Because life is hard, I am not special. Inside my brain there is no seal of approval, on my arm no mark of greatness. I’m only ordinary. But being ordinary is what makes me extraordinary.

Don’t be confused when you become wary. Or let your heart ache over your troubles. If life wasn’t hard we wouldn’t have a word for desicion. In a world free of burden there are no such things as sacrifice or regret. Beauty only exists in an imperfect world.

It’s loss that inspires an artist to create something of seeming permanence. Struggle that strengthens the resolve to improve. Hatred that poisons the blood, so that we can see what is truly pure.

Life Is Hard

Don’t wish for a life of ease, or extravagant wealth, or endless sun and blue skies. I’ve seen the true face of happiness, and it’s not in the reflection of a priceless sports car. Or next door, hidden between the marble pillars of a mansion overlooking the ocean. Sometimes the most extravagant things are just extravagant masks, hiding the emptiest and loneliest spaces and faces.

Be grateful your life isn’t easy, or perfect. I’m glad my life is hard. Grateful for painful decisions, the haunting feeling of not knowing whether or not the right choice was made. It’s just life. No amount of pretending will ever alter the truth that we are human. The greatest gift is what you’ve had all along. The time you’ve been given on this earth. Everything else is just an illusion. The only reality is what we choose to do with our time.

I am not ordinary. Inside my brain there is something extraordinary,  on my arm a mark of greatness. But being extraordinary isn’t greatness. Greatness is born out of the struggle. Because life is hard.

I was taking a walk yesterday and felt like being a cool poet or a beatnik (snap, snap). So I wrote a description of the photo with phrases that read both forwards and backwards. Wow…my high school english teacher Ms. Wolfe would be proud!

The Chicago wind pushes against you, walking down a street strewn with yellow leaves, torn by the traffic of hurried pedestrians.

The sun is sharp, light cuts an edge thru a nearby apartment building, as it lowers in the western sky.

There is no music muting the sound of the city, your chest is tight, the world weighing heavy on your mind.

Lifting your eyes towards the clouds, obscured by the nearly barren branches of a tree, what do you see?

You snap a photo on your phone, realizing everything has a story, about to leave the past behind.

The moment your realize everything happens for a reason, life doesn’t move backwards, capture it while you can.

Capture it while you can, life doesn’t move backwards, the moment your realize everything happens for a reason.

About to leave the past behind, realizing everything has a story, you snap a photo on your phone.

What do you see, obscured by the nearly barren branches of a tree, lifting your eyes towards the clouds?

The world weighing heavy on your mind, your chest is tight, there is no music muting the sound of the city.

As it lowers in the western sky, light cuts an edge thru a nearby apartment building, the sun is sharp.

Torn by the traffic of hurried pedestrians, walking down a street strewn with yellow leaves, the Chicago wind pushes against you.

Not all men get the opportunity of being around large groups of women on a consistent basis. It’s part of my job per se, to do just that. I love to combine my experiences in photography with life. So here are 3 quick observations i’ve picked up, worthy of your contemplation.

1. Details Matter. When she gets a haircut and you don’t notice? That’s not cool. Not cool at all. From the jewelry, to the shoes, to the color of her nails, to the way she wears her hair, to what she’s wearing, everything is a conscious decision. Notice those things, appreciate those things. Just because you wake up, throw some hair gel in, a pair of jeans, a button up, and call it a day, doesn’t mean it’s the same way with our lovely counterparts. As a photographer, working with makeup artists, hairstylists, and stylists, i’ve learned how difficult it is to do these things. If you’re in a relationship, stop taking it for granted. Remind her how much you appreciate those small details. If you’re single, then now you know.

2. Communication is Key. I direct people when i’m shooting. Outside of professional models, the average person has to be posed or reinforced in some way to make them comfortable. A great way of establishing trust is communication. If I don’t say something or give feedback during a shoot, it feels really awkward. Some photographers demand silence, as if they are recreating the Mona Lisa. I don’t buy into that philosophy. Instead I reinforce that the pose is working, they are doing a great job, and we are getting the shots we need. It’s not to sound like the cliche stereotype photographer you see in movies, always saying “yes baby, work it, love it, you’re like a tiger stalking thru the jungle after its prey!” What i’m getting at is, carry that concept to the real world. Without communicating properly, things get misunderstood. When my communication is at it’s peak, my photographs turn out better. It’s safe to say, better communication yields better relationships.

