{"id":532,"date":"2025-09-30T08:05:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-30T14:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/?p=532"},"modified":"2025-09-13T16:46:35","modified_gmt":"2025-09-13T22:46:35","slug":"validation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/?p=532","title":{"rendered":"Validation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How many times have you sought validation for your photography from others?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you first start out, every (or most) photo you take feels important.
“Look! Look what I learned to do!”
You set up flowers in your kitchen and practiced lighting\u2014
(If you change the “you” to “I” and “me”)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I took my camera on walks with my children so I could snap photos of butterflies. I uploaded those photos to the photography group I joined and…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Had someone say, “This is good, but not quite there.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What the heck did that mean?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or, I proudly displayed a photo where I had just learned to select a single color and turn everything else black and white\u2014
only to have someone comment, “Isn’t selective color outdated now?”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’ve posted before about what appeals to me. Here, I want to talk about seeking validation\u2014
about having photos that you can display and hear a large crowd say, “That’s impressive!”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m a hybrid. Sometimes I take a photo for no one but me, caring little if someone else likes it.
Other times, I take a photo and want others to say, “Wow, I like how you did XYZ,”<\/em> and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the advantage of being a hobbyist. My income doesn\u2019t depend on pleasing clients.
On the other hand, it means the pressure to improve has to come from within.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also means I can’t point to people buying my work as proof that I\u2019m a \u201creal\u201d photographer.
Sure, I\u2019ve given my work away\u2014people wanted it\u2014but since no money changed hands, that doesn\u2019t count in our society.
(Not trying for a \u201cpoor me\u201d<\/em> tone\u2014it’s a choice I made currently to not pursue professional photography.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Validation<\/strong>\u2014I\u2019ve read enough articles on this that it must be true\u2014often seems to require money.
Or winning a contest.
Or getting people to “ooh” and “aah” over your work on social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If any of those work for you, great!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in seeking validation, have you ever considered that some of those photos others didn\u2019t like\u2014but you<\/em> were so proud of\u2014were just as good as the ones that sold, won awards, or went viral?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure, some photos fail. Some only serve the purpose of practice, not display.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I\u2019m talking about the photos that made you say:
\u201cI took that. That was my vision, my perspective, my voice in that photo.\u201d<\/em>
No one else may get it, but for once, you pulled off exactly what you intended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That<\/strong> photo\u2014or photos\u2014fueled you to keep going, to challenge yourself.
Because in photography, like any skill, we are never done.
We are always learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first source of validation has to come from you\u2014your own sense of self-worth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You may never win a contest, break into the business of photography, or gain a large following on social media.
If you want those things, go for it\u2014there are plenty of resources to help you.
But even if you don\u2019t pursue that path, your photography still matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The time, the effort\u2014you carry that investment and skill. You’re doing something you enjoy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One photographer I enjoy learning from is David duChemin<\/strong>.
His books and workshops are less about gear and more about mindset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I connect this to validation because if you lack confidence in your own vision,
the photos you take may end up looking like everyone else\u2019s\u2014
and leave you feeling disappointed in the end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You are<\/em> a photographer, even if you only take photos of pumpkins or cats on pumpkins. Whether you are a good<\/em> photographer, sure, take advice, watch the impact your photos have, but don’t base your self-esteem on it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How many times have you sought validation for your photography from others? When you first start out, every (or most) photo you take feels important.“Look! Look what I learned to do!”You set up flowers in your kitchen and practiced lighting\u2014(If you change the “you” to “I” and “me”) I took my camera on walks with my children so I could snap photos of butterflies. I uploaded those photos to the photography group I joined and… Had someone say, “This is good, but not quite there.” What the heck did that mean? Or, I proudly displayed a photo where I had just learned to select a single color and turn everything else black and white\u2014only to have someone comment, “Isn’t selective color outdated now?” I’ve posted before about what appeals to me. Here, I want to talk about seeking validation\u2014about having photos that you can display and hear a large crowd say, “That’s impressive!” I\u2019m a hybrid. Sometimes I take a photo for no one but me, caring little if someone else likes it.Other times, I take a photo and want others to say, “Wow, I like how you did XYZ,” and so on. This is the advantage of being a hobbyist. My income doesn\u2019t depend on pleasing clients.On the other hand, it means the pressure to improve has to come from within. It also means I can’t point to people buying my work as proof that I\u2019m a \u201creal\u201d photographer.Sure, I\u2019ve given my work away\u2014people wanted it\u2014but since no money changed hands, that doesn\u2019t count in our society.(Not trying for a \u201cpoor me\u201d tone\u2014it’s a choice I made currently to not pursue professional photography.) Validation\u2014I\u2019ve read enough articles on this that it must be true\u2014often seems to require money.Or winning a contest.Or getting people to “ooh” and “aah” over your work on social media. If any of those work for you, great! But in seeking validation, have you ever considered that some of those photos others didn\u2019t like\u2014but you were so proud of\u2014were just as good as the ones that sold, won awards, or went viral? Sure, some photos fail. Some only serve the purpose of practice, not display. But I\u2019m talking about the photos that made you say:\u201cI took that. That was my vision, my perspective, my voice in that photo.\u201dNo one else may get it, but for once, you pulled off exactly what you intended. That photo\u2014or photos\u2014fueled you to keep going, to challenge yourself.Because in photography, like any skill, we are never done.We are always learning. The first source of validation has to come from you\u2014your own sense of self-worth. You may never win a contest, break into the business of photography, or gain a large following on social media.If you want those things, go for it\u2014there are plenty of resources to help you.But even if you don\u2019t pursue that path, your photography still matters. The time, the effort\u2014you carry that investment and skill. You’re doing something you enjoy. One photographer I enjoy learning from is David duChemin.His books and workshops are less about gear and more about mindset. I connect this to validation because if you lack confidence in your own vision,the photos you take may end up looking like everyone else\u2019s\u2014and leave you feeling disappointed in the end. You are a photographer, even if you only take photos of pumpkins or cats on pumpkins. Whether you are a good photographer, sure, take advice, watch the impact your photos have, but don’t base your self-esteem on it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,7],"tags":[11,17,18,13,33],"class_list":["post-532","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-not-advice","category-photography","tag-creativeprocess","tag-everyoneisanexpert","tag-imhorribleatagging","tag-photographythoughts","tag-validation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=532"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":542,"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532\/revisions\/542"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=532"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=532"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandrajloman.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=532"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}