of bed at 3am to photograph daybreak at Death Valley two hundred miles from home. If there ever was one, passion is the magic bullet, it’s the fire that burns, it’s the rat dwells within us.
So the next time you’re wondering what it is that makes some photographers successful where others fail don’t be surprised if in the back of your mind you hear – “The Size of the Rat”!
Posted by: Houston Wedding Photographer Scott Villalobos – www.rsvpstudios.com
Houston Wedding and Portrait Photographer - Scott Villalobos www.rsvpstudios.com
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Glad you pulled this one from the round file, Scott! A number of months ago I went to an evening traveling sales show of a hughly successful portrait photographer who was “on tour”. There were 50 seats, all filled. He asked “Honestly, who in here would quit shooting weddings if they didn’t need the money?” 49 hands shot up like 4th of July bottle rockets. How sad is that? Oh, I know, there are things we all would rather not do (like bookkeeping), but to have a core revenue stream as something you secretly detest? Loose your passion and your careeer becomes your job, your business becomes your boss.
Good article. Kevyn’s response summed it up perfectly
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