3. Be amazed. There is no creature more special, beautiful, unique, intricate, and heart stopping on this earth than a woman. As a photographer, I not only try to capture the image, but try to capture the essence of the subject in a photo, that’s my goal. I believe the mistake many male photographers make is they assume just because something is sexual, it’s automatically better. In reality, the hot girl with barely any clothes on get’s pretty old pretty fast. The best photographers in the world, who photograph mainly females, aren’t at the top because they take the prettiest pictures. It’s because they are able to capture essence, insight, convey an idea, and appreciate the subtle beauties that escape the average person. Carrying on into the real world…I truly believe that in order to be a better person/partner, you must appreciate the beautiful subtleties that exist. Too often we lose sight of that. Appreciate women, not as objects, but as beautiful beings that are defined by their unique and subtle gifts. Without that appreciation, you’re just throwing passion out the window. And life without passion, is like lemonade without the sugar. Dull, sour, and unremarkable.

I’m cursed and blessed, with the gift of being able to watch people like a hawk. Seriously. I can take any situation, and from the corner of my eye, I can capture the subtlest of moments. If anyone has seen me work in person, you know exactly what I’m talking about.

A lot of people admit, when in certain social situations, or just in general, they are people watchers. It’s not that they’re creepy, there’s something fascinating about the way we interact with one another, and the way a person interacts personally with their environment.

Ready for a primer on people watching and photography?

There is no situation more fascinating to watch, than when people get around celebrities. This is when the people watching goes into overdrive mode, a photographer goes into fight or flight battle mode. For example, consider the above photograph (click the photo to enlarge it).

What we see is:

1. A girl in shock, so much so, she is unable to raise the camera to take a photograph. Her pupils are dilated. For she is within a few feet of Johnny Depp.

2. A man seemingly reaching out over the girl, towards Johnny Depp. To ask for an autograph? To cut a lock of Depp’s hair? Who knows…

3. Observe the number of cameras and camera phones, pointed toward Depp. Just to say they were there, that they were that close to Johnny Depp.

4. Finally see Johnny Depp talking to a security guard, while he refuses to stop signing autographs, so they can start the film premiere screening. Awesome.

For these people, it’s not a matter of getting a good picture, there’s plenty of great pictures of Johnny Depp that day, anyone can see on Getty Images. It’s not a matter of being bored. It’s a preservation of reality, an attempt to capture the nostalgia, so we can hang it on the wall. “Remember that time I got to being a foot away from Johnny Depp? Look! Here’s cell phone picture to prove it!”

Believe it or not, the power of a photograph is exponentially more influential than you may think. It can induce the whole gamut of emotions. Fear, sadness, grief, pain, elation, joy, happiness, eroticism, the list goes on and on.

I’ve seen photographs so beautiful they brought tears to my eye, i’m not afraid to admit that. I’ve felt nostalgic joy and the worst pain you can imagine from a photograph. It’s not hard to experiment with. Take a scroll thru your facebook feed tonight, watch the news, look around your place for old photographs. Take in the emotion.

Want to up your photography game? Start opening your eyes around you. That way, next time your in a crowd of 2,000 people, you know where to look. Get in tune with the emotion around you, using your intuition.

Change is one of the most difficult things, in life, to accept. We try to hold onto things, people, and our beliefs. There’s a great quote from one of my favorite authors, Dan Millman, who says:

“If you don’t get what you want, you suffer; if you get what you don’t want, you suffer; even when you get exactly what you want, you still suffer because you can’t hold on to it forever. Your mind is your predicament. It wants to be free of change. Free of pain, free of the obligations of life and death. But change is a law, and no amount of pretending will alter that reality.”

Everyday new technologies emerge, allowing the average consumer to take better photographs, with greater ease, using automated advanced techniques. The smart phone has literally shaken the world of photography and video. I constantly hear moans and groans from photographers who talk about the “old days.” How much better things used to be, how stronger the industry was, how the art of the craft turned into some joke. A newspaper photographer recently looked at me, frustrated and angry and said “It didn’t used to be this way.”

I’m tempted to join this pity party, but it’s pointless. Every industry, like life, changes. It’s inevitable. I refuse to buy into these glory day stories. I’ve grown a business in the day of automated dslr photography. But I think that’s not a bad thing. Photography brings so much joy to so many people. It allows them to express themselves, to see the world differently. I think it’s a narcissistic thing to deny anyone the joy of photography.

It’s really no different than our perspective on life itself. Relationships come and go, heartbreak puts us in an unrelenting fog, loved one’s pass away, and people move on. I wish I could hold onto those people forever. I want so badly for life to be perfect, for it to be easy. But it’s never going to be. It’s never going to change. Change is a law.

