Famous Photographers: Are there really any?

I don't think there are many photographers who don't want to be recognized for their work. Most everyone I know wants to have their work and themselves judged as being significant.

I have tried numerous times, as many other photographers have tried, to get hired by National Geographic Magazine.  I wanted to cover significant stories and to be viewed as significant.

Jay Maisel, Bernie Boston, Hugh Morton and George Tames.  Four famous photographers in my book. I took this at the Southern Short Course in the 1980s.

I've had the priviledge to meet some of the greatest photographers of our time. What was interesting to me is that most people in the room had no idea who they were. They knew their images, but didn't know what they looked like.

Bill Fortney emcees a photo event in the 1980s.

Then one year I met Bill Fortney who gave his personal thoughts on the subject. He pointed out that other than maybe Ansel Adams, that most any other "famous photographer" who walked into a local mall would most likely not be recognized.  I think he is right.

Fortney went on to talk about how his pursuit of being a "famous photographer" was probably a big mistake. It was only when he was diagnosed with cancer did he come face to face with the demons of pride in his life.

Don Rutledge my mentor and friend for the most part enjoyed working as the fly on the wall. Sure he liked being recognized like all of us, but he had learned to get out of the way of the story. He knew he had to diminish for the story to be center stage.

Don Rutledge, my mentor and friend, taught me a great deal about being a photographer. I have yet to see anyone who was as masterful with storytelling with a camera. I also was impressed that he would talk with anyone and help anyone who asked him to help. Rutledge helped just about everyone he met even those just starting out.

The Road to Success

I have spent most of my career trying to figure out the steps to success. There are numerous books that help people climb the corporate ladder.  Not very many for those who are using photography as a path, but none the less there are many books on the topic.

What I continue to see over and over is "The Secret." Most everyone one of the books was helping me to realize that to succeed I must serve.  However, this formula left a bad taste in my mouth. The message was more about how to rise to the top rather than how to live in the moment.

It continued to bother me that the only reason all these authors were writing the book was to tell everyone do this for a while and then you will be in charge.

What Don Rutledge Taught Me

Don wanted to tell stories with his camera, but because he was so good every where he worked they wanted him to manage communications departments. Don knew he was not gifted to lead, but was gifted with visual storytelling.

People around him were mad at him for not stopping doing what he was good at and to lead the division.

What I was learning from Don was that if I were a ditch digger and good at it, there is no reason I couldn't make a career out of it.

Finally a book about how to be your best

Order it here on Amazon

While in Hawaii I met Jack Hart.  Jack was the art director for many years at CBS for TV shows like The Price Is Right.

For some reason after we were talking for a while Jack said he had a book I need to read.  I had to run off to teach class and just before I was to start Jack came in the room and handed me this book The Chicken Farm and Other Sacred Places: The Joy of Serving God in the Ordinary.

It is a very quick read and you can also get it as an eBook.

This is the first book that I have ever picked up that outlined what I had learned from Don Rutledge.

I believe the key to success is being joyful in life where you are now and not where you might be in the future.


What does this have to do with photography?

I have been working on a book to help students and those starting in this profession to be successful photographers. One of the key messages I believe is learning to connect the eighteen inches between the head and the heart.

The connection of why you do what you do can make all the difference in your attitude and your attitude is what makes people want to hire you over and over. 

It took me many years to understand how important the question "why" is to a story. I had been trained to ask Who, What, Where, When, When and How, but I was just filling the holes with the information.  I needed to be like a child and ask "Why is the sky blue?"

Why does the story need to be told? 

Attitude Adjustment

I have come to see that it is the photographers who understand they are here to serve others.  They serve by helping others communicate effectively using visuals.

When you are a freelancer you will have a client occasionally insult you--or at least it feels this way.  They may demean your position or some other way you feel insulted. You have a choice to respond and set them straight and sometimes this might be necessary, but you need to ask yourself is it worth loosing the account.  

As I read Ken Barnes book I came across this quote he had from Gordon MacDonald, in his book Rebuilding Your Broken World.

"You know whether or not you're really a servant by the way you react when you're treated like one."

Do you seek significance?  Do you want to be recognized? Is this getting in the way of your joy for living?

Chick-fil-A is one of my best clients. They are my best for many reasons, but one that I have come to realize over time is teaching me the value of service.

Dan Cathy, president of Chick-fil-A, helps clean up trash at a Habitat for Humanity build in Columbus, GA.

Truett Cathy, the founder of Chick-fil-A, had trained his children that whenever they came to the restaurant that before they come in to pick up any trash.  Truett also does the same even today. If he sees something he will bend over at the age of 91 and pick it up.

Chick-fil-A trains their people to do any job joyfully, this includes the bathrooms and the dirty dishes.

Will you become a "famous photographer" if you serve others--maybe. I think the real question is will you be happy in the role of a servant, only when you discover the joy in it.