Hard Work is Hard

Well, the title says it all. I spent my Sunday this weekend sanding down an old butcher block table that we were given by my in-laws. It's a gorgeous old table, hand made by my wife's grandfather. However, over time it had built up some grime and blemishes from use (and from sitting in the basement for a few years), and needed some TLC. I got the idea to re-finish it. At the outset, I didn't realize how big a job it would be. I spent most of the day bent over that table scrubbing and sanding it down, going through sheet after sheet of sandpaper as it got gunked up. It was hot, sweaty, dirty work. But in the end, when I wiped it down with mineral oil and stepped back, I was really happy with the result.

My point here is that often times, to get the result we want, we have to get dirty and do some hard work. You have to get up at 5am to get out there for sunrise. You have to hike up a gorge with your heavy gear to capture a waterfall. You have to get down on the ground and crawl around to get wonderful shots of kids playing. You have to approach a stranger to get that street portrait you're after. Part of what makes a great shot so great is that you were willing to go the extra distance to get something unique. If we all went for the lowest hanging fruit, our photos would all look the same and would lack any sort of "wow" factor. Next time you're after a shot and that little voice tells you "that won't be easy," smile and know you're headed for something unique. Hard work is hard, but the payoff is usually worth it.

OK, so this is also a thinly veiled excuse as to why I don't have a real blog post this week, and why my photo this week is a "look what I did" shot with my point n shoot. But I hope the point is well taken and that you'll think about the implications for your photos.

~S

[title of blog] on flickr