I had a friendly conversation with someone recently who is unhappy with their current career situation and wanted some advice/guidance in terms of photography and the rewards and challenges involved. To be honest, I have these types of conversations quite frequently, and questions about making a living as a photographer rank at the top of the most requested information – well maybe after “what kind of camera do you use.” These questions are all valid, and I’m constantly learning more and more as I grow as a photographer.

One of the common pieces of advice I hear often from seasoned professionals is “don’t quit your day job” if you have thoughts about becoming a pro. I understand the underlying reason for this response, yet I have always felt it is a negative and fear based position that I’ve never agreed with. Who am I to tell anyone what they can or can’t do, or for that matter place a limit on their determination? Is this perhaps a sign of insecurity, after all they themselves had to make the very same decision at some point in their lives.

It reminds me of my ankle injury three years ago when I had 5 screws and a metal plate inserted to get me back to “normal”. From the day I broke it, I was determined to recover and return to the very physical activities I was so accustomed to doing. When my doctor finally told me to start walking again, I was anxious to start therapy, but he recommended I wait a month before my first visit to the rehab center. I couldn’t wait, yet to my utter dismay, on the first visit the physical therapist proceeded to explain the limitations I would face because of the injury and hardware now in my ankle.

To this day, I will never forget how I felt on the drive home, and I decided right then only I would decide my limitations. I’m a pretty humble person, but how could someone tell me what I was or was not capable of doing? I had just finished reading “It’s Not About The Bike” by Lance Armstrong, and we all know what he went on to achieve after being given a death sentence with massive cancer. I was inspired and motivated, and  started my own intense therapy regiment of daily yoga, weight training, and hiking which lasted almost a year. Today, I am 95% of where I was before the injury, and the last 5% I make up by being wiser and smarter about the types of physical activities I’m willing to engage in. Experience and wisdom do come with age!

“Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm” – Winston Churchill

My core belief is only you can determine what you are capable of, and no one can or should tell you otherwise. IF you have the dogged determination and stamina, then yes you can become a professional in whatever field you choose, including photography. Will it be difficult and challenging? I can tell you it is the hardest thing I have ever tried to do. But so what – I am having a blast and I am doing what I love. I wake up every morning at 5AM eager and excited about the day ahead, and if  you are not clear and focused mentally, then you will find it exceedingly difficult to succeed no matter what your goals are.

“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 3000 games…I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” -Michael Jordan

Am I afraid or worried that others will crowd this extremely competitive field? Not at all – I work day and night at creating my own path and no one can be me – just as I can not be anyone else. You will know if and when it is the right time to quit your day job, but if it is, then don’t look back, and never listen to the voice of fear – it’s never helped me achieve anything.

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I love motivational quotes, mostly for what it teaches me about how others perceive the basic issues of adversity, challenge, and success. Here are 11 favorites that I’ve collected over the years together with some preferred personal images. Share your favorite quotes in the comments!

“The miracle is not to fly in the air, or to walk on the water, but to walk on the earth.” -Chinese Proverb

“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are all in harmony.” -Ghnadi

“Zeal is the volcano, the peak of which the grass of indecisiveness does not grow.” -Gibran

“Let us be like a bird for a moment, perched on a frail branch when he sings; though he feels it bend, yet he sings his songs, knowing that he has wings.” -Victor Hugo

“You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Achievement is the knowledge that you have studied and worked hard and done the best that is in you. Success is being praised by others. That is nice but not as important or satisfying. Always aim for  achievement and forget about success.” -Helen Hayes

“Do your work with your whole heart and you will succeed – there is so little competition.” -Elbert Hubbard

“If you limit your choices only to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want, and all that is left is a compromise.” -Robert Fritz

“Technique and ability alone do not get you to the top – it is the will power that is most important. This will power you can not buy with money or be given by others – it rises from the heart.” -Junko Tabei, first woman on Everest

“The greatest service we can perform for others is to help them to help themselves.” -Horace Mann

“There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.” – Shakespeare

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I am very pleased and especially grateful that Lexjet has selected me to be featured in their latest InFocus newsletter. In their Artist Spotlight section, I was able to talk about my approach to landscape photography and how it relates to my past career in music, and how I try to find new ways to share my work in corporate and retail locations. Behind any success there is lots of hard work, but when you love what you do, the line between work and play is transparent.

I truly hope that this serves as an inspiration to anyone who is afraid to follow their dreams. This post is not really about me, but about the will and dedication to stick your neck out for something you believe in, hopefully yourself.

