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00:00:01
Community Over Competition: A Story Every New Photographer Needs to Hear
105 Plays12 days ago
Episode Summary:
In this heartfelt episode, I’m sharing a personal story from the early days of my photography journey, a moment that almost made me quit before I really began. It’s a reminder of why the community you choose matters deeply and how the right support can uplift you, while the wrong energy can defeat you. If you’ve ever felt lost, judged, or unsupported as a new photographer, this one’s for you.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
- Why finding the right community is essential to your growth as a photographer
- How cruelty and gatekeeping in online groups can shake your confidence
- Why community over competition isn’t just a slogan — it’s a mindset and business model
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Transcript
Introduction and Personal Story
00:00:01
Speaker
Hey, empowered listeners, today I wanna do something a little different and just share a story with you. And share why, why i guess why I'm sharing this story is because this is really at the root of why I believe so wholeheartedly in community over competition and in the importance of finding the right support when you are building this business.
00:00:26
Speaker
Because it can be really, really easy to fall into the wrong community And become deflated, defeated, and let down from that community and giving up because of it.
00:00:37
Speaker
Where the opposite can happen if you get into the right community, a positive, uplifting, nourishing community, they will carry you during hard times. and support you and hold you accountable.
00:00:50
Speaker
So i'm just going tell a little
Challenges in Photography Communities
00:00:51
Speaker
story. So early on in my photography journey, I was scouring Facebook groups looking for advice, for tips, for support. I was a brand new photographer. i didn't have any education in the um know world of photography or business.
00:01:07
Speaker
I didn't have any friends, any real life friends in the business, and I was hell-bent on figuring this whole thing out. And the photography forum world was still very new. So this is back in like 2009. I found a local photographer Facebook group here in the Pacific
Learning and Negative Experiences
00:01:24
Speaker
Northwest. I won't say what group it is, but if you're listening and you've been around as long as me, Since 2009, you may know what I'm talking about.
00:01:31
Speaker
And there were lots of photographers there. And I was looking at all of the posts and just really trying to drink up the information and learn and teach myself as we do when we're new. And I saw a local photographer, a guy, post a location that I would have loved to try out.
00:01:48
Speaker
I was still totally new. i didn't know where I should be photographing clients or people at that in that and for that matter, and I wanted some help. So I reached out to him. I said, hey, would you, and I politely reached out to him, would you mind sharing where this location is with me?
00:02:04
Speaker
Now, I understand some people feel like locations get overcrowded and they don't want to share, and that's that's fine. He could have said something like that to me. But instead, he reached out to me via direct message or personal message on Facebook.
00:02:17
Speaker
And he said, hey, i will help you out, and I will tell you where this location is. But only if I could tell him exactly what the mirror did in my camera And he asked me a bunch of other technical technical questions about how my camera worked.
00:02:31
Speaker
And he said he would only share that location with me if I answered that question. The shame that I felt when he sent me this was real. I didn't know the answer to how or why my mirror worked in my camera.
00:02:45
Speaker
I did not know the answer to those technical questions. He was bullying me and he was being cruel. My inner child who felt dumb her whole childhood, I have dyslexia, I have ADHD, I have She showed up and she said, Elena, see, this guy knows what he's doing. He knows you're a fraud.
00:03:03
Speaker
He knows there's no place for you here. You aren't smart. You're not meant to be a photographer. You can't do this.
Overcoming Adversity and Personal Growth
00:03:09
Speaker
I wanted to crawl into a hole. It was awful. I never responded to him.
00:03:15
Speaker
But luckily, I'm a pretty gritty girl and I moved on. And I figured out my own locations and I left that group. Now, let me tell you something. To this day, I actually don't know the answer to what those asshole questions were. I don't really know why my mirror works or how. There's all kinds of technical things.
00:03:32
Speaker
Do I use my camera in complete manual mode and create magic with it? Yes, I do. I don't care about that stuff. I left that group quickly. That wasn't the only negative thing that happened to me there.
00:03:43
Speaker
And I promised myself that as I made my way, I would always be there for new photographers and that I would never ever make somebody feel stupid simply because they were new. Now here I am 14 years later and I don't know where homeboy is, but something tells me that he's not sponsored by Canon.
00:04:00
Speaker
Something tells me that he's not getting up on stages and speaking at some of the biggest events in our industry.
Commitment to Uplift Others
00:04:06
Speaker
And I'm pretty sure that he's not happy because bullying and cruelty are just a reflection of how one feels about themselves.
00:04:13
Speaker
I really feel nothing but compassion for that man, truly. So community over competition, it's a business model for me. It's a way of life. I am always here to uplift and support photographers in our industry, especially new ones, because I remember how lonely it was in the beginning.
00:04:30
Speaker
So if you're here and you're listening to this story, i just want you to know i care about you. I'm here to support you. will never bully. I will never put nude photographers down. And I know that there is enough business for all of us and that there's absolutely a seat at this table for you.