The Importance of Saying “No” in Photography
Identify the right time to stop exploring and start focusing on your photography niche.
During my last street photography session, I focused on shooting black and white, deep contrast scenes. I prepared myself, got into the right mindset. I dialed in exposure and started shooting.
Keeping my head around the main subject isn’t very hard. Actively looking for the composition I plan to capture has become second nature.
Now and then I run into a scene I’d like to take. Not black and white, not deep contrast either. Perhaps its a color. Maybe a gesture, maybe not even “street photography”.
This is when I hear:
“This picture does not belong to you, Peter!”
Knowing what and how to photograph is an essential first step to learn photography. Keeping focus, staying on track, learning, practicing, and repeating these steps is fundamental to advancement in any field.
A lot has been said, written and advised about “What to do”. Very little about “What not to do”.
One is not more important than the other. Yes, without knowledge and experience you would not progress. However, without the ability to say “No” and keeping the focus on what’s important, you wouldn’t achieve progress either!
When to say “No”
At the beginning of my photographic career, the word “no” did not exist in my vocabulary. I’d photograph just about anything. Landscapes, streets, cities, portraits, weddings, events, conferences, video, and timelapse just to name a few.
At this point in my career, it was good to try all these things. I’ve been learning what I like, what I don’t and what I am good at. I also understand my limitations now.
I could not photograph landscapes as I don’t live in the mountains. I could not photograph timelapse as I didn’t have the time. I couldn’t shoot weddings, because I just didn’t like it. These are not excuses, these are learning points. They give important clarity on what not to do. Knowing this is very liberating. It is very helpful, too. Now I can be more focused, deliberate and purposeful with my work. And so can you!
The key learning point is this: shoot what is accessible, shoot what you like and improve.
As you progress in your career, in your self-understanding, you will slowly and gradually start saying “No” to other opportunities. And suddenly you’ll hear your voice:
“This picture does not belong to me”.
When to say “Yes”
Just as saying “No”, saying “Yes” is a skill. And skills need practice. The better this skill, the better your decision making. You’ll become capable of identifying the right opportunities which will propel your career onto an upward trajectory.
Saying “No” to things and sticking to your line of work doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try new things and experiment.
Its how we learn. If you get into one niche of photography aiming to become known for it, don’t suddenly venture into something else. You wouldn’t want people to see something completely else when they expected your “signature” work, would you?
Trying new things, experimenting, and working for yourself, all of this is OK. Do it.
“Whenever you do something new, do it your way!”
Going wide vs. going deep
Let’s rephrase the whole “Yes vs. No” debate. Going wide in photography should happen at the beginning. Try new genres, gear, techniques. Dip your toe in as many things as possible to learn about yourself. Understand what you don’t like, what you aren’t good at, or what is too hard for you to get into (I call this an objective excuse). Avoid spending time, money and efforts on these. Find out what makes you excited, challenged, what you think you’d be good at, what you’ve got access to, and photograph that!
This is when you go deep. You focus on your niche. Explore and try new things but within your niche this time. Keep on improving until you find your voice. Let it speak!
Here’s my similar content on the topic:
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