Excitement builds, the To Do list is still long, but I can almost feel it, the moment arriving, anticipation of the job at hand, one of those great jobs that I can really sink my teeth into. The last 3 weeks of preparation for this multi city job with a long and widely varying Shot List is winding down just as my adrenaline and endorphins are kicking into high gear.
Sound familiar? Not all that unlike preparing for a performance. I’ve realized over the years that the rush I got getting to the stage is the same rush I get now when I’m really excited about a project. Hmmm… not surprising, then, that after all these years I’ve clung to photography, with its highs and lows, waiting like a junkie for my next adrenaline boosting job or idea.
Preparation you ask? Don’t you just show up with a camera, couple of lenses, few lights and a laptop?
Do dancers show up to the stage door three minute before stage call with their makeup applied by their mothers, ribbons tied and stuffed into the boots, only to throw off their coats and immediately step into the lights to improvise? (well maybe when we were four years old…)
Where do I start? Well, each job is different, and because I shoot not just dance but fitness and commercial work as well, there are some things that run parallel and some that don’t. The job that will take the better part of the next month for me started with an email inquiring about my availability and ability /interest in traveling. Next came the Shot List to have a look at and an estimate request.
Combing through, analyzing and making notes and more notes takes took the better part of a day. The amount of detail at this early stage is essential because I need to know as much as possible in order to offer thoughts on how much time to budget, what is needed and roughly how much it will all cost. Next I submit and wait for questions/comments or a yes or no.
Once the yes comes, the real preparation begins….
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