Yet another mentor update

I wanted to provide you with a quick mentor update. I finally found someone who has already helped me grow as a photographer.

A few weeks ago, Mark contacted me and said he “felt bad” about turning me down about mentoring my work. He said he will look at 2-3 images a week but had stipulations and disclaimers about what he liked and didn’t. As an example, he mentioned he does not like black and white nature work.

I continued to explore options for mentors that could help me grow when I remembered a friend who not only received a photography degree from the University of Louisville, but also used to teach photography classes. I reached out to her last week and asked if she would take me on as a mentee and review my work.

I told her I was looking for someone to provide simple feedback on my photographs. My goal is not to have a business, sell my work, or have the goal of ‘likes’. I am simply trying to improve and need feedback (both good and bad) to do so.

Withing the first few critiques, I have already begun learning and ‘thinking’ about different ways to shoot. She has provided me with valuable advice already.

My new mentor is Lisa J. Huber. Lisa even mentions on her LinkedIn profile in part “I employ a coaching and mentoring leadership style to facilitate creative skills development through creating learning opportunities and supplying constructive performance feedback.” Lisa is referring to more business skills, but I am focused more on this help with my creative side.

I wrote a blog about Lisa some time ago. You can reference it here - https://timothybme.blogspot.com/2019/04/lisa-j-huber.html

I may still send things to Mark from time to time, but I do not want him to provide feedback out of guilt. That is why I continued my search and found Lisa to be a qualified and willing mentor.

Eager to push my photography to the next level, I’ve enlisted the help of a seasoned mentor. Her guidance will be invaluable as I delve deeper into the technical aspects, like mastering manual mode and understanding the interplay of aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. But beyond the technical, I’m looking forward to honing my artistic vision, learning how to compose captivating shots and leverage light to create impact. With this mentorship, I’m confident I’ll bridge the gap between taking snapshots and crafting truly meaningful photographs.

Lisa will provide comments on pictures I post on 500px. You can view my work here - https://500px.com/p/timbindner

Until next time,

Tim

Comments

Nobody's Listening

I recently had conversations with two people I know that had experienced a sudden rash of acute anxiety. One was medication related, the other was situational. Both stated that they now had a better understanding of what I have been dealing with. With the recent changes to my medication, Although I still feel anxiety, it no longer takes control of my emotions like it did in the past. However, I know acutely that it still lurks on the fringes, patiently awaiting its chance to pounce on me. During my recent visit to Dr. Erin, she assigned me an exercise where I had to jot down three things each day that I felt I excelled at. This is proving to be difficult for me. The parameters are straightforward and easy to understand. “Anything I do well that day,” she said. As I continued with this exercise, I began thinking of a song by Linkin Par called Nobody’s Listening. I got a heart full of pain, head full of stress Handful of anger held in my chest And everything left’s a wast...

Waiting for the End to Come

I have been in a funk lately. I am adjusting to my anxiety medicine, and I feel it is working, but maybe too well. Last week I met with Dr. Erin. She, of course, asked me how I was feeling and honestly, I told her I was not really feeling anything. We dug deeper, and she explained that my anxiety prior to the medicine was like a roller coaster. I had extreme highs and extreme lows. Now with the medicine it is more of a flatter track. I am not hitting the lows; Like I was before (which is good), but also not hitting the highs either. I feel like I am purely existing. Little desire to do much of anything. It’s true my passions are hiking and photography, which I do little of in the summer because of ticks, heat, and snakes. I know fall is approaching and I hope that helps me get out of this funk somewhat. I will also speak to my psychiatrist about lowering my dosage to see if that helps. Even my writing has been affected. I have not had the desire to write. Music, however, ha...

Rumination

I've found myself stuck in a loop lately. It's like my mind is on a hamster wheel, endlessly circling the same thoughts. I can't seem to shake them. It's exhausting. I've been there. That place where thoughts loop around and around, like a broken record stuck on the same groove. It's like my mind is a haunted house, and these persistent thoughts are the ghosts haunting me. I'll be thinking about something, maybe a conversation I had earlier in the day, and then suddenly, I'm spiraling. I'm replaying every word, every gesture, analyzing every detail. It's like a broken record, playing the same tune repeatedly. It's not just conversations, either. I can ruminate about my to-do list, my relationships, or even the weather. It's as if my brain is determined to find a problem, no matter how small. Rumination, as it's called, can be a real drain. It's like trying to go against the flow of a strong current. No matter how hard I ...

Ruminator

Search This Blog