August 24, 2007
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Jeanna Photo Shoot
I spent the weekend in SF and Berkeley with Jeanna and Kevin. We all celebrated Jeanna’s birthday and for her birthday I wanted to do a photo shoot with her. We had intended on taking photos with her harp but the music building at CAL was locked so we didn’t have access to her harp. She is a talented musician and a wonderful friend. We all had a great time at the shoot and Kevin thanks for helping me with ideas for the shoot! =) Kevin was my roommate in college and its always good to see him. In college you meet so many different people but I can honestly say these two are life long friends. I am blessed by the both of you. It’s been a while since I last visited Berkeley and I forget how beautiful it is. It felt somewhat funny walking in down town while seeing all the students moving into their dorms and apartments. O how I reminisce these moments. College is really so bittersweet! Simply nothing like it. Looking at the students reminded me how fast my years in college went by. As we get older life seems to go by faster. Time becomes more valuable than it did before and before you know it you’re racing through life. I kind of enjoy living life in the fast lane. Its my style but we all need to slow down a bit. I’ve been on the go for about the past two months but its been an amazing time. I’m really enjoying life. I am so happy for so many different things in life. My photography has been evolving but its growing each day. My aunt is getting married. My family and I work pretty hard and long hours everyday at our family owned business but God has seriously been blessing us. I get to spend my days at work with my Mom and Grandmother and its pretty sweet. I’ve been slowly but surely learning more Korean from my grandmother and my sister who just got back from Korea. I am so happy to see my sister growing more in her faith. My family has good health. I get to see so many of my family each week. I’ve had the opportunity to travel to places Id never dreamed of. I’ve met and networked with amazing people from all over the world. What can I say? Life is good and I am definitely blessed. The most significant thing for me along this journey is that so many people are by my side in what I am doing. Thank you all for believing in me.
Current thought…
I think a lot about my future. I am a planner I must say and I always like to cover my bases. Can I actually make a living one day doing photography? I mean lets be realistic here, if you have a family, mortgage, car and home owners insurance, living cost, cost of leisure and other needs a lot of our money goes to can a person really make it supporting a family too? What about health care? retirement? investing in your own retirement? preparing for your financial future. Granted a lot of jobs provide medical and dental coverage and maybe eye care too. Everyone knows when you work for yourself you don’t have this luxury. I believe strongly in doing something you love and are passionate about but when it come to paying the bills and putting food on the table photography is not enough perhaps? I honestly think I’ll have to juggle two jobs. One being a job and the other being my passion. Maybe I don’t have enough faith to believe God will provide. And you know thats is probably mostly true. No one seems to talk much about this. Maybe everyone been dying to know how others make it in the industry or maybe I am the only one thinking about this haha. Our family business flourishes and my photography is evolving a lot but my realistic situation is I don’t have medical or any dental care. Those cost come out of my pocket. What if I get sick? What am I to do? It’s actually a scary thing if something were to seriously happen. You just never know in life. I know a guy who got really sick and racked a 70,000 dollar hospital bill. If that was me, Id be screwed. Maybe I answered my own question? Your thoughts are welcomed!Thanks for reading!
Cheers,
SteveCurrently Listening to…
Comments (35)
dude. i love 1, 3, 9…
and dude…. go to sleep!
and stop leaving facebook comments! hahahaha
Yeah, there should be a night owl Xanga blogring,for people who seem to *only* blog and comment after midnight…
Health care is actually quite affordable, but I know that’s just a start. Rent / mortgage is *not* affordable.
Thousands and thousands of people have picked up digital SLR’s and thought how easily they could make money taking pictures, without thinking about how HARD it would be to truly make a living at it. So in a sense, your realiziation of the situation is the first step towards staying in business, and now the next step is to simply network and connect your way to a higher level, until you are pulling in enough money to survive. It’s not impossible, that’s for sure. Tons of people these days have the artistic skill to “make it”, they just don’t have the business managing and marketing skills to actually make things float.
Good luck and take care,
=Matt=
I have the same exact concerns as you do. Will I be able to provide for a family doing what I love to do?
In reality, it’s usually not what you know, but who you know. You don’t always have to be the best photographer or produce the best images to get the jobs. It’s all about how you’re marketing yourself. Network and make good connections. One day, your big break will come and that’s when you’ll rake in all the big bucks.
I’m in the same position as you are.
Keep your eye on the ball, but don’t quit your day job. I’ll do the same.
Great photos! I love the last one.
And I know exactly what you mean. Photography is a risky occupation. There are a lot of successful photographers, though. Often they’re the reallyyyy good ones who charge an arm and a leg for their amazing services. But I agree with henrwhy; you don’t have to be the best photographer to earn a living. I’ve never been payed to do photographer before. Right now it’s only a hobby. But I honestly not interested in any other job. I have yet to go to college and earn any type of secondary education. I have no idea what I want to do in life, other than photography. And I feel as though I need to figure something out soon. I’ll need something to fall back on.
It really sucks about the medical thing there. I suppose I’m fortunate in that area–living in Canada and all. We don’t pay for healthcare here. It’s all provided.