Basically, my message to photographers, who fantasize about the days sitting outside the film labs, and drinking espresso, working on looser deadlines, and fining their art over others heads is: get out of the negative and do something about it. No matter how much technology evolves, the most valuable asset no one can take away is “the photographer’s eye.” It’s something you can’t teach and you can’t buy. Our industry is not dying, it’s evolving, and it’s changing. Don’t lie in bed scared and depressed. Get out there and change the industry, offer more, do more, be unique. Being anxious, complaining, and having negative thinking has never changed anything in my entire life and it never will.

Photography is like an ex and they just found someone new. Don’t try to get them back, they are gone forever. Move on and find your path. Seriously. Get with it. The industry isn’t dying, you are. And with every breath, with every beating of your heart, you are slowing turning into dust.

I won’t let you down, I will never quit, I will be the best, and I won’t fear change.

I’ve been fielding a lot of questions lately, about breaking into the creative industry, after the traditional college route. So I wrote down a few notes, to help you get started:

Before we begin, you need to accept something: You are going to make mistakes, lots of them. You are going to screw something up, and have to face the music. You are going to have to face more adversity and fear, than any college final in your deepest darkest of nightmares. This is “The Industry” and they play for keeps, with or without you.

Ready? Here we go.

You’re fresh out of college with a slick new portfolio and a (photography, design, fashion, journalism, or film) degree. Suddenly it dawns on you…what the hell did I just do with my life?

Chances are, at least 2 of these things have happened to you in the past 3 months since graduation:

1. You’ve been forced to, or feel like you, have to move to a bigger city, to make your career happen.

2. An intimate relationship you’ve had in college has begun to, or has fallen apart.

3. You’ve come to the realization you are now in massive debt, pursuing a passion, a dream. The dice are dancing on the table.

4. You can’t even find an unpaid internship and the only work you see are sketchy jobs on craigslist.

5. You’ve cried heavy tears, they themselves not knowing where to fall.

Oh the dilemmas you will face and the misconceptions you will shatter!

1. You’ll have to walk a path alone. Until you’ve established yourself as a financially viable creative, I personally don’t believe you can love in the right capacity, until you’ve made it 2-3 years in the industry. Maybe…just maybe…put love and marriage on the back burner? The nights are too late, the business too exhausting, the anxiety too overwhelming, the uncertainty of a passion you’ve worked your whole life for too bone crushing. All these things will tear apart the fabric of your own self-confidence. When you lose your confidence, you lose your capacity to love another with all your heart. Again, we are talking about the creative industry. It will spur jealousy, malice, and make you question every fiber of your being. Even with the best mentors and friends in the world, the creative world is a cold and lonely one. So buy a parka and get ready to become great. If you can find someone willing to weather the storm with you, by all means live and let love. But it’s not going to be easy.

2. You suck, get used to it. Take every college critique you’ve ever had and set them ablaze. You could be the most talented student that ever lived, but you’ve just entered a business. To this day, not a client has asked me what aperture I used. For every one person that loves one particular creative work of yours, there’s two that despise it. Sorry it is what it is. Something inside a creative changes, once they become business focused.

3. Internships. Since you’ve graduated, this isn’t for college credit anymore. Only do an internship for someone or some company that can teach you something/and or you respect. If they are still asking you to go pick up their dry-cleaning three months in, and still haven’t taught you a single thing, walk. You’re working for free to learn a craft, not to be a barista or a courier. Which leads me into my next point…

4. Act fast. Throw yourself into the deepest water you can find and swim for your life. The deeper you go down another career path, the harder it is to come back. But it’s never to late. She took a non-creative career and wanted more than anything to be a sculptor, a performance artist, but feels the dream has died. Too much time has passed; life is slowly beginning to become a desperate struggle for relevancy, something permanent. But it’s never too late. If you’ve found yourself in that position, pick up those tools and get back to work.

5. Assist what? The best advice anyone has given me on the topic was while I was assisting on a shoot, for an iconic cereal box of wheat flakes. The photographer told me, if you want to make it, just go out and shoot your own work. You can assist someone for 10 years, but in the end, all that matters is your ability to create while dealing directly with clients. This advice has proven itself invaluable. Assisting is a great way to learn the business, a great way to get some money here and there, but it’s a slippery slope. Don’t wake up as a 40-year-old assistant and wonder what your life would have been like, if you would have went out on your own and did your own work. It’s called “the assistant trap.”