“Don’t surrender your individuality , which is your greatest agent of power, to the customs and conventionalities that have got their life from the great mass.Do you want to be a power in the world? Then be yourself.” – Ralph Waldo Trine

A big thanks to Eileen Fritsch from Lexjet for the great job deciphering my hour long rambling on the phone!

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Like father, like son!

I love to read, and between my Amazon Kindle and regular old-fashioned books, I read a lot. The Kindle allows me to read more often, since I can take it with me pretty much where ever I go, and it’s kept me happily entertained on many long hours waiting for the right conditions while photographing. The ability to bring dozens of books with me in a small device that fits easily in my backpack is truly amazing. Camping has never been better, assuming you can charge the thing, which for me is never a problem – I make sure I can charge my camera batteries where ever I go!

At the same time, nothing beats the feel of a good novel or photography book while relaxing at home during a cold and wet winter day. And while I do read the Kindle at home, it just doesn’t compare (nor should it) to enjoying images in a large coffee table book by my favorite photographers.

This list isn’t limited to photography books because I wanted to share some of the stuff I’ve been reading as of late, regardless of subject. I’ve always believed that learning as much as possible about anything that interests you will pay off in the long run, regardless of whether you’re an artist, father, business owner, or all of the above. So here are a few of my recommendations.

Business/Marketing
A huge topic for me, I can’t get enough about everything there is to know and learn in this new world of the internet and social media, but here are some good thinkers worth reading.

- Trust Agents: Chris Brogan, Julien Smith
Establishing trust online is key to any marketing success, and these guys have invaluable information and advice to share. I’m on my second read.

- Duct Tape Marketing: John Jantsch
Lacking in your marketing efforts? Start here – the best marketing 101 book I’ve read in a while, and even though I’ve been at it for a while, there is always something new to learn!

- The Think Big Manifseto: Michael Port – A truly inspiring book on motivation and the power of believing in oneself to achieve any dream. I’ve read this book twice, and it leaves me feeling empowered and confident about my future as a big thinker.

- Getting Things Done: David Allen
The classic book on stress-free productivity which everyone should read, it started the GTD revolution, so important in a world filled with distractions and demands on our limited energy and time.

- Tribes: Seth Godin
His previous book showed me what a “Purple Cow” was, and this book delivers even more wisdom about what it takes to succeed as an entrepeneur. While not written specifically for an artist, if you a visual artist trying to market and sell your work, this book is mind and eye opening.

Positive Thinking

- Peace Is Every Step: Thich Nhat Hanh
A short book with profound ideas and teachings, yet so simple in its message. You don’t have to change your beliefs or meditate (though I meditate regularly) to appreciate how easy it is to find beauty and peace in every step of life. “I have lost my smile, but don’t worry, The dandelion has it”.

Stories and Inspiration
Who doesn’t enjoy a good novel or adventure story to get the imagination going and escape to another time and place?

- The Road: Cormac McCarthy
A dark and sad tale about an a post apocalyptic scenario involving a father and son relationship. A book about despair, love, and faith in the human spirit.

- John Adams: David McCullough
I enjoy reading about colonial times and the hardships people endured to achieve greatness, both as a source of inspiration and as a way to gain perspective in our own times. I find it difficult to complain about anything these days compared to what it was like before…great book, though quote long!

Creative
This is where it all happens for me, and where I can read forever if it wasn’t for the fact I have to feed my growing 6 yr old!

- Waiting for the Light: David Noton
A master of beauty, light and color, David’s images and accompanying text was a pleasure to enjoy. His candid and down to earth approach was a welcome change to so many other “serious” books, and his enthusiasm and passion for capturing simple beauty comes across in every image. I can’t get enough of his photography from around the world.

- American Wilderness: Barbara Babcock Millhouse
I’m a life-long student of the Hudson River School of Painters, and this book adds to my ever expanding collection about this subject. While not as analytical as others, it gives a good overview of the artists and their contributions to this movement and genre. If you don’t know much about Thomas Cole or Frederic Church (and his home Olana), start here.

- Landscape Beyond: David Ward
A master photographer and thinker, David makes me think more than any other photographer since Galen Rowell. His images are amazing, but it’s his writing I enjoy more than anything else. ” The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.”

- The Creative Habit: Twyla Tharp
The ethic of hard work is epitomized in this great book by this dancer/choreographer. It will literally kick your @#$ and make you think twice about what it takes to be creative – my favorite book of the year by far!

