This year Really Right Stuff celebrates thirty-five years of business. We're honored to have provided the best in photography equipment for so long. And as we considered what made our brand endure, we asked ourselves a more important question:
What’s the difference between snapping one amazing photo and a lifetime of creative pursuit? We reached out to twenty-five of the most accomplished photographers in their fields to understand where that longevity came from. From their responses and additional research, we've uncovered the five following tips. Whether you're just starting out or well on your way, we hope this advice can provide inspiration for your lifelong photography journey.
“If you don’t love what you do, you won’t make it.”
- Scott Stulberg
The career of any great photographer will show you: you can’t endure a life of demanding creativity on willpower alone. A deeper force needs to drive you. That force goes by a few names: your passion, your drive, your inspiration, but it all comes down to why you do what you do.
Robert Agli, a seasoned photographer with over twenty-one years’ experience shared, “Longevity really comes from having a passion about what you are doing. My passion was teaching others”. By leading photo workshops, Robert has sustained his inspiration, leading others to the same joy he’s gained from his craft.
When searching for your "why", remember your purpose will come from who you are as well as what you shoot. By being authentic to yourself and noticing what you’re drawn to, you can examine why you’re drawn to it, a step toward your bigger "why". Simply following photography trends won’t get you much closer to your goal. Instead, identify stories that interest you to provide and clarify your inspiration.
Practice relentlessly: shoot frequently... Persistence breeds mastery and those serendipitous images that captivate audiences.
- Tom Kuali'i
It’s no surprise that masters of their craft got to where they are through a wealth of experience, but what may surprise you is the focus they still place on practice at their advanced level. Don Smith, who has forty years' experience photographing everything from live sports to landscapes, advises, “make sure you’re practicing all the time”. He gives himself “plenty of assignments and projects” to stay sharp and improve.
The perfect shot can be there and gone in a heartbeat. If you allow your technique or intuition to dull, you’re unlikely to be ready when it comes. Also, if you don’t push yourself to get out there and shoot, you may lose your drive to do so in the first place.
“Shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot!” - A.W. Stagmeyer
If you don’t trust your gear, you’re ruined.
- Kennan Ward
For a journey that lasts a lifetime, you’ll need equipment that endures with you. Don’t make the mistake of settling for a mediocre ball head, tripod, or plate that won't stand the test of time. When you work with reliable gear, you’re enabled to truly master your camera and support systems. Technical aspects become intuitive, enabling rather than hindering your creativity. As Brian Matiash, a 30-year photographer, puts it: “having the right gear... leaves it purely up to me”.
Of course, this is where we talk a bit about ourselves, because RRS has been providing the right gear since 1990. All our products are engineered and manufactured in the U.S.A. with longevity in mind. Tom Kuali'i, who shoots among the harsh volcanic rock and scorching lava flows of Hawaii, has been using his original RRS tripod and BH-55 Ball Head since 2012. George Lepp has been using his original ball head since its release in 2008. Countless other photographers have similarly relied on the longevity of the BH-55.
If you want to learn more about the BH-55 or secure its lifelong support on your photography journey, check it out below.
If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.
- Anonymous
As solitary as some types of photography can be, finding others to inspire your work can be essential in fueling your own journey. A close community can both bolster you up or highlight skills you lack, introducing you to new techniques, technologies, and equipment to fuel your growth. Mentors, teachers, and peers can open your eyes at every stage of your journey.
Early in his Kennan Ward's career, while working as a park ranger, had the opportunity to share his work with legendary photographer Ansel Adams. Ansel commended him, saying Kennan was finding places to photograph Ansel wasn't even aware of. If Ansel Adams could find inspiration from others, we can truly never stop learning from our peers.
A word of warning, however. Just because any person could provide inspiration, it doesn’t mean you have to listen to everyone's opinion. Brian Matiash advises to “build a group of trusted people” that you know can support and bolster you throughout your photography journey.
For me, constant evolution has been the key to a long and inspired career.
- Mark Dubovoy
Between changes in the photography industry and the ebbs and flows of your individual journey, there will come a time within a long photography career where it's necessary to adjust. It is natural to fear these changes, but many artists view them as fuel to keep going. George Lepp shares, “The length of my career was because I was an early adopter of... new technology and adapted to the changes that kept coming to the field of nature photography over time.” Over the course of his fifty-five-year photo career, George explored stock photography, workshops, and book publishing to enliven and sustain his journey.
As opposed to outside forces driving development, stagnancy from your own work can signal the need for change. Over the course of Richard Thompson III’s photo career, he has coped with burnout at multiple points. “You have to inject freshness into your work and allow it to breathe.” He believes influence from outside of photography should be utilized to revitalize your passion. “Whether that be drawing inspiration from music, or ballet, or a good novel, the idea is to transpose that inspiration into photography in a way that feels good and true to my understanding of the world.”
Whether instigated by external or internal factors, reinventing yourself could open up the most fulfilling chapter of your photography journey yet.
Regardless of how far along you are, we hope these tips provide inspiration for a long and creative camera journey. We’re honored RRS could be a small part of yours. If you're looking for some extra help, check out the BH-55, the ball head built to last every step of the way.
A special thanks to: Oliver Klink, Robert Agli, A.W. Stagmeyer, Tom Kuali'i, Brian Matiash, Bryan Geyer, Jack Dykinga, Dan Ballard, Aaron Reed, Scott Stulberg, Don Smith, Mark Dubovoy, Cheryl Opperman, Gary Carter, Dan Ballard, Ken Sklute, Nick Page, Tony Sweet, Aaron Baggenstos, George Lepp, Kennan Ward, Karen Ward, Margo T. Pinkerman, Robert Fletcher, Thomas Proctor, Rick Sammon, and Adam Jones.