just one good photo
a principle for up-and-coming photographers to reduce stress and make better work
Howdy y’all, hope you’re well, writing to you from my couch & working on final prep for a live workshop this Wednesday night.
In today’s email:
1️⃣ the “JOGO” principle for photographers to stress a little less on shoots
2️⃣ a webinar with some useful stuff on how to work with models
3️⃣ a request for a few people to help me beta test a project
1️⃣the “JOGO” principle for photographers
first, a definition of what “JOGO” stands for:
just one good one.
One of the photographic ‘things’ that I live by is that it only takes one good image from a shoot to be totally, completely, worth it for your portfolio.
Let me explain. A couple years ago, I was down in Los Angeles, shooting a few projects while I was down there.
And I have a problem when I’m in markets like LA with tons of great people to work with: I pack my calendar with too many shoots.
So I’m racing down from LA to Tustin for a shoot, running a little late, and on the way in, I saw this huge old airplane hangar, and thought it’d make a really good background.
The shoot went well, and at the very end we had like a little time for another look before I had to get outta there. So we had time to try the hangar out as a background.
We walked out, shot for maybe ten minutes, and got one of my single favorite photos I’ve ever taken.
And I bring this up because, It happened during a shoot when I didn’t have my fastball. I came in late, had another thing I had to get to because I’d overbooked, and because I was in a rush, felt I wasn’t meeting the team where they were at - they were really good. Better than I deserved to be working with at the time. If you’ve done this long enough, you probably know the feeling I was feeling.
And the underlying insight to “JOGO” is you never know how a shoot is going to go. I’m a big believer in the concept of ‘shots on goal’ as a useful approach to creative work. I’ve taken thousands of bad photos. I see stuff all the time going through selects I wish I had done differently.
Similarly, my Reels feed is full of videos that did poorly. Do those flops bum me out? Sure, for a minute, sometimes a lot of hard work goes into those. But then you just get back on the horse and try again.
Because the more opportunities you give yourself to make a wonderful image, the more good images you tend to end up with. It’s why I typically try to do 50ish tests a year, because you just never know. In this case, you really never know, because that airplane hanger burned down in a huge fire about a year later. Glad I shot it when I did.
So the next time you’re on the fence, wondering ‘should I go shoot that thing or should I not?’ The answer might be yes, because - What if you get an image out of it that becomes one of your favorites of all time?
2️⃣ next, if you want to get better at working with models:
This might help - it’s a recent webinar with a few of my favorite people to shoot with on how photographers can work better with models. Hope it helps you.
3️⃣ and, a request for some help:
I’m working on a lighting course for up-and-coming photographers. Goal is to launch by end of August🤞.
To get it right, I could use some feedback from y’all.
Two minutes: That red button above has a short survey. Will be immensely helpful if you're willing to do it.
Longer, but more value for you: Anyone that’s interested in helping me beta test the course in exchange for free access can include their email address. I’m going to pick 10ish people to test the course and give feedback.
some recent work
💪ways to do more/work together:
Lightroom presets are available, both free and paid, here
I’m taking on a client or two, email me here if interested
Brands here in the Pacific Northwest looking for another photographer
Photographers who want some help, I.e. portfolio/social reviews or shoot planning
Y’all have a good weekend,
Garrett