Completely lost my passion, it's become "work", I'm annoyed!

[ScarySquirrel]

Hello all.

I don't really post in here much anymore, to be honest I never even visit this forum anymore because it just reminds me of how little photography I do 'for me' nowadays. This is nothing more than a dump of my thoughts, and maybe see if anyone else is in a similar situation.

I took a whole load of photos in 2011, more than ever before, all of them at weddings, and none of them for me. It was all work. I don't massively enjoy the wedding work, but the money is obviously good and it's a very welcome extra income.

However over the last 12-18 months, I've managed to get myself in this hole whereby I don't even open my camera bag unless it's to prepare for a wedding. This is naturally halting my progress as a photographer, and is no doubt making me a "bit rusty" at weddings.

Has anyone else been through this? 2012 will be my last year of weddings for the time being (moving away in 2013 hopefully), so that will help. I know it should just be a case of picking the damn thing up and going out with it, but because I've left it so long, and because I'm so critical of every photo I take, I feel like I don't want to because I'll probably get nothing I'm happy with.

Rant over.

PS. This site is awesome - http://500px.com/popular

 

[ScarySquirrel]

I am not sure what you mean by "None of them are for you, they were all work".

Of course they are work, and of course none of them are for you, it's not like you are shooting your own wedding with Natalie is it?

Unless you mean working as Second Shooter for someone else. But then I don't get that either, I distinctly recall you say that you don't like shooting wedding by yourself and had more fun when you are shooting with Jake.

Bottom-line, I don't think you enjoy shooting weddings from the things that you've said. You certainly don't like the processing part which I don't blame you, it can be monotonous. Although you need to get a routine going, and for me, the dullest part is the culling part. The actual processing part is quite fun, finding gems amongst the set is actually quite rewarding.

I too go weeks without getting my camera out of the bag, don't get them out until the next wedding but unlike you, I never really see it as a job. I see it as a opportunity to get great shots. I see as someone is paying me to let them take photos of them?! I love photographing people, it doesn't necessarily in a wedding, it just happens that the people I am photographing is having a wedding. I could easily document a family making Sunday Dinner.

I would suggest you don't shoot any weddings, period, it is killing you on the inside. Photography is more than shooting weddings and you seems to revolve yourself around it when you clearly not a fan of it.

By "for me", I mean taking photos purely for my own enjoyment, like going out and doing some landscape work. I know the wedding stuff isn't for me, that's the point.

The processing part you're right about, it is fun when you're in the flow of things and finding some good shots.

I need to do the weddings this year, I've committed, and I need the money, After 2012 that's it though.

 

[ScarySquirrel]

I love the processing. Once I get into the swing of it I really do enjoy it.

I'm going to try and get to Richmond Park with Jake soon. I'm in London a lot more now as well, so might take my camera out a bit more when out with my girlfriend.

She lives in East London, does anyone know a good area to get shots across the Thames of Canary Wharf?