Goals

Setting the Course; Hoping for Favorable Winds

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Today is the day I set out some photographic goals for myself. I do so with some excitement as well as some anxiety. After all, I realize I am not fully in charge of this life and many things can happen to get me off course. I don’t want to end up 2012 looking back at this list feeling I have failed. I know that although my hopes for the year exist, the year will also look very different from what I imagine.

So why do this?

Well, quite simply put, I am distractible. Easily distractible. And I need reminding, much reminding, to focus on what I would like to achieve, who I want to be, and how I want my life to be. So this list, these goals/hopes/aspirations, are put forth with the idea that I will review them periodically and they will help me to refocus. There are also items here I long to get involved in which take some planning and foresight, so this voicing of my intention helps to pave the long road toward those items.

Where was I?

Oh, that’s right! Goals!

So here we go: I’ve arranged these in the manner suggested by Steve Simon in his wonderful book, The Passionate Photographer. If you haven’t read it, do. Making this list in this manner, with these categories, has helped them be more focused and I hope will lead to more accomplishment, and therefore more joy.

Photographic Project Goals:

    • Continue working on my Tierra Encatada Project (New Mexico Project)
    • Develop and Complete an ebook on the psychology of photography.
    • Create a notebook dealing with cameras.
    • Create a notebook dealing with life in Cafes.
    • Finish my baseball project (Put me in Coach)
    • Create a photobook based on the Dia de los Muertos Parade here in Albuquerque, NM.
    • Create a photobook chronicling my young family’s life with photo stories
    • Create 2 photo stories with NM artist’s as the subject. I have 2 ideas for subjects here.
    • Begin my Two Worlds Project dealing with bicultural couples.

Artistic Goals:

    • Partake in at least one photographic workshop
    • Either enter (deadline 1/20/12) or attend Review Santa Fe Critique/Review. My intent here is to learn more about what makes a good photograph, especially with regard to my own work, much of which I am often too emotionally close to in order to assess that effectively. 
    • Take an active part in an online collaboration/feedback forum to which I belong. Once again my effort here is to help me develop a more critical eye regarding my photography and photography in general. I also enjoy helping others work toward their photographic goals and this is a way to do so.
    • Attend quarterly photography gallery viewings at galleries such as Verve and Photo-Eye
    • Read and digest at least 5 of the following books:
    • Develop a greater ability to tell visual stories by studying the craft through books, blogs, and producing at least 4 concentrated visual stories.

Technical Improvement Goals:

    • Learn how to use a handheld light meter in order to learn to better meter my film camera.
    • Increase my ability to use off camera flash and flash modifiers.
    • Learn black and white film processing-Darkroom anyone?
    • Update the firmware on my camera.
    • Learn ftp protocol for my website

Equipment Goals:

    • Silver Efex Pro 2 Computer Software
    • Portable Softbox
    • Umbrella & Stand
    • Rangefinder camera- you know, a Leica M9 or a Fujifilm x100
    • An iPad, cuz I really, really want one.
    • Wacom Tablet.

(Note: having written this before the new year and posting it here a week or so later, I have noticed that my “Equipment” list is short and-frankly-I don’t really “need” anything on it. The first three items would be nice and would help some with my vision of some images I want, but I can manage without them. The last three goals are just wants. I have what I need in terms of stuff. What I really need is more time to work on my projects, not more equipment.)

What about you? Do you have goals, dreams, aspirations? Are there things you would like to feel you have accomplished, created, enjoyed in the coming year? What point on the compass does you heart set?

Posted by Brian Miller in Creativity, Monochrome