Given a private income for 10 years....

[Turtle]

What would you do?

Who would make a go of photography and take the chance that in 10 years they could produce superb work, leading to a career of some sort.

Who would keep it a hobby?

Of those who would take those 10 paid years and dedicate themselves to photography, what would you do?

I ask, because there are an awful lot of people in photography who do have private incomes, though most are reluctant to say so. I've bumped into quite a few over the years, all doing different things, some with a plan and some with none.

What great plans/aspirations do you have that thus far are unfulfilled?

 

[tlitody]

The best way to make a small fortune out of photography is to start with a large one.

 

[FrankS]

It will depend at what stage one is at in life. I'll be in such a position in a few years. It's called a pension. I'll keep on keeping on with photography, hopefully with more time to commit to it, and get some use out of the 4x5 as well.

 

[dazedgonebye]

I'd take it and run.
I'm 50 now, so at 60 I would either do well in photography or sponge off my wife till the pension.

At 30, with kids...I don't know. I might go for it, I might have passed.

 

[DNG]

OK,
It must not be traceable to the Feds! (Tax Free), IE a Cash exchange, each year paid at the beginning of the year

Now that legal is out of the way...

Each year I would travel to a different country, and a make huge documentary of my visions.

I would produce a book of each place.

The last year, I would go on tour to show selected photographs in local art fairs. And have plenty to sell in smaller sizes.

The sponsor world receive all 9 books signed and for each year, a wall print signed

 

[Colin Corneau]

Go for it. You live once. And you just have no idea what can come your way in those 10 years devoted to art and your passion...things lead to other things and at the end of ten years you can't imagine going back.

 

[Bob Michaels]

That sounds like being a MacArthur fellow (a/k/a Genius Award) but that is only for 5 years. It is $100,000 a year for unrestricted purposes. Lee Friedlander and Susan Meiselas are two photographer fellows who come to mind. I believe they both did non-commercial photography as they had been doing before and since.

MacArthur fellows seldom mention their affiliation unless it is pertinent to the discussion. I have a good friend (and occasional lurker here as he shoots an M-6) who never told me until I had known him for a year. And that was only because I saw his name on the list and asked him directly. Later I realized his "other photographer friend" that also stayed at his house was actually Lee Friedlander. I am still trying to wrangle an introduction.

 

[jsrockit]

Why stress it? 10 years is a long time and you'll change your mind many times. Just enjoy the time however you see fit.

 

[thegman]

I'd keep photography as a hobby, I'd travel more though, and maybe try on a small scale to sell my photos/stories, but I would not attempt to make it into a true career.

 

[ashfaque]

I'm training to be a theoretical Macroeconomist. However if I ever get the opportunity to work in a war torn area I'll take, and will probably try some war photography. James Nachtwey is one of my most favourite photographers. I might even take that seriously. Regardless, photography will at least be a long term hobby.

 

[mfogiel]

I think that you have to have a strong urge to do something in life which makes you tick, and if this is related to photography, then you might become a serious photographer. Cartier Bresson had an urge to see the world and to make it more just, he has been a visually sensitive leftist intellectual. The same could be told of many others, Salgado for example. Then there are people who have the urge of visual expession, the exploration of the form, its beauty and meaning takes center stage to them. Look up Gibson or Eggleston. Then there are the story tellers, the guys who love to discover things and then make a story out of it, like narrators. The most famous has probably been W.E. Smith, but there are many others, like lots of National geographic guys with Steve Mc Curry among the most noted. Then there are guys who have a passion for recording the reality, who are maniacally shooting places and events to record them for the future generations. The Bechers and many others are an example. There are the experimentators and shockers, like Man Ray, Mapplethorpe, Araki or Lachapelle. Mystics like Kenna. And so on... If you want to be a serious photographer, you have to have a serious driving force first, otherwise you might as well start learning how to shoot weddings right away. If you can't find it, do photography as a hobby, it will give you pleasure, not pain.

 

[Roger Hicks]

What would you do?

Who would make a go of photography and take the chance that in 10 years they could produce superb work, leading to a career of some sort.

Who would keep it a hobby?

Of those who would take those 10 paid years and dedicate themselves to photography, what would you do?

I ask, because there are an awful lot of people in photography who do have private incomes, though most are reluctant to say so. I've bumped into quite a few over the years, all doing different things, some with a plan and some with none.

What great plans/aspirations do you have that thus far are unfulfilled?

How big a private income? And, of course, with the assumption you can't save any of it.

Here's a (moderately) funny story. About 30-35 years ago, a friend knew me well enough to say, "When I first met you [about 5 years before], I thought you had a private income. You never seemed to work..."

Well, I did. Work, that is, not have a private income. By then, I was supporting myself with writing and photography. And a wife. My first wife didn't do paid work. Unlike Frances (whom I married in 1982), though in 1990 or so Frances said to her employers, "I can no longer afford the luxury of working for you," because she was already earning more from freelance writing and photography.

