Over the past few months my wife and I have been contemplating some business changes, and refocusing our commercial activities to better meet our goals. At this point in my career it is an interesting exercise to review my priorities, and identify where my interests and passions for the future are leaning.
NOTE: Click on images to enlarge. Photographs have been added to serve as visual breaks.
Those of you who are very familiar with this photography blog may have noticed that two banner headings have been removed. These include Photo/Video Services and Business Posters.
The removal of these website sections signal that we will no longer be actively pursuing new clients for these parts of our business. We will continue to support the needs of our existing clients on at least an interim basis.
Our plan is to continue with our photography blog and the creation of new eBooks as we continue to move forward along our creative path.
We have been considering shifting more of our energies into some other areas of interest. These may include doing more presentations to camera clubs and photography coaching… once COVID-19 risks have fully abated.
We also have been discussing the creation of other types of commercial online content that would not appear here on our photography blog.
Producing and selling photographic prints through a very select number of retail outlets has also been bandied about. Since these potential business initiatives have not been fully fleshed out it would be premature for us to discuss them in any detail at the present time.
We deeply appreciate all of the support that we have received from our readers since we launched this photography blog in January 2015. It is sometimes hard to believe that we started this website over six and a half years ago… and have written/published well over 1,000 articles here. As our interests and business continue to evolve we will keep all of you informed.
One thing is certain. To grow each of us must be prepared to let go of some things from the past. This allows us to make room for other priorities, opportunities… and to pursue our passions for the future.
Technical Note
Photographs were captured handheld using camera gear as noted in the EXIF data. Images were produced from RAW files using my standard process. This is the 1,046th article published on this website since its original inception.
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Hi Tom,
We all have to evolve given the new normal conditions we find ourselves in. But I’m sincerely hoping you’d continue to inspire us with your photo essays and musings as they’re a wellspring of wisdom and learning.
Warm regards,
Oggie
http://www.lagalog.com
Hi Oggie,
Yes… we certainly do evolve given changing conditions. Such are the challenges and rewards of life. One never knows what the future holds… but my intent is to continue creating images, writing and sharing with readers as long as they continue to have interest.
Tom
I will follow your blog forever
We appreciate your support Felix… I may have to start looking for the fountain of youth!
Tom
I can dig it. Lately I have moved away from photography, though I still enjoy it at times, and am concentrating on writing. I already have two books published, and have two more I am doing the final editing on. Once I release those two books, which are the first two in a planned five book arc, I can then work on the second book of another series (I already released the first book in that series).
Besides those, I have at least three other solitary novels floating around in my head. Boy does it get crowded in there sometimes! Between writing, editing, etc., I just don’t have the time to spend on photography that I used to.
Tom, keep up the good work, as I always enjoy your photographs and articles; plus I share them with my wife.
Thanks for the update William… you certainly have been busy! I appreciate how invigorating it can be to have a number of creative projects that are itching to get out!
Tom
Wonderful news. The writing, philosophizing, lessons-learned are as valuable as the photo situation analyses, equipment studies, and always outstanding examples.
🙂 Thank you for your support!
Tom
Certainly would miss viewing your remarkable photos coupled with those pointers on what was involved capturing the images. Enjoyed all the cameras and lenses you’ve tested. The trips and nature preserves or zoos you used for those evaluations. And the wise post-processing tips.
These splendid photos need to be shared on a big screen in live settings. A good move. Nature lovers, photo enthusiasts, even scientists, and general public (especially elders cut off from travel) would be enthralled seeing these landscape and macro photos.
Look forward to seeing how your next chapter unfolds. Would wish you much success but, with your photographic eye and skills, it’s a certainty.
Hi Kayaklake,
You need not worry about our photography blog continuing… we certainly plan on creating more articles well into the future. I’ve always enjoyed sharing my photographic work and related thoughts with our readers, as well as having the opportunity to respond to comments. So… our plan is for all of that to continue for many years to come.
By pulling back from paid client assignments we can free up time for more experimentation and exploration with our camera gear. It will also provide the time required for larger projects that have been bouncing around in my old, porous brain for quite a while. The plan is to generate some new photography and video revenues that are not client assignment specific. This will give us more flexibility and creative freedom as we move forward.
I was already doing some presentations to camera clubs and some photography coaching before COVID hit, and very much enjoyed the experiences. Sharing and helping others grow has special rewards, so I’m looking forward to expanding those activities in the future. In an earlier chapter of my business life I was involved in the professional speaking tour for a time. The energy that comes from presenting to a live audience is something that I absolutely love.
The readers of our photography blog likely perceive me as primarily a photographer. An equal passion in my life has been writing. For example my first book (Miller’s Bolt) was published by AddisonWesley for the North American market, way back in 1997. The book was subsequently published in Mexico and Taiwan. Our business changes will also allow me to pursue some other writing projects in the future.
Hope this reply has alleviated any fears you may have had about this blog going away.
Tom