What Now?

That's been everyone's question to me & I've only been back a week. Gimme a break ;P

To be honest I thought I'd land and walk into a job that I put a bid in for, but that is yet to materialize & I also shouldn't place all my bets on getting it although I do hope so.

My plan in a nutshell is to get my portfolio up to scratch over the coming month or so, by removing what isn't good enough any longer & then making a print portfolio. Then in the new year I want to approach some agencies and get myself out there. I'd also really like to approach some non-profits or some organization regarding my "Dudes with Beards" project & of course get it done in the next coming months.

On top of that I need to digest what has happened in my life in the past 5 months & how I am going to apply that to my daily life & my photography & relationships with people.

The latter part is the difficult one in my opinion. Affecting daily changes to a lifestyle I've crafted to (im)perfection for twenty nine years. That's a tough ask. Don't get me wrong, imperfection is a great thing. What I am talking about is unlearning bad/lazy/negative behavior toward myself, my work & other people.

That in a nutshell is my plan. If I have one.

Thanks for reading

What Next?

Now that "Dudes with Beards" is on the back burner and the exhibition was well received, what's next? I am carrying on with the "DWB" project and when I get to a hundred I'd like to do a book, but right now that's just a pipe dream :) To be honest I am not too sure at the moment. I have some ideas, but I am being dismissive; thinking that it's not "good enough".

I have a Mamiya RB67 in my possession, so I am thinking I should do something with that, but again I am not sure. I think I should just go out and shoot something, anything, maybe do some street shooting to get the creative juices flowing.

For now though here are some BTS shots (done by my friend Ett Venter) of us putting up the prints for the exhibition. Thanks to him and his girlfriend; Shannon; for helping me out. Oh and the prints are for sale if Dudes with Beards are your thing; please note that some have been bought already, so just ask for availability.

Confidence

con·fi·dence

noun /ˈkänfədəns/  /-fəˌdens/ 
confidences, plural

1. A feeling of self-assurance arising from one's appreciation of one's own abilities or qualities

 Self-confidence does not necessarily imply 'self-belief' or a belief in one's ability to succeed. For instance, one may be inept at a particular sport or activity, but remain 'confident' in one's demeanor, simply because one does not place a great deal of emphasis on the outcome of the activity.

No, no, this is not a class on literature or how to spell confidence. It is something I struggled (and sometimes still struggle) with on a regular basis. I've really only recently felt more steadfast in my abilities as a photographer/creative/artist or whatever adjective you'd like to use.

Now the above paragraph for self-confidence I kind of agree with, but only a little. I place a great deal of emphasis on the outcome of my photography and if I feel I failed then obviously my confidence gets its ass kicked a little. I also don't feel that I am inept, but I do however feel I haven't even scratched the surface with my photography and where my skill set is. That's my own fault though.

Just this morning I saw this quote again from an amazing photographer and artist - Jeremy Cowart - "I’ve found that my confidence as a photographer is directly connected to how often I’m shooting. In other words, keep shooting." And I realized after this weekend just how true that statement is. I shot some live band photography this weekend (something those who know me, know I love and it's also the thing that got me into photography). I sucked though! And I can blame the venue and the lighting and whatever, but the truth of the matter is, I haven't been shooting bands often enough and developing my skills in that area.

I am still however feeling very confident, coz I know where the issues lie. In myself and that's okay. I've been practicing other skills and getting good results and I am happy. I just finished my personal project Dudes with Beards and the exhibition is on Friday. And last weekend I had one of the best shoots of my life thus far. I am happy to share the photos of that shoot with you here today.

I have another personal project in mind and I'll hopefully get that ball rolling in the next week or two. I'm excited. 

PS: I've been featured! How awesome is that? Me?! Hell, I don't feel I deserve it, but I am stoked. Thanks to I Love Pretoria and Mixed Apples for your time. I am truly blessed.

Without further ado, here is the portrait shoot with John. 

Thanks for reading

The Exhibition

The wheels are in motion. Invites have been sent out. The event has been created and posters will soon be printed. Dudes With Beards will be hitting Pretoria on the 12th of July, so keep that day open folks.

I have 3 more portraits to take and a few to finish editing, then it's off to the printers.  Thanks to everyone involved up to this point. You've all been super amazing!

Thank you to 3rd place for letting me use the space to exhibit and a big thank you to Gerhard van Wyk (a.k.a. ThisPencil Illustration) for the amazing event poster.

Thank you for reading