The Unfair Photography Reality
Take a look at anyone ‘successful’ online and it won’t take long before you find comments suggesting the person is lucky and privileged. It doesn’t matter if we are talking about photography, sports, music, or any other pursuit. It’s very easy to brand someone’s success as sheer luck, especially in the current age of social media where only the best cards are shown. Recently I had a spate of “you’re so lucky” comments and it got me thinking, is it just sheer luck? Or is there more to it? In this blog, I will unpack this topic into something more objective and easy to understand. I believe there are five components that go into ‘being lucky’, they are as follows.
Inclination
People are drawn and attracted to different things. Sometimes early influences such as parents, friends, or what you consume can push you in a certain direction. Other times, you randomly pick up a camera, a pair of skis, or a microphone at a young age for no clear reason. You just wanted to. Many of us have this inclination towards certain things and while they can fade away to be replaced with other interests, it’s worth keeping tabs on what you naturally find interesting. This is one of the earliest indicators and the younger you pick something up, the more successful you can become at it should it morph into the thing you end up doing. The best sports stars all started at a very young age. Think of it like investing and compound interest, the earlier the better. In my case, my grandma bought me my first camera when I was a kid and my mum pushed me to attend some art lessons.
Talent
Talent is when you realise you have a knack for a specific skill. Perhaps you find it easy to spot good compositions without much effort. Or maybe you just so happen to have very good taste for music and intuitively know what sounds good and what doesn’t. I once read somewhere that every single person has a unique talent; the sad truth is that the vast majority of people will never find theirs. The thing with talent is that on its own it’s not enough. Talent is like having a seed. If you just look at it, nothing will happen. You need to plant it, put a lot of work in, and commit to a long period of time before that seed can become a plant. While I don’t consider myself talented, I have a natural inclination for spotting colours, patterns, and anything visual.
Unfair Advantage
This one is a bitter pill to swallow for some who might not have had any major advantages, but the reality is many people have some kind of an unfair advantage. This can come in many shapes and sizes. Here are some examples:
Wealthy family - allows them to focus on their art and not worry about jobs or money.
Connections - more connections means more opportunities, shortcuts and open doors.
Supportive parents - support and encourage their kids instead of hindering them.
Intelligent parents - teach their kids how life / the world really works and not rely on a flawed education system.
Live in a safe and wealthy country - have more opportunities than others.
Make good friends - end up with a group of intelligent and ambitious people instead of losers.
Have good health - not having any health-related limitations.
Not having dependants - it’s no secret that if you don’t have kids or those who need your care, it’s much easier to get ahead.
There are many more unfair advantages one can have, but the above are examples we can all relate to and understand. My personal unfair advantage was a supportive family, great location, and health. On top of that, I had a remote working day job before it became a thing in 2020. This allowed me to be more creative with how I spend my time, thus allocating more hours to photography compared to most people. My day job also provided me with a free car and a good salary. I also moved back with my parents, which saved money and allowed me to really put all my eggs into the photography basket.
There is nothing wrong with having unfair advantages, and don’t let losers online tell you that because you have a wealthy family or connections, you’re somehow not worthy of your success or progress. Try to figure out what unfair advantages you have and lean into them.
Timing
Timing is important, but it’s not make or break. The best time to start a YouTube channel was in 2019, just before COVID. The best time to start sharing your photos on Instagram was in 2015. The second best time is now. Of course, if you time what you’re doing with global events or trends, it can boost your growth and exposure. While I wouldn’t want to spend my life trying to time everything, it’s worthwhile keeping an eye on current affairs to see if you can somehow time your skill with what’s happening globally and boost yourself. For me, it was going all in on photography and YouTube just as COVID started.
Hard Work
You can have all the unfair advantages, talent, and timing, but without hard work, you will achieve nothing. If “success” is 100% of the pie, hard work is about 75%. Everything else mentioned here is 25%. Why do so many kids of rich parents end up not doing anything meaningful? Meanwhile, why do kids from poor working-class backgrounds end up extremely successful? I know so many amazingly talented photographers who are lazy and don’t have any drive. Equally, there are many average photographers who become incredibly successful because they are hard workers and grafters. Unfair advantages and talent will open doors, but hard work is still needed to walk through them.
Luck
So what is luck? Luck is a combination of all the above. Of course, you need to be lucky to come across a beautiful scene in the street. But it’s hard work, talent, and unfair advantages that will be the difference between an amazing photo and a missed opportunity. The harder you work, the luckier you get. The more you network, the luckier you get. The more money you make, the luckier you will get. Some people will say this isn’t fair, but life isn’t fair. You have to go out and make your own luck, and then maybe life will become more fair to you.
