Your “call it quits” moment is coming – here’s what to do about it

[Heroique]

I meant to start a practical meditation on time – or better: “time left” – and its influence on your photographic attitude and conduct Right Now. Or, well, maybe tomorrow, or the next day…

Looks like that’s what’s mostly happening.

It occurred to me that Bruce Barlow’s recent quote about spiritual death is indirectly relevant:

“Now that I’ve hit exactly the mid-50s, the idea of staleness looms large. It’s a dirty secret among photographers that Ansel didn’t make many outstanding images after about 1970. Even he admitted that he’d “lost the passion” to photograph. I talk to other photographers afflicted with similar age, and we secretly fear lapsing into sameness, making the same picture over and over, saying nothing new. I dread becoming an Old Guy, a photographic corpse” (from “Old Guys,” an essay by Bruce Barlow from the “New Musings” thread).

But I hope you see how bodily weakness or death – in addition to the several other causes from my “snapshot” in post #1 – might, finally, be what precipitates your unavoidable “call it quits” moment, and what that means for you today.

[Brian C. Miller]

To quote Wierd Al Yankovic: I'll Be Mellow When I'm Dead
"Why can't you cosmic cowboys just get it through your head?
I'll be mellow when I'm dead
I'll be mellow when I'm dead
I'll be mellow ... when I'm dead! Yow!"
(from the record grooves: "an accordian is a terrible thing to waste")

From The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
"You make your own action." -- Zaephod Beeblebrox, from inside a sculpted marble styrofoam cup which was suspended miles above a planet surface because it was artistically correct.

Once upon a time I was lying on the floor for a long time due to back pain. I had read various books again, but I just had to do something. I just had to photograph. And there was the brass doorknob. So I spent over an hour scootching around on my belly low crawling here and there, getting my tripod, getting my Pentax 6x7, getting it all set up, and finally photographing the doorknob.

And you know what I'm going to do if I go blind? Keep photographing. I've seen the other guys do it, so I know I can, too. And why? Because the image is in my head!

[Vaughn]

Fourteen years ago at the age of 43 I thought I had everything dialed in. I had finally got the carbon printing process down and found it a great match for my imagery. I was able to schedule consistent time in the darkroom and out in the field.

Then our triplet boys were born and I became a stay-at-home dad as well as working halftime for the university. What to do?

I gave up the time-intensive carbon printing and taught myself platinum printing. My darkroom and field time was greatly reduced. Before the boys learned to crawl, I had a great time using the SX-70 and manipulating the prints.

When they learned to walk, I started taking them for hikes in the redwoods, taking the 8x10. When we would stop for our picnic lunch, I would pick a spot I could take one image with the 8x10 while the boys ate.

When the boys got old enough to wander around safely as I photographed in the redwoods, I also started to put them in the photographs (30 to 60 second exposures!) The latest image I took of them was with a 7x17 two weekends ago.

A year ago, my wife decided that she did not want to live with someone dedicated to his art (among other reasons) and filed for divorce. Now I have the boys every other week and I live the Dr Jeckle/Mr Hyde life. One week a single dad of three teenage boys, and the next week the single artist.

But I have caught up with my career I on simmer 14 years ago.

It has been a wild ride, but I would not change any of it and I look forward to what lies ahead. I will change and adapt to whatever life throws at me. I am a firm believer in ignoring the "if I had only.." and the "what if's", and instead concentrate on the "What is".

Vaughn

[Two23]

I drive about 1,200 miles per week on my job, in all the weather the Dakotas and Minnesota can throw at me. Add to that my penchant for taking photos in blizzards at night and spells of deep cold. I figure I'm more likely to be wiped out by that then end up in a nursing home or something.


Kent in SD

[Darin Boville]

I've called it quits several times. Usually I get disgusted with the state of the art world and realize I'm wasting my time in a big way. I sell everything, go to grad school for something a bit more serious, whatever, and then end up making photographs again.

Photography can be great and when it is great it can be very great indeed. But it can also take a hold of you like some outside force.

I may look back from my deathbed and decide that photography ruined my life.

--Darin

[Craig Griffiths]

It was interesting to read this thread in light of what I have been thinking of late.

By no means am I now, or likely to be in the future, anything other than an amateur from a photography perspective. That suits me perfectly, I have no aspirations of making photography pay. It gives me the freedom to pursue things I am interested in without the external pressures.

To put things in perspective I have just hit the ripe old age of 45. Hopefully still many years to go before I have to give up using Large Format, but I have already started thinking of how many more years I am likely to be able to continue. For me, if I look at males in my family I can count on another 15 years, with anything else being a bonus. In addition to this I have an autistic son who makes it difficult sometimes to do the things I want to do, but that is life. . Knowing this has become very positive in getting me to think of what I want to achieve, and realising that I cannot afford to put things off.

It gives me 15 years to use all of the formats I want to use. As a result the 16x20 I dream of using has now a firm time period when it will be purchased with film stocks etc already being purchased. Hopefully I will have the camera in the next 12-18 months depending on how good I am at saving. Then I will get out and use it.

I have 15 more winters. I want to visit the snow again and take some shots in the Snowy Mountains and Victorian Alps with the 8x20. 15 more Autumns to capture colour images on the 8x10 at Gostwyck. 15 more springs to capture Tulips at Wynyard in Tasmania, and 15 more summers to capture the cricket on 8x20 at the Gabba. And there are lots more subjects I want to capture. I also know that one visit to each place I want to go will not be enough.

In addition to places I want to go, there are also processes I want to become competent with. For me they are Gum Bichromate, Cyanotype, Vandyke, Salt Print, as well as contact printing and enlarging. Some of these will work for me and others will be abandoned along the way.

But for me, when I hit 60 (my nominated age at the moment), unless I can find someone a lot younger than me to carry the gear, I will be doing 16x20 portraits in what is now the garage, 8x10 still life, and 8x20, well I haven’t worked that one out yet.

Yes, one morning I will wake up dead, and there is nothing I can do to change that. But knowing I have only a limited amount of time and opportunities to achieve what I want to achieve helps me to focus more.

[Bill_1856]

I've already had to limit my shooting to nothing more than a few feet from the car (got the heart fixed last year -- plan to get new knees this year).
If I get too old and feeble to shoot any more, I guess that I'll scan those hundreds/thousands of negatives and slides residing in innumerable drawers around the house, and print (digitally) any good ones.

[Wayne Crider]

I thought a small digital point and shoot was the final act of a large format photographer?

[Andrew O'Neill]

I don't think about it. Having too much fun.

[theBDT]

I called it "quits" just recently, in the form of an ETRSi system and a Canon 60D.

I'm sure one day I'll wander back to LF, but on entirely different terms.