Anyways, keep it up. (:
i don’t have the time to read the whole thing just right now, but i have to say that your photography here is SWEET!
hehe love the action photo at the end and the one at the stairs
I do believe in planning too, but I force myself to stick to the present and make the best out of it instead of wondering about the future. Although sometimes I wonder if I’m doing the right thing, choosing the right major, or determined for the right reasons, I tell myself that with hardwork and dedication, nothing is impossible.
your pictures are lovely
henrwhy: totally agree with you about who you know, networks and the fact its not always what you know! as a up and coming wedding photographer i still believe i have what it takes and that i was meant for this but at the same time how do people really do it? if ur not the big buck photographer id be pressed to say its difficult to really make a living supporting family. to me its simple, if ur not in the top 20% in the wedding industry, its difficult to make it. thanks for the comment man!
doglovernonestop: good point! but the present only goes so far…its good to prepare for things that dont always go the way we want them to though. but i agree with henrwhy, its about if people like you, how well your market urself and who you network with!
Well, here are my thoughts. I know some photographers like Scott Robert Lim and Bob Davis who do pretty well with their photography. But for every Scott or Bob, I also know about 20 that aren’t in that same financial sphere. Having said that, Scott and Bob weren’t in their current financial sphere either until just a few years ago.
Objectively speaking, I believe the dynamic out there with regard to professional photography is that the price DSLR’s have come down significantly and Joe Schmoes like me are buying nice DSLR’s to take pictures of our kids. In so doing, we get requests from people who can’t distinguish between good photography and great photography. So they end up paying a lot less for acceptable photography.
This in turn drives down the photography fee at various events (e.g. weddings), making it even harder to be financially successful as a full time photographer.
If photography is your only passion, I would probably recommend that you go the route of a pro photographer. Your passion just may take you to that upper eschelon where you can play with the big boys and other big names with great marketing contacts and such. If you have another passion that yields better financially, I’d say that may be worth a look as your primary source of income.
So what am I doing? I have a passion for people, structures, ideas, and processes, so I’m working human resources strategy. I also have a passion for music and photography so I do that where I can as well. Someone once told me that if you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.
i love that first picture.
These pictures are really great. And I hope you’ll be able to continue to pursue your passion. You’ve got real talent.
loving the last pic!
you watchin’ 200 pounds of beauty!?!?!
i like how u processed the pics
nice photos btw. in regards to health insurance, it is not much for basic health care for a young guy like yourself, maybe around $100 per month. If that is the case, you should get it or work at starbucks. In regards to your future, you need to give your passion a shot and you need to figure out how you can do it for at least 2-3 years. It takes time and money to get good!! If you haven’t owned a lot of business before, it will take you time to figure out how to make a living with your passion. I’ve started more businesses than you can think of but i’ve ALWAYS stuck with what i wanted to do- even if it meant sacrificing the now to get the later- if you know what you mean. I only really started making it at the age of 39. I started searching for my passions and trying to make a career from them at the age of 25. so it took me 14 years to find it!! If I had a mentor, I could have cut that time way, way down. Most people give up after trying for one year but you need to try for several years, maybe even a decade. Although, I had some very rough years ( http://www.scottrobertstory.com ) God was with me every step of the way and molding me into the person I am today.
Most people would not work hard and sacrifice what I did to find my passion-career but if you develop a “never give up” mentality, you will be a success in life, I guarantee it. Do what ever it takes to keep your passion alive, even if it means taking a crappy job because when you are ready for success, God will open the doors and you will not believe how awesome God’s grace and love for us is.
I fly on airplanes a lot. Last week while flying into San Jose, I just sat there in awe looking down at how wonderful God’s creation was. i saw the huge mountains that looked like small fingerprints and then i realized God can do ANYTHING and what a wonderful resource he is- making a mountain to him is nothing so if God want to bless me, he can very easily so why do I limit God so much?
God designed you to have a passion and you will only glorify him best when you let the passion he imprinted on your heart do it’s thing. Most people don’t stay the course long enough to mature the passion. The plant a plum tree and expect fruit in a month. Let God do a work in you and trust him completely- go hard with your passion and don’t doubt, just make it happen because your passion is God’s passion in you so have faith in that.
Greatness only comes with great faith and most of the time with great sacrifice. The struggle is just where God wants you because it makes you a better, more faithful servant. Hold onto your passion, it is like gold. Although it will lead you to a difficult path, it will save you in the end and bless you beyond your comprehension.
yes i liked the first picture a lot.
thanks for sharing.
you’re so honest with everything you write steve. i appreciate that.
on a practical note- photographers need an official website. A blog is nice but people don’t think your serious because everyone can have a blog. If I was a bride, if a photographer was new and didn’t have a website, I would not book them. Also, your official website can promote your best imagery all the time. What happens if your best imagery is buried 7 posts down, new potential clients never see the best of your work.
you’re korean? i always thought you were chinese!
you could always get dental or medical insurance yourself!
Korean, Chinese?? I thought he was just a struggling American like the rest of us!
Hey Sap-Man..Scott Robert said it all. Read his comment of couple of more times, let it sink in, then print it out and keep it somewhere so you can read it once in a while.
