2017...the adventure continues.
2016 was an incredible year, we were extremely blessed to shoot with some amazing companies and individuals. Our last big shoot of the year was with Elizabeth Marks (pictured above), and to say the least she is one of the most inspirational people/athletes you can imagine. With that incredible momentum, and new year's in the recent past, I thought it would be good to get the year started off with a blog about what's coming in 2017!
First of all, you might wonder why I haven't really posted on any of my social media channels (or at least I like to tell myself you've been wondering) and that's actually pretty easy to answer, I've been with my family. One of the main things I want this blog to be about is the importance of priority and scheduling. As I have blogged about before, I am a husband and dad before anything else, that's what my main priority is. When we ended 2016 I was working anywhere from 70-100 hrs a week just to stay on top of the deadlines, and we needed to take a minute to regroup as a family and get some quality time. Next week I will be back in full swing, but I wanted to take a second to challenge you as you go into this next year with a couple of thoughts:
1. Get yourself into a good headspace - This can mean different things to different people, whether it be through prayer, meditation or even just sitting quietly, take a minute every day to visualize your day and your career. I still struggle with this, but every morning I wake up, make coffee and take the first few sips just for me. You can look to people like Chase Jarvis, Marie Forleo and I am sure a million other succesful people for more ideas on this.
2. Take Care of your body - I definitely struggle here, but I have been working really hard at making sure I exercise and eat as healthy as possible. I hate the gym, but I go, and try to take a minute to breathe. We all work long hours, and this industry takes a toll on you, but you will be able to handle it better if you are healthy. Plus, for all my fellow dads out there, it will help you be focused and have more fun with your kids if you can still pick them up at the end of a long day :)
3. Take time for creativity - This can also mean a lot of things, it could be sketching in a coffee shop, walking through the city, watching a visually inspiring movie, etc. Make no mistake, creativity is nurtured, it needs love and time just like any other skill.
4. Schedule it! - I think one of my favorite quotes from Marie Forleo is "if it's not scheduled, it's not real!" I totally agree with this, and as crazy as it may feel at first you need to make sure you are scheduling yourself. I am not just talking about scheduling those meeting you have, I am talking about scheduling personal deadlines, projects, e-mails, marketing, etc etc etc. If it's important to you it should be in your schedule.
Alright, so with those nuggets in hand, what can you be expecting to see from us in 2017?! I am excited for what's coming, and while I can't talk about all of it, there are some really exciting projects we are working on. In the next couple months we will be finishing our huge video series on composite photography, shooting in studio and on location to show you guys how it goes together. I am also working on more Photoshop tutorials to give you guys all the puzzle pieces you need! A little birdy has been chirping unconfirmed rumors of a podcast...but you'll have to wait to hear more about that one :) Of course we have a bunch of shoots coming up, and we'll be posting all the bts and images through our different social media channels.
I am also planning on broadcasting live on Instagram this year, so keep your eyes peeled for that!
In closing I wanted to open the floor to all of you! I would love to hear what topics you'd like to learn about in 2017, whether it's lighting, business, composite, Photoshop, or anything else, please feel free to leave a comment below and I will do my best to respond or possibly do a tutorial!
Thank you all for an awesome 2016, and now, go BE AWESOME!
Collaboration - Creating Beauty Together
I have posted about topics similar to this before, but for this post I wanted to talk specifically about collaborating with other artists. I think at the heart of this topic is something very simple that I believe in with my whole heart, the idea is this: PEOPLE WANT TO CREATE AND BE A PART OF BEAUTIFUL THINGS.
I always arrive on set early. I mean, I am a punctual person, but that's not why I do it. I actually love being on set, there is something about it...something unlike anything most people will ever experience. Especially in the beginning of my career I loved being around and on set, it didn't matter how much, or even if I was getting paid, I just wanted to be there. Most of the creatives that I have met feel the same way, especially if they love what they do, we just want to be around it. I bring this up because I think a lot of creatives seem to act as if they are the only ones who feel this way, like they can't ask other people just to create for the pure joy of it if money isn't involved. Granted, I like money, and I think most of the people I work with would like to make money, but at the core of what we do is not money. It's passion and creativity.
With this post I want to encourage you to do something big and scary, and to ask other people to come alongside you to make it a reality. I think you'll be surprised how many people are not only willing, but WANT to help you with your vision. Think big, think dream locations, think beautiful Models, think incredible Make Up Artists, think talented Videographers, think amazing Assistants, you get the idea...THINK BIG! Below are two of the most recent collaborations we have worked on...working with crews of up to 7 people, just to make something beautiful.
Madison Flowers
Sierra De Grasse
I also want to take this blog to do one more thing...thank the people who have been so awesome in helping me create.
