Check who gets there before you.
If you believe success is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration, then I think you might agree with my Empty Parking Lot (“EPL”) theory of success.
The EPL theory states that if you arrive at, or leave, work and the parking is empty then the odds of success are strongly in your favor. In other words, hard work may not be the only answer but it certainly improves the odds.
The EPL at work. Leica M2, 35mm Summaron. Kodak Gold 100.
When I first joined the labor force in 1976 it was abundantly clear that my personal interests – art, photography, music, fashion – came with long odds of success were I to try and make a living at them. Too competitive and too dependent on Lady Luck for the big break.
So I chose finance. A modicum of numerate skill (largely absent from the workforce at large, so less competition right there) and a solid work ethic nurtured by poverty and a poor choice of parents did not guarantee success, but certainly improved the odds. And it was not lost on me that there was only one Christian Dior, one David Hockney, one Cecil Beaton, one Irving Penn, one Annie Leibovitz and so on. Through a mixture of skill, good timing and luck they had succeeded. And, of course, they all shared a willingness to work hard. So at least we had the latter attribute in common!
By contrast, there were lots of gray haired – and gray – men making a more than decent living on Wall Street, unknown, unloved and unrepentant of their career choices. An easy option. Do what you have to for a living and what you like for fun.
All of which is a roundabout way of expressing my admiration for my nephew-in-law who, having recently graduated in the Northwest, decided to try his hand in the world of commercial photography in New York City. One of the toughest professions in America’s toughest city.
Here’s what he wrote me the other day:
“Hi Thomas –
It has been awhile, and I wanted to give you a brief update about what photography related business I’ve found myself in.
August has been a dry month, and is so for about everyone in photography, but September is beginning to look up. I’m not sure If I’ve told you about my official position at the Studio Shoot Digital over here on 23 E 4th street NY, NY, but at the risk of repetition I will venture on; I am the go to man for the location shoots that come to our studio.
We have a grip location truck, featuring a digital suite for editing onboard; the entire rig cost upwards of 600K and is quite sufficient for a large commercial shoot such as the Liberty Mutual insurance job I had last month where we had multiple crashed cars on set, fog machines, and models; we had to build a set that looked much like chaos, some insurance pitch about accident plans. I operate the 15 ton truck, drive it, and work with all the grip gear on board; most shoots I also operate as a direct assistant to the photographer, rigging lights, holding light boards etc.. I have become acquainted with most all of Profoto’s gear, from lights to power packs. Also, with terms of lighting a set, I have learned much of that as well …. Everything from using gels to get the right cast of light, to diffusion to soften, or harden light specific to each projects needs.
Over the past 5 months I have gained some confidence from my studio, and last week I was offered the opportunity to use one of our 6 studios to do a test shoot of my own; by my calculations I was using about $40,000’s worth of free cameras, lenses, and equipment, not to mention a free studio with a $1,300 day rate. I am in the process of retouching and you will certainly be on my list of people who sees these photos first. I shot with the new Canon 5D Mark II, which I’m not sure if you’ve had your hands on yet, but it is quite nice, and an impressive step up from it’s innovative predecessor; I’m interested to see Nikon’s answer before I make any purchases myself; although, most of the industry uses Canon …. Peter Lindbergh uses Nikon however, and Ari Hot lights that don’t flash but are constant, which is how he gets his feel. < .... >
I plan on doing more test shoots of my own in the near future, with a goal of building a book, and a website …. I’m still in need of a good scanner to transfer all my negatives over to digital files, as some of them are still my favorite images. My Canon G10 goes about everywhere with me, < .... >. It is a very flexible camera, and despite its small sensor size It has many advantages over a bulky DSLR; however, it does require an understanding of its limits, which are numerous in low- light scenarios, and I try not to shoot on it over 800 ISO, because of noise.
I have been on set 3 times for Ralph Lauren, for Lucky Magazine, Discover Card, Belk, Liberty Mutual, Clorox, and Pergo… Not a lot of fashion aside from the Ralph Lauren shoots which have been quite lavish; great food, fun people, and gorgeous models… The idea of my job is that me and The Coyote (the name of the truck, more info at shootdigital.com) can be anywhere within a hundred miles plus of NYC, and you’ll have all the equipment, power from generators, and digital capabilities to have a successful shoot. So far, it’s been going well, and I am going to begin training as a tech so when the season for the Coyote ends (sometime end of Fall) I can stay on at my studio as a freelance worker.
I bartend 4 days a week for my steady money, and when shoots come up, I take time away from my bar job, which has proven quite understanding and flexible. So, for the time being, that is what I have to tell. Let me know if you have any specific questions about any of these shoots or my job, as I’d be more than happy to indulge the topic further.
Speak with you soon Thomas, hope all is well.
Brad.”
Inside the Coyote which Brad drives to locations – note the two MacPros.
Time will tell whether my nephew has the luck to succeed in his chosen field, but I do think you will agree that he has the EPL theory down pat. In the meanwhile, I hope he can blog for us on some of his shoots which sound quite thrilling.
Good luck, Brad!