Photographic Paradigm Shift.

I'm so excited! In a few hours, I may be the new proud owner of a Canon EOS 3...aka a film camera. I took a black and white film class a few years ago, but the only equipment I had was my dad's old Pentax which was fully manual...meaning I not only shot full manual, but I manually put the film in and manually controlled the focus :S These past few days I've been going through a photo-dilemma. After reviewing all the photos I took over the course of 2011, I've realized that my goal for last year (consistency) still isn't quite here yet. There's no doubt that I've improved but I'm still struggling to find my voice in it all. I want all my pictures to have a distinct look...almost to the point where someone can say, "Oh, that's definitely a JAGOFOTO." I've also realized that all the photos I'm ever drawn to are shot with film. Call me crazy, I know we are in a digital era, but film cannot be replaced. Film is honest. What you shoot is what you get. There is no covering it up with editing. There is no Photoshop (technically speaking). Film is SOOOO rich in color. It's clear. It's true artistry. You have to REALLY know what you are doing because every shot you take costs money and you can't look at the back of your camera to check if you got it right. I originally learned on film and now that I'm taking digital photos, I feel like I'm taking each shot for granted. I know in the back of my head that I can always redo it and I feel that it is holding me back as an artist.

Compared to others, I don't get that much business. However, I do not let that disappoint me because I am a firm believer that God has His hand on every client he blesses me with. In 2011, He chose to give me only a handful of wonderful clients. It was the perfect amount to help me upgrade my gear and keep me doing creative things, but let's be honest, I'm not at the point in my business where I'm making much of a profit...it's more a self-sustaining hobby. Because of this, I've realized that I have the freedom right now to change the direction where my business is headed. I'm not in so deep that I can't make a u-turn leaving a bunch of people angry that I'm changing things up a bit. I know for a fact that I want clients who appreciate the artistry in photography. I would rather have fewer clients willing to pay a little bit more than an overbooked schedule with people who don't appreciate the gift and just want me because I'm slightly cheaper than the next guy.

Over the next few months, I'm slowly going to be changing my website. I'm going to start taking down pictures that don't reflect the vision I have for JAGOFOTO. I'm going to be more selective among the few clients I have. I'm going to start asking my clients to trust and allow me to direct the session as I see it. I'm going to start changing the way I do sessions and packages. I'm going to be more confident in who I am as an artist. I'm going to break out of the cookie cutter mold I thought I had to put myself into. I'm going to start incorporating more and more film until I get to a point where I'm doing more film than digital.

I'm really excited about this paradigm shift and I'm also nervous to break from the mold. Film is lots of practice, patience and trial/error. Once the camera arrives my new journey will begin. I'm curious to see what will happen...