Models:
Riley Marlene (@Riley_Coyote)
Lisbeth Splawn (@LisbethSplawn)
Sierra De Grasse (@Sea_Air_Ah_)
Madison Flowers (@Loki_Goddess)
Make Up Artist/Hairstylist:
Marlene Jimenez (@hello__marz)
Videographers:
White Summit Films: http://www.whitesummitfilms.com/
Storyteller Creative: http://www.storytellercc.com/
They don't really have websites, but Brent has been my first assistant for a long time and I can't even say how invaluable he is on set, from the mundane to the complicated, he's been there through it all. Savannah has recently joined our crew and has already proven to be an incredible presence and help on set, look for great things from her in the near future!
Hopefully this inspires you to get out there and make something beautiful, the world is waiting for you...go be awesome!
Behind the Image - Lisbeth Splawn
We recently had the pleasure of working with Model and Actress Lisbeth Splawn. The goal was to create moody, vintage portraits with a Dan Winters meets Aaron Anderson look. If you aren't familiar with Dan Winters work I would highly recommend you take a look at his website: www.danwintersphoto.com
One of the great and unique parts of this shoot is the DIY aspect. Both the background and table were made specifically for this shoot, and I'll talk a little bit about how it's done in the video. Check out the videos below and see how it's made, then keep scrolling to see the final images from this shoot!
Thank you guys for following and if you have any questions don't hesitate to shoot me a message...until next time, be awesome!
Behind the Image - Vintage Hotel
Hello blog follower people! I am starting a new series of videos that will be combined with blog posts called "Behind the Image". My goal with these is to break down recent images we've created and go over lighting, gear, etc so you know how we did it. This should be an on going series in addition to the BTS stuff we do for our shoots, a little something extra for you :)
The first shoot I want to showcase was a personal project we just wrapped up in a vintage hotel room. My goal, was to create moody cinematic portraits that had an ambiguous story of loneliness and thought. Check out the videos below to get the inside scoop and then keep scrolling to see our final images!
Shoot me a message if you have questions and watch for the next episode of Behind the Image coming soon! Until next time...be awesome!
2 years!
This September marks 2 years of being a full-time freelance photographer, and it has been an incredible journey so far! I wanted to celebrate this anniversary the same as the last one, by sharing a little bit of what I have learned over the last year.
Be Grateful - Every morning I wake up and I am excited and grateful for what I get to call a career. It was a long hard road just to get to this place and now that I have arrived I am somewhat shocked at how incredible it actually is. You never really know how long you have, so make the most of every day and stay grateful.
There is no such thing as "Overnight Success" - It's been two years, and I have been privileged to work with some really cool clients...but I didn't just wake up and have those clients 2 years ago. It's everyday, it's looking for clients and showing them your work, being rejected, looking and showing your work again. You send out e-mails, mailers, make phone calls and show your portfolio to anyone who will look at it...then slowly, you start to get clients. The point is to keep creating for the reasons that first got you started, because you love it, because you have something to say.
Never say Never - I am finally starting to realize that I shouldn't say never, because you never know. Lately I have been working on tutorial videos like crazy, I said I would never do video. There are a million other examples, but be open, open to collaborate, open to new opportunities, open to someday...not never.
Be Where You Are - I live in Colorado Springs, this is actually hard for me to tell people. I don't live in LA or San Francisco. I have found that by embracing where I live I can use what I do to help my community, not for money, but for my community. I can travel to San Francisco (we just got back from there actually) and in this day and age it's not hard to send files or jump on a plane. We have been stoked to work on some really cool local projects in the last few months, and that's only because we were willing. If you spend all of your time dreaming about where you aren't it makes it really hard to live where you are.
Always Ask - As the saying goes "If you never ask, the answer is always no". I was recently talking at a local gathering for creatives called "Connecting Things" and I talked about how most of the mistakes I make can be associated with fear in some way. Even now, when I am really proud of the work we have done, I have trouble showing it to people because of fear. Some of the best clients and coolest shoots we have done came from walking up to someone or making a phone call, after hours of trying to talk myself out of it. We really are our own worst enemy when it comes to this, so be bold, go ask!
Push Yourself - I once heard someone say "photographers are basically problem solvers", we are hired to solve other peoples problems. It's hard to solve problems if you are not constantly creating them for yourself to solve. This is where personal work comes in. As we have grown over the last year I am continually pushing myself and my team to create something new, to push the limits of what we did last time and to become better at solving problems. As I sit and write this I just came back from a scouting trip for a shoot that will hopefully create a new vein of images for my brand, and I am excited to do it.