The moral is that at Christmas 1981 I jacked in my (salaried) job and decided to earn a living with pen (well, all right, typewriter, later word processor) and camera. The trick is that when you can double your salary with freelance or other income, you can probably afford to quit the day job.

But yet... During the period of the (hypothetical) private income, you need to concentrate on (a) what you want to do and (b) what will keep you in future. At Arles, you met Eric Luso, www.ericluso.com (his book arrived today). As you know, he started it with a point-and-shoot, and ended up with a major exhibition and a book.

You need a clear goal, and at least one fall-back position. Across ten years, you can try two or three things, but only two or three. Self indulgence won't cut it.

A wife with a salary, and a modest income from what you love to do, is nearly as good as a private income. Better, in some ways. But don't rely on her forever. Even if she's willing, it's not fair.

Cheers,

R.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I'd use the time to catch up on my backlog of images needing scanned and printed and would then devote the time to really completing some of my long term projects, making it a fulltime committment that i can't now because of the need to take on commercial work and web design work to bring in extra money.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

What would you do?

I'd call home to let them know about the news.

Who would make a go of photography and take the chance that in 10 years they could produce superb work, leading to a career of some sort.

I already have made a go of photography, but would indeed engage in taking the 10-year chance.

Who would keep it a hobby?

I'd focus on a different hobby.

Of those who would take those 10 paid years and dedicate themselves to photography, what would you do?

I would dedicate myself to photography.

I ask, because there are an awful lot of people in photography who do have private incomes, though most are reluctant to say so. I've bumped into quite a few over the years, all doing different things, some with a plan and some with none.

I don't think I've ever met the type.

What great plans/aspirations do you have that thus far are unfulfilled?

Photographer, composer and writer.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I don't think I've ever met the type.

Oh, I have. I know personally a lot of artists (including some photographers) who were born into wealth and have never had to work a day in their lives. My professor from art school was like that, had inherited wealth and never had a real job, and had no idea what it is like to have to work for a living. He wasn't paid much to teach, it was part time, and he told us he would do it free since the money they paid him was just pocket change to him. I also know a young woman, a photographer, whose mom and dad bought her a job at an arts nonprofit in my hometown by donating a lot large sum of money. She doesn't need the job either, she just wanted a prestigious title and the appearance of being important.

Those are just two examples I know personally in Fort wayne. In Santa Fe, where I lived for a few years, it was even more common. Few artists there needed to work, most had trust funds.

 

[cosmonaut]

No, rich and photographer are two words seldom used together. There is just to many people doing it and doing it good to live off it. Work your a$$ off at a good job and pick up enough money to invest in cameras, software and travel. Maybe a job where you travel a lot. People don't buy pictures anymore. They clip them off of the web and use them on their desktop. The world has changed. The tens years you take off could be ten years to add to an early retirement if you work.

 

[Turtle]

I posted this thread to get a feel of the variety of situations people face and how photography would sit given a little assistance (money and time). Unfortunately I am not in the position to enjoy 10 years on a private income, but I am making plans to reduce my normal work and undertake a lot more project work over the next two years for starters.

Given the opportunity I described in the OP, I would grab it with both hands and never look back. I'm confident that I could use those 10 years well and not solely in the photographic sense. Photography is linked to other things for me and I doubt I have to explain that to anyone (other things meaning everything), so the time and opportunity is not something I could ever turn down. I struggle to imagine how photography and the experiences that go with it could be compartmentalised and a lot made sense to me when I realised that's what I had been doing for 15 years. It took me that long to give in to it, but in the meantime I had gotten married and had children which complicated things somewhat!

Its interesting to hear what ideas people have and what they would get up to. I have a number of firm project ideas that will keep me busy for a while (a few years) and some themes that would keep my busy for all eternity, so 10 years would be easily spent. I think overall I would like to spend 6 months a year travelling and the other 6 months at home shooting projects closer to home, printing and reminding myself what my relatives look like.

Good luck to Erik and his achievements go to show what can be done if you plan well then just get on with it. I'm in the process of tidying up my personal affairs so I can do the same....

While trust funds are very useful, having a career is also rather handy in more than just the financial sense. So many trustafarians seem utterly lost and I cannot imagine that does their photography any good at all. Salgado and HCB had strong motivations and without that critical ingredient their money would have delivered little more than idle time and aimless experimentation.

Chris,

What projects would you really like to tackle (if you are happy to disclose)?

 

[FrankS]

I know several artists, (not photographers) who can do what they do partially because their spouse has a regular "good" job. 🙂

 

[kxl]

Giben a private income for 10 years, I'd find a way to stretch it to 20 or even 30...

 

[Austerby]

I would use the time and money to find good new talent that I could nurture and support - I know my limitations when it comes to taking photos.