— Want to see a massive leap forward in your work as a photo artist? I’ve got the prescription. And I’d just about call it sure-fire. Can’t miss. I’m convinced it works for photo artistry, works for writing, works for any kind of creative pursuit.
Too often I get email from frustrated students who don’t feel they will ever create the kind of artwork being turned out by the artists in our advanced AWAKE group.
They see the magazine each month and think, “I wish my art looked like that.”
Granted, the advanced Photoshop training in AWAKE makes a real difference. The camaraderie and encouragement within the group makes a difference. But even there in AWAKE, I’m convinced the real shift comes when our artists begin to truly embrace the “photo artistic life” philosophy I teach in the “Core” portion of the AWAKE training …
That’s when they stop seeing Photoshop simply as a tool for manipulating images and begin to embrace it instead as an instrument for living a more engaged creative life.
And what that so often comes down to is the seriousness with which they come to approach their craft.
In elevating their expectations, they elevate their game.
More to the point: They learn the importance of eliminating distractions and immersing themselves in the work — often putting in two or three times as much time on a composition as their frustrated counterparts would ever think to spend on an image.
Beginners often produce inferior results simply because they haven’t committed to putting in the work it takes to turn out something world-class.
And the trick for changing that is so simple …
I think I heard it stated most succinctly by Donald Ray Pollock, a hell of a writer, born in Knockemstiff, Ohio (a real place, believe it or not, and the title of his first book of short stories):
“My secret is this: I sit in a chair for two hours a day, every day.”
That’s it?
“That’s it. Even if you don’t write, hell even you don’t wanna write, plant your ass in the chair every day for a couple hours. Over time, the words will come.”
And I suspect that any serious artist would concur.
Even those who create a little here a little there, will tell you that their biggest breakthroughs came when they committed to devoting real time to the endeavor, and then made a point to sit down every day (whether in the mood or not) for a solid hour or two of focused creative effort.
Honestly, the simplest prescription for greatness? I tell ya, it’s nothing fancy. I call it “A.I.C.” :
Ass In Chair.
Fortunately, when it comes to photo artistry, unlike writing, I think it’s actually pretty easy to get into the chair and stay there. As photo artists, we have beautiful fun things to play with. (Even capturing or gathering the images you’re going to tinker with is fun.) Sitting down is easy: you start playing with a few images, try out a few blend modes, start working on a layer mask … and before you realize it, you’re IN it, you’re working, you’re playing, you’re creating.
The trick for an ambitious photo artist, however, is in developing the willingness to STAY in the chair, and the capacity for working without distractions.
The trick for any serious aspiring photo artist is in training yourself to devote more time and attention to any given image than you might normally think reasonable (or sane).
These are topics I cover in depth in my “21 Days to Creative Abundance” course, because of just how vital they are to anyone hoping to make major strides as an artist. But the idea is straightforward enough:
If you want to achieve serious results, be willing to put in serious hours.
Over time you’ll pick up more and more techniques and learn to combine them in new ways. As a photo artist, you’ll develop more sophistication in your approach to how you orchestrate your compositions. You’ll acquire more skill at making quality extractions and greater deftness in your layer masks. And you will spend more time thinking through your compositions, assessing them, trying out variations and exploring new ideas.
You’ll also spend a bit longer finessing the light. You’ll spend a little longer bringing in adjustment layers and textures to sculpt and tone the finished image.
You’ll immerse yourself in the process again and again and again …
And in time, after you have sat in that chair long enough, you will master your craft.
Trust me on this one. Become a little more unreasonable in the demands you make on yourself as an artist — this is how you move from amateur to pro.
Sit in that chair long enough, with enough focus and with enough commitment and passion, and you will find awaiting you there everything you have ever dreamed of achieving as an artist.
– Sebastian