- Mastering Photographic Composition, Creativity, and Personal Style: Alain Briot
Another great book that focuses on the aesthetics of photography from a former painter and one of the most successful fine art photographers alive today. Timeless information that goes beyond the latest technology and gimmicks. This is a permanent part of my photography bookshelf.

- Working the Light: a Photographic Masterclass: Eddie Ephramus
A workshop in a book, this is as close as you’ll get from home to working with four amazing photographers and instructors. It’s filled with student photos and critiques from the instructors, and I learned quite a bit from this unique presentation

- Galen Rowell – A Retrospective
Finally, I left the best for last. I received this book from my wife last Christmas, and it always remain close at hand whenever I need inspiration. Working with a film 35mm camera at a time when all serious landscape photographers used 8×10 view cameras, Galen Rowell blended adventure, remote and exotic locations, and an amazing instinct for light and color. He was the first photographer I ever heard that spoke about the relationship between photography and music, and similarly inspired me to push my body and mind in attempt to express my passion and feelings for the natural world.

Above all, please remember this is only my opinion, and what appeals to me may not appeal to you. But curiosity has done wonders for me, so explore with an open mind!

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My son Bryce has been listening to and enjoying classical music since he was born 6 years ago. The “Mozart Effect” claims that children who are exposed to classical music early become more intelligent, develop better memory, and grow to be brighter individuals. Even if this isn’t true, my wife and I figured it could only bring him benefit, and so we’ve made it a part of his life from day one. Every night for six years, the iPod in his room has played most of Mozart’s pieces countless times.

I purchased a live concert DVD of Mozart’s piano concertos a few years ago which we also enjoy on a regular basis. I was used to Bryce’s curious questions about the concert such as when it was appropriate to clap, why some instruments played much less than others, and how they knew when to play. During a recent viewing however, an interesting exchange occurred.

“I wanted to ask you, why doesn’t the piano player have any music?”
“Because he’s a master, and has it memorized in his head. He plays it from the heart,” I replied.
He looked at me quite confused and asked, “What does that mean?”
I asked in return, “What is in your heart?” touching him softly on his chest.
“Love?” he replied, to which I confirmed “Exactly, that is why he is a master, and plays without having to read the music.”

He smiled, and for a few moments watched in silence as he tried to understand my explanation. Then he grabbed a few matchbox cars and started another race while piano concerto no. 20 played on in the background.

I continued thinking about our conversation and of how fortunate I was to even have that sort of dialog with my son. If he can grasp even a fraction of those ideas, he’ll be on his way to a much better understanding of the creative process than I ever had. I also realized that my explanation was true for any creative endeavor, and certainly photography. How we frame and capture an image should reveal as much about ourselves as it does about the subject. As David Ward says in his book Landscape Beyond, “Images that are questions invite us to explore what we feel about the images subject. They evoke questions without necessarily providing answers.”

So true, even more so when we have a true love for our subject. Whether rain drops on a leaf, a grand landscape, or images of a family member, we should strive to make images that ask questions, and in the process draw the viewer into not only our visual world, but his own imagination and emotions.

This is the true language of photography, no different than that of music, when love is involved. I probably would have never thought of it this way had it not been for Bryce’s innocent, yet profound question.

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I’m really pleased to share that InsideOut Magazine has included me in their second annual Art Special, part of the July/August 2009 issue. It is a well written and produced periodical, and the quality of the printing, with great color and detail, has always caught my attention. Titled “Art & The River”, the article features seven artists “who have dedicated enormous amounts of creative time to the task of celebrating the river’s beauty, and its defense”.

In addition to images of me and my work,  it has a VERY edited part of an interview conducted at their offices in Athens, NY a few months ago. After the photo shoot, I sat down with managing editor Amanda Schmidt, and she asked me several unrehearsed questions while she recorded my responses into an iPod with an external microphone.  While most interviews start with the normal and expected questions, such as “how did you get started”, these questions caught me by surprise in a positive way.

“Why do you photograph the river” and “how do you feel when you’re working” made me think about the many reasons I love what I do, and putting that into words was the only difficult part. When you’re passionate about something, sharing that enthusiasm becomes almost habitual, so I was in familiar territory where sometimes I have to be told when to stop. I gave several reasons, then we moved on to other questions. Yet after the interview was over, and I drove to my home 60 miles away, I had the nagging feeling that I really hadn’t given the best response to the first question.

