I look back at my previous work to see how I came to be as a photographer and ask myself: what has changed in the 15 years since I started shooting professionally? How can I use my past work to improve and give me confidence for what’s to come?
This sounds like a confusing title, so let me give you a little context. Recently, a previous wedding client contacted me to tell me that, sadly, her grandfather had passed away. She asked if I had any other photos of him from her wedding that they could use in his memory and display at his funeral. I went through my wedding backups reasonably, found the event in the 2016 folder, and since I had all the raw, unedited photos saved both on the NAS and in the cloud along with the edited and sent, so I proceeded to send the client some newly edited, never-before-seen pictures of her beloved grandfather. She is very happy, and I am glad that the pictures previously kept in stock have a chance to be seen. The job was done, then I made the common mistake of going through old weddings and starting to analyze my previous work from early 2008 onwards, with varying degrees of personal embarrassment.
Doing this gives me a funny realization. I have greatly improved since those photos were taken and edited, not only in the shooting and editing process and the style used but also in my ability to observe details. I looked at the images I had previously delivered, cringing at the question “How did I miss the distraction in the background?” and “What did I think of the filters and textures added to these images?”
This experience also made me realize that having a grudge against your previous job doesn’t help you appreciate how far you’ve come in your journey as a photographer. It also makes me feel motivated for the future, ready to accept change in the future and fearless when it presents itself as an opportunity and reality.
Why look back? What are the benefits?
For me, picking and retouching some older images that I liked (and delivered to the client) at the time meant using my more modern style, experience, and techniques. With my more keen eye, I hope for better results. I’ve included some of the original photos in this post along with retouches, and I hope you’ll forgive my previous work. Considering that a lot has changed since 2008 (I shoot with the Canon 40D and 400D as backup cameras, a cheap flash that I hardly ever use because I’m a “photographer” natural light” and little or no experience).
I thought I was doing well at the time, but almost 200 weddings later, I clearly see the difference and hope you do too. This also gives me more images to use in my future ads whether it’s places I’ve photographed in the past that I haven’t done in a while or images quirky about the couples that I like. There are a few things worth saving.
Also, seeing how dramatically my style has changed from previous years has been amazing. To be able to analyze it properly, I really have to question what style is basically and have I ever had it? All I can say is that for me it’s a combination of everything I’ve seen, learned, experienced and tried to replicate to varying degrees of success at work. yourself as a photographer. The photos, training, techniques, and palettes that I love stay with me, and the ones I’ve tried that don’t work are left aside. I use far fewer filters, actions, and presets now. The filters that I tend to use are my own designs and follow a color scheme that best represents my brand portfolio, making it consistent and recognizable. I shoot with a newer camera (Canon R6 and a CHEAP EOS) and almost always use off-camera flash or additional lighting as needed. In my opinion, the only real way to define your style is to read every relevant book and article on photography and try to photograph a variety of people, genres and things, but most importantly don’t. fear of failure. Fail fast, fail hard, fail often. No failures, no improvements.
I also try to read everything related to photography that I can get my hands on, learning from the experiences of others.
When it comes to learning from others, in my experience I’ve found that while there are many companies that offer guaranteed results, you’re better off looking for who is the best photographer in the industry. your category and see if they offer training. course. I learned portraits from Peter Hurley and weddings from Roberto Valenzuela. Sure, it’s a lot more expensive than some online courses for as little as £99, but I learned from someone with real-world experience doing what is considered a leader in their category.
In the end, the main reason was to see how modern software and hardware have benefited me to some extent. With major improvements to Adobe’s Photoshop and Lightroom and impressive new masking tools, images that I previously dismissed as substandard can now come to life and easily. breathe with the magic of modern technology. I could even send them back to the customer, but then there’s an entire debate about whether the customer thinks they received a substandard product in the first place. I suspect the answer to that is that they got exactly what they paid for, especially since my prices have increased exponentially since I first started. I’m currently using a calibrator and have been doing so since 2016, and all my monitors and workspaces are calibrated to the same color gamut. My experience has improved from all the books read and experience from completed weddings, commercials and portrait work.
My final thoughts
So my takeaway from this is that if you want to feel great about what you’ve been trying to achieve in your photography career and also a measure of what you’ve learned since When starting out, compare your current and past work as a good gauge to demonstrate how much you’ve progressed. Looking back at your previous work can be a worthwhile exercise in the constant struggle to improve.