Look, your photography is good, if you were near me in Roseville, Ca I would hire you as an assistant and shooter with me.
About health care, Blue Cross has a coverage for only $79 a month for 24 ayears old and under or you can get a State job thats M-F and get all benifits for free and work weekends with your photography.
Randy
Nice pictures, she reminds me of Deborah Kam.
What happened to your passion for nutrition? Why not have a job while slowly pursuing your passion for photography as a part time job.
Take it easy~ Planning gives you a direction, but the rest is up to God. Take care.
oh, collegeyy
matt really said some good words: “Tons of people these days have the artistic skill to “make it”, they just don’t have the business managing and marketing skills to actually make things float.”
kennyahn’s comment, i definitely agree with. and same with scott’s.
btw as for health insurance, you ALWAYS want to have health insurance. if you get really sick, you’re screwed. in terms of premium, yea you can get by with around $100/mo, but those are generally PPOs with coinsurance of up to 50%. that means that if you get really really sick, you’ll still end up having to pay 50% of your hospital bills. i chose to go with an HMO (kaiser), pay $220/mo, but 0% coinsurance. since I’m young and relatively healthy, for me I look at insurance as something to protect me against the small possibility that something really really bad could happen, rather than as something to help me pay the normal costs for doctor visits and whatnot.
ryc: haha aite since my mom cooks and I don’t have much control over that (she doesn’t cook much meat!), I’ll send you my diet regiment after I move out in a few months. yay I look forward to actually gaining weight for once! hahaa
I know! thing is, they won’t allow it despite the [many] requests. Maybe a good place for a photoshoot though.
I enjoyed viewing your work. thanks for sharing.
Thanks for visiting! I get nervous thinking about making a living on my own too. Just met a guy in one of my advanced video editing / DVD production classes this month who I think is gonna make it, maybe make it big. During the lunch breaks, apparently he’s been doing lunch and building business partnerships with departments on my campus! His attitude was, “I’ll take any [multimedia] gig. It doesn’t matter if it’s crazy hard or mind-numbingly boring. I’ll take it!” By the time he was done with our 4 weeks of class, he had already landed a contract position and 1-2 smaller gigs! Now there’s a guy who is driven and has business sense!
I like the last one. If you enjoy your passion, don’t ever give it up. I haven’t. As for my situation, I am married, have two little kids and have a job in the pharmaceutical industry. Having kids is not cheap (as you might be aware). I have been doing photography for many years, but have been doing it on the side (weekends) when I want to or when I’m needed because my photography business network is not yet up to par for me to leave my full time job. In the last year, my interest in developing my photography business has increased and as a result I have spent more time and commitment in developing it. I too am passionate about photography and hope to someday make this my full time career.
There were many great advices said and my suggestion to you is get a job (something you might enjoy doing) and continue to develop your passion on the side until you have a good business model and client network. Good Luck!
I started in Accounting to “support” myself. Hated many moments of my days. I now work full time as a mom and a photographer and I couldn’t be happier. Do I support my family on it….no. However, I’m not a high end photographer and I only do 25 weddings a year. If I doubled my weddings (I turn down alot to spend time with my family) or dedicated more time in advertising, website and networking I could make enough to support my family. Health Insurance for my family of 4 with Kaiser is around $450. There are other companies out their…but I like the one stop shop in Kaiser.
Although I agree with spiritual side of Scotts post, one needs to be practical as well like in Kenny’s post. They say 33% of small businesses started in the U.S. fail in the first two years. So although I recommend you chase your dreams, have a back up plan. You will find that although your passion for a career will consume you, the most important thing in your life will be your family and seeing their smiles.
Best wishes, stick with it, you have a wonderful talent!
these are very awesome man
dude. isnt the canon 5d mark II just some dumb rumor?
and i love the pics from cal. GO BEARS!
wait i was reading yer comments… yer korean? wth? ng? im skeptical!
Steve, you’ve got talent, but it will take more. Like others have said, if you go full-bore into it you may not reap the financial rewards until much later – and there are no guarantees. The first and last ones are my favorite – nice touch with your logo within the frames of the window!!
hey i love the blue toned shot
the pictures of jeanna are beautiful!!
I’ve been looking at your imagrey, but was mosly inspired by this post about making enough money in photography…..I ask myslef that each day, I mean everyday! This past year has been a huge learning changing and growing thing…and I can say I still ask myself that everyday. Right now I work as a full time photographer about 50 hours a week, no health,no dental, no retirement, no married significant other who has those benifits to share with me, and not to mention I am buried in the bills…school loans rent food etc. and I still seem to want to spend more money one lenses etc. What I am trying to say is that I don’t have the answers either but I do know what I did this year that gave me a new view on things, I took a week off and went on a mission trip to New Orleans, worked to built homes and rebuilt lives, and I rebuilt my faith in God, he willprovide for you, “seek ye first and the rest willbe givenunto you, I wish you the best of luck, remember to charge what your worth, have faith, do what you love, life is way to short to not do what you love. with that I better get back to it!
all the best