I photograph the valley because it is what I know best, and like a close friend or a favorite song, there is something about the familiar that feels good, natural, comforting, and reminds me how good life can be. While this specific response didn’t get into the article, it stuck with me the most, and it’s one I’ll think about more and more as I continue to photograph both local and non-local landscapes. Why non-local? Because I know that until a place feels as familiar as a good friend, I will not be able to make the kinds of images I prefer, where my feelings become more important than the scene itself.

Workshop students know I repeat this over and over again, and I believe it is a major part of growing as a landscape photographer. Regardless of how technology improves the tools we use, it will always come down to the reason and purpose behind your images, and those that mean something to you will mean something to others.

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I’m proud to announce that this Sunday’s (May 17th) print edition of The New York Times will feature one of my Hudson Valley landscape photographs. It will be used in a special Hudson River 400th Advertorial celebrating the voyage of Henry Hudson. While I haven’t seen the layout, they requested a fairly large file, so I’m hoping it will be put to good use! I’ll get a credit and website listing as well, so I’m curious to see how much traffic it generates on the website.

I made this image a several years ago while on a hike up Breakneck Ridge, a very dramatic and scenic viewpoint in the Hudson Highlands. I had just purchased a Canon 5D (which I still use quite frequently), and I was very eager to use it in my favorite locations. I didn’t shoot too many in this direction because the sun was fading fast, but there was something about the geometric lines together with the color in the foreground, clouds, and river that I was really attracted to. The moon, tiny as it is, was pure luck (there’s that word again…). I’m glad I took the time to really work the composition vertically though, as this has become one of my most popular images.

I’ll be at the newstands early on Sunday – after the sunrise photo hike of course.

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I recently had the priveledge of being interviewed by Tom Niemisto of the ClearWater Organization about my photography as it relates to conservation in the Hudson Valley. Clearwater, inspired by folk legend Pete Seeger,  is a non-profit that conducts environmental education, advocacy programs and celebrations centered on the Hudson River. The sloop Clearwater is a 106-foot wooden sailing vessel designed after 18th and 19th century Dutch sailing sloops, and is the center-piece of their education programs.

Sloop Clearwater

I had a chance to explain why I feel strongly about preserving our environment, and photography’s power to create awareness, appreciation, and respect for the Hudson Valley, and ultimately, our planet. In this regard, I feel extremely honored to follow in the very large footsteps of many past photographers, and hope I can make a difference, however small it might be. The interview will be aired today on WAMC Radio, a part of NPR.

Listen to the interview here.

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I love the Holiday Season, and like many of you, spend it with family and friends enjoying good food, good times, and looking forward to a new year in anticipation of what it will bring. Certainly we are in a very tumultuous and difficult period in terms of the economy and political environment, but I am optimistic about the future, and remain motivated to continue working as hard as possible to achieve the many goals I have for myself. I encourage all of you to do the same.

As important as all of the landscape photographs I have made through the years are to me, I would gladly give them all away to keep the images that truly matter most to me, and this one I made of my son Bryce on Christmas Eve is certainly one of them. Seeing him grow and discover the world each day has taught me the value of appreciating each moment without taking any for granted. Watching him read a “letter” from Santa Claus is one I will never forget.

We are so fortunate to to have the technology to capture these moments in so many different ways and with relative ease, that there really isn’t any reason not to take advantage of it to the fullest. Take time to record these moments with your loved ones, and more importantly, learn how to manage all of this media so that is is accesible to you in the future and doesn’t get lost in the digital “shoebox” or worst yet, disappear because you didn’t have a backup! (My online backup recommendation).

Life is difficult at times, and we all struggle to get through each day it seems. Yet it’s the simple things I’m most grateful for that make the biggest difference. Whether the simple questions Bryce has asked me, yet I found so difficult to answer, or the magic of making a photograph that I know I will treasure for a lifetime. Those are the things I’ll remember most about 2008.

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I’m pleased and honored to see that Scenic Hudson has used several of my landscape photographs for their 2008 annual report, including the cover, an image I made two years ago while hiking in the Hudson Highlands.

It’s really great to have so many photographic opportunities right here in the Hudson Valley, and even better when I can be a small part of making sure the vistas I enjoy regularly remain protected for future generations.

PS- With barely enough time, I managed to run down to Fovea Exhibitions Gallery last night to donate a canvas print for their first benefit auction this Friday, Dec 12th. Their gallery here in Beacon, NY, exhibits work by top photographers around the world who document important social and humanitarian issues – inspiring stuff that really makes you think. More info on their website.

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