I like to get input and inspiration from photographers outside of the Equine genre. Doing so brings fresh ideas and creativity into my work.
When I was a wedding photographer, I was part of the “Fearless Photographers” movement, lead by former newspaper photojournalists, where I learned a lot of what I know about light, composition and moment.
A photography team I've always looked up to within that sub-genre is Erika and Lanny Mann of Two Mann Studios. I only recently found myself returning to their work and found a podcast where they were interviewed by Pye Jirsa of SLR Lounge. They said something in that interview (around the 24 minute mark) that stopped me in my tracks…
When speaking about the high number of frames they take at a wedding, Lanny said, “The analogy we'll often use is it's like we're buying lottery tickets.” The more they shoot, the better their odds are of capturing a remarkable photo.
I think this idea also applies to putting yourself in the position to create great images.
There are times when I'll post a photo and someone will say something to the effect of “Wow, you live a charmed life!” or “Amazing things seem to happen when you're taking photos!” I appreciate the sentiment, but honestly, I just buy a lot of photography lottery tickets. I get out there, with my camera, and I create thousands of bad images to get to a few extraordinary ones.
Take, for instance, a recent live foal birth I photographed. It might seem to people just seeing the end result that this opportunity just came together through pure luck. But what they don't see is the months of planning and all the people who were involved in helping it all come together.
Through all that, I was buying my lottery tickets.
Then over the course of 2 hours, I shot 2387 frames. From those, I edited around 100 images and shared my best 10 on Instagram and 20 on Facebook. I won the lottery that night because I made a plan, left the comfort of my home, risked a lost night of sleep, picked up my cameras and got to work.
What I'm trying to get at is that you can't win if you don't play.
If your camera is sitting in your bag, you're not buying tickets. You increase your odds of growing as a photographer and creating extraordinary photos when you pick up your camera and use it.
I regularly plan shoots that I am not paid for. The reason? Because I know my odds for creating great work increase with each click of the shutter.
My challenge to you is to plan an unpaid photo shoot that will get you out there buying tickets. You never know, you might just win! 🏆
