Working the Backlog

Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Sunrise #3, New Mexico, 2018

For years now I’ve had a ridiculously large backlog of images to edit…just a few months ago I had over 15,000 photographs to deal with in some fashion, with the oldest ones going back to 2014. The results of four artist residencies and my big trip out West last fall were a big part of this group. Since the beginning of 2020 I’ve been diligently going through this backlog and have been making pretty good progress overall.

Now, being forced to stay at home because of the pandemic, it looks like I’m finally going to get caught up — something that seemed very unlikely for the past years as my backlog piled up higher and higher. I’m down to about 1,000 left of that original mass of 15,000, and victory is in sight.

Many photographers are taking advantage of this backlog, too — see these two recent posts as examples — and it certainly makes sense to do so if it makes sense for your life.

For me, finally ridding myself of this backlog will help me confirm or deny a theory I’ve had for a long time. I do a terrible job getting out to photograph on a regular basis and instead mostly produce only when I take a bigger trip and get away from all my other responsibilities. (Hence, those artