Prettym1k3
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 p.2 #8 · p.2 #8 · ever wished you were not booked on a date? | |
SloPhoto wrote:
I have no idea how you do it. I am having trouble figuring out how 1kid + ~5-10 weddings + day job is going to work. I keep looking at you and JRMagat and a few others as a glimmer of hope.
Dude, if I knew, I'd teach a class. Most people who know me tell me that I'm crazy, but that they think I'm just built for it? The thing is, is I'm intense. Not like that obnoxious intense that you see in some people at a sports bar or something. (At least I hope not!) But when I'm working, I'm working. 100%. When I'm at home sitting on the floor playing Legos with my son, or cuddling with him in bed and singing to him - I'm there 100%. No half-assing anything. That's the only way to stay sane. Stay 100% invested in what you're doing right then and right there. Live in that moment, but plan for all the other moments. Weird balance, I'm sure.
The tough part is knowing that I say no to my family more than I say no to work. But my saying no to them now, and when I'm working, that means better potential for my wife to be a stay at home mom. And that's ultimately why I started this photography venture 5 years ago. To not achieve that goal, while making a lot of great moves in this industry, I would feel a little like a failure.
I never took myself as one to ever consider that I might suffer from depression or anxiety. But this year has been a first for many things, man. Stress got to me a few times, and I just about broke down. 3 hours of sleep some nights. Waking up in the middle of the night in a panic - "Did I mark down the right date on my calendar for their wedding? What if I'm late? What if my HD crashes?!" It happens. I think that some of those fear are natural, and keep me on my toes, so I kinda' embrace them.
Sorry for the novel. But clearly, I'm a lunatic. Hopefully I just go down as being remembered ass a lunatic who busted his as for his family, his clients, loved what he did, and had a little money to take his car to the track once in a while. 
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JR Magat wrote:
There is no hope!
I made the jump from 10 weddings last year to 20 weddings this year (13 down, 7 to go!) but I am not going to lie, I am also pretty exhausted with the mon-fri job, wife + 2 kids, weddings/editing/etc. It really is a balancing act, and it is managable but you just have to know your own limit; I am looking to stay in the 20 wedding max for 2015 also. All of my friends and co-workers think i'm nuts btw
From the info Mike posts here, I am really impressed with his efficiency and short turn around time. I just do not have the energy to edit a full wedding on Sundays like him, where I'm on the 6 week end of my "6-8 week" delivery time. It isn't ideal, and I have some areas to improve on (stop dragging my feet to cull), but it's been working out so far and I haven't had any complaints.
So Joe, if we can do it... you can too! We just need to start up a support group for multi-job/overworked dads  ...Show more →
JR knows what's up. It is entirely a balancing act.
My editing is an effect where the cause is necessity. If I don't turn that wedding around Sunday, then I go back to work Monday with pending edits. I lose time during the week to take on meetings and sessions, but more importantly I lose time after work to see my son, hang out with my wife, cook, clean, do laundry, and generally spend time with those I love. And I refuse to give up my Tuesday cigar night with my best friend. That ain't happening.
Ultimately, I trained myself to move quickly. Sometimes I get distracted (stupid BookFace or funny videos on Reddit), but I try to keep myself as a machine - an assembly line - when it comes to culling and initial edits. Once I get to the image-by-image edits, I slow down a bit and make sure to use a careful eye. And that's where I relax a bit. But I still move as quickly as possible.
Having never been in the military, I have to liken what I've done to military training. Analyze why I'm slow and laggy. Make adjustments. Tell myself, "This is what I'm going to do, and this is how I'm going to do it." Deviation from the plan throws a wrench in my editing times. And If I can edit a wedding in 5 hours instead of 9, that gives me 2 hours with my son, 1 hour for housework, and 1 hour for a nap that I most definitely deserve, and otherwise wouldn't have gotten. :-)
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The worst part about working so much, is that I can't work more. And what I mean by that is, I could take on mid-week San Francisco elopements or City Hall weddings. I could take on more family sessions and newborn/infant sessions. And I would LOVE to do a birth story. I've never gotten to do one, and I just can't call in to my day job and tell them, I'm at the hospital with a mom and dad and their new baby, and I can't come in today." My day job is stifling my ability to make more money being self employed. And that's a bummer.
Hopefully, one day, by quitting my day job, my gross profits and take-home income will increase. AND my joy will increase, I'll have time for physical activity like working out, running, and riding my bike again. And most importantly, I won't be constantly kissing my wife and kid(s) and rushing off from one place to another.
On the bright side - I have a mortgage, a very, very small retirement account, a brand new remodeled kitchen, we have food on the table, and clothes on our backs. And I get to work in one of the best industries I've ever worked in. The plus sides far outweigh the downsides.
Again, sorry for the novel.
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two weddings and it's my middle schoolers first big field trip. They learn math through baseball so they're going out of state to watch a couple major league games and go hiking and such. I've already marked off the calendar for the big 2016, 21-day field trip to austrailia, New Zealand, and japan. (Insane, I know) But I might have to shoot 100 weddings to pay for it. 
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