Solutions for challenges:

1. Network. The most terrifying & successful people in the world are the best networkers. They always have someone they can call on for help. Mark Zuckerberg made it easier, now you can network sitting down. But get out there, show your face, let people get a feel for your personality. Develop relationships, stay in touch, and follow up.

2. Make your work accessible. If you don’t have a website with your work up, at this second, please stop reading. What are you thinking?

3. Get rejected. Learn to embrace rejection. Pretend your career is like dating. For every 100 people who reject you, 10 will say yes. It’s a numbers game.

4. *Don’t work for free. We are all anxious to get out there and build up our portfolios, but don’t let a person, you don’t know or trust, get you to work for free. Especially as an assistant! Let the good old saying guide you, “if you’re giving the milk away for free, nobody’s going to want to buy the whole cow.” Here’s the spin on this point. If you do know someone you trust in the industry, ask if you can shadow him or her. I would say this is a good opportunity to work for free, while creating your own work at the same time.

5. Don’t you quit on me! Whenever life is at it’s worst, when the challenges have blocked out the sun, it’s a sign good things are going to come. This is something I’ve learned to live by, seriously. When things aren’t going in your favor, keep plugging away. You are so close dammit! Think about every person who told you this industry was impossible. One of my own professors, pretty much, thought I didn’t have what it took. He fell asleep during my portfolio presentation. He verbally tore my final portfolio to shreds. Let their criticisms and doubts stoke a fire inside you that engulfs the world around you in a blaze of ambition. Contrary to popular belief, the most successful people you see out there, have been thru the wringer. They’ve been kicked down and criticized to tears. But their dreams convinced them not to quit. Make it your goal to be so ambitious; people wonder why it is, you just won’t give up already.

Final thoughts:

Honestly, what’s the worst thing that could happen? You fail? If you put your heart and soul into something, your dreams will never fail on you; only you can fail your dreams. If you really want to do this, just put something into motion. You will never know where your life is going to take you; maybe the end game is not the same destination you expected. But that’s life I guess. I don’t know every in and out of this industry, nor do I claim to. But I’m here to start a dialogue. If you disagree with me, please shoot me an email. There’s no set path to success, it’s the most rewarding and terrifying part about running a business as a creative.

Best of luck, now go forth and be amazing!

I never wanted to be a photographer.

At 6 years old, I wanted to be a fireman. This dream was only reinforced, after I discovered the song “I Want To Be A Fireman,” on a classic Kid’s Songs VHS. My mom would take my younger brother Daniel and I, to The Fire House Museum in Cincinnati, OH. Two little boys, dreaming to be heroes. Not because it was admirable and cute, but because it’s what kids did.

Many childhood dreams, under the pressures of life’s realities, shatter into thin air like a bullet thru porcelain. I didn’t become a fireman, but I found something else.

My foray into photography and video production was a labor of love, but also an existential self defense mechanism. I was more scared of waking up one day and realizing I’ve wasted my life, doing something I hate, rather than failure.

I never wanted to be a photographer. I just I wanted to love my job.

“Twenty five thousand mornings, give or take, is all we humans get. We spend them on treadmills, we spend them in traffic. And if we get lucky. Real lucky. It dawns on us to go spend them in a world where a simple sunrise can be magic. Twenty five thousand mornings” (Pure Michigan).

I find myself wanting to write less about technical knowledge, relating to photography. More often, I have inclinations to share stories about my real life and my career.

A lot of you may know, I rarely sleep at night. It’s a quiet time to get work done, to think and really get things in perspective. So early this morning, I was sorting through the nearly 300,000 photographs, i’ve collected during my career. The point being, to pick the best of the best, for the launch of my new website. So I came across a photo and it reminded me of a story.

My friends and I went to Cancun, MX for Spring Break 2004, my senior year of high school. It was a lackluster trip, sketchy to say the least. But I remember one particular morning, while the girls were setting up their chairs for the day, I took a walk on the beach. I ventured an hour one way, as far as I could possibly go, then walked back. Upon my return, it was noon, and one of the girls said rather curiously “what were you doing?” She frowned as if I had just ripped the legs off a frog and ate it alive. “I went for a walk on the beach” I responded. She then asked “Why?” I rebutted, “Because it’s beautiful.” Her next words are golden in my memory, burnt deep into my mind. “You’re weird.”

Looking back, I guess she was spot on. I was watching the sun move over the water, rather than taking watered down tequila shots. Totally weird right?  So I guess i’ve become the guy from “American Beauty,” videotaping the plastic bag fluttering in the wind. But I love what I do, and it rocks. So don’t fear weird.