There's no doubt about it, being a freelancer is hard work, but it's great work. I am so stoked to be a part of such an incredible industry, and to create something new every day. I wanted to finish with some of my favorite images from this year and of course remind you...be awesome!
New Tutorial Series!
I am happy to announce the launch of the first video in the beginning of a series on composite photography! I am starting with the basic tools that you will need in Photoshop and in the studio, and then taking you all the way through an actual shoot that we'll turn into a composite. They'll be in bite size pieces that you can use independently, but you will also be able to watch them in order to learn each step of the process.
Without further delay here is the first video on the pen tool and creating paths in Photoshop!
If you have any questions just shoot them over in the comment section, either here or on YouTube and I will do my best to get to them! These will be launching over the next couple of months, and our next video will talk about selections and refining masks. Stay tuned go be awesome!
Periphery
Greetings Everyone! Things have been so crazy that I haven't had a chance to update the blog with all the happenings! For starters we now have YouTube channel! This channel will be where all of the new tutorials and educational content live. I will have them on this site as well, but make sure click below to see the new channel and subscribe:
Click Here to See Aaron Anderson Photo on YouTube
Now that you're subscribed on YouTube (wink wink) I wanted to share a video from there that I just posted. One of the major things that we've been working on is the opening of our new exhibit Periphery, located at the Taylor Museum in the Fine Arts Center. This exhibit features 10 portraits of people experiencing homelessness in Colorado Springs at the time of the shoot. Our exhibit will be displayed until Sept '16, so if you are in the area please stop by and have a look! (http://www.csfineartscenter.org/exhibits/periphery/) We partnered with the Springs Rescue Mission for this project and you can read more about the experience through a post I wrote for their blog here:
Click Here to Read Humanizing the Homeless
Once you've finished reading that I would encourage you to watch the video below to see footage from the Grand Opening and hear a little more about the project itself. You'll also get a sneak peak at the images, so make sure you watch the whole thing ;)
I hope that all of you are inspired to use your skills as an artist to impact your community, remember, you can make a difference...one person at a time. Until next time - BE AWESOME!
Social Media...follow up.
I wanted to take a quick second to follow up on my previous blog post about social media. There were two things that I forgot that I wanted to mention as food for thought.
One of the major things is the idea of being featured on social media. This can be a huge way to not only gain followers but gain exposure to the type of people that can and will hire you. What do I mean by featured? Well I'm glad you asked! There are many accounts on pretty much every social media channel, but especially for me this applies to Instagram and Twitter, that have tens of thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of followers that simply exist to feature other peoples work. Why not yours?! It will take a little while to find these accounts, but with a little bit of research you can compile a list that would be likely to feature you. Once you've found them start tagging them! Depending on the account you will either use a hashtag or tag them (i.e. #aaronandersonphoto or @aaronandersonphoto) and they can then see your work. Sometimes the accounts will ask you to direct message them with work, so just do whatever method they prefer.
A quick note on this...MAKE SURE YOU PICK ACCOUNTS THAT ARE RELEVANT! This will be a total waste of time for both you and them if you start sending your super conceptual poodle portraits to a surfing feature account. So make sure you do your homework before you hashtag. If you're looking for a place to get started just head over and Google "Top Instagram Feature Accounts", it'll get you heading in the right direction :)
Along the lines of this same idea is being featured by manufacturers or companies that are relevant to you. If you're an artist who makes your brushes? If you're a photographer who makes your camera, lenses, lighting, backgrounds, etc.? If you're a wedding photographer who makes the dress? If you're a...and the ideas go on and on. This type of exposure, if you can be featured, is extremely helpful and can not only aid in finding clients but funding your habit. Why not ask to get one of the latest pencils or paintbrushes to test out and feature on your blog? The worst they can say is no!
Ok, so my second thought, and this one is more personal than anything, is that I have a day when I don't post anything at all. In fact I try not to even look at social media on that day. I have a lot of reasons why I do this, the biggest one being quality time with my family, but there are many many other sources that say this is very healthy for you, even necessary. I am not the first person with the idea that social media is an emotional roller coaster, all the likes, the follows, the comments...it's a lot to take in and I would say addictive. It is important as an artist, and I would say as a human being, not to find your identity in this. You love to create, to make beautiful things, don't let people not liking your images/art stop you from doing that. On this social media free day spend it being inspired, and with people you love. Remember what it means to exist and take in beauty instead of thinking about how many people will like what you created. If you'd like more ideas on this you can check out another blog I wrote about being a Dad in our industry, which is not only about my journey but about time management...find it here: http://www.aaronandersonphoto.com/blog/being-a-dad
That's all for today! Below you'll see a screenshot of one of images that was featured on @downhilladdiction...just so you can see that this actually works! Until next time...be awesome!
