kareem black.

although we have been hearing the same things from our photo teachers for the past fifteen weeks or so, attending the lecture by kareem black was rather eye opening as to what it takes to be successful in the “real world” of photography.

There were several important points that he made that stuck out in my mind as some things to remember…

make connections.

this one is the obvious one, true in most aspects of life, but it’s something that we like to pretend isn’t true. Sadly, it almost always is just about who you know, and who they know , etc etc etc…

the one detail I though was interesting about Kareem’s story was how he originally started his professional career, by promoting himself and taking a job as the sole photographer for Fader magazine. His connections there in addition to the magazine sized portfolio that he had made for himself became the first step of his professional success.

Speaking of self-promotion…

This was something I hadn’t really thought about before, but getting your name out there is definitely crucial. Even though our class only has ten people… :p …there are way too many photographers in the world, plus all of the people that think having a fancy camera and photoshop makes you a photographer…and all of the people that believe them…

regardless…Black’s ideas on creative self-promotion, such as stickers and murals, were pretty unique and simple ideas and easy way’s to get your name out there.

which

is

important.

I really want to make stickers now…

if anything just for the lolz.

I think the biggest point of the entire lecture though was the emphasis on shooting for yourself.

yes making money is important, and sometimes you have to take jobs that you are not going to enjoy in order to make a living…

So basically the most important thing to do in order to stay happy is to remember to continue doing projects that make you happy, shoot for yourself and no one else.

remember why you are a photographer…

and what you love about taking pictures.

good timing too given that it is winter and we’ve been stuck inside learning basic studio set-ups.

God bless the january thaw, I need to wander off campus and do some random shooting before I die.

Final point.

kudos to whoever brought in a young photographer to speak to us.

As a freshman, the “real world” and graduation seem so far away, but it’s amazing how fast it goes and I think this was a nice reminder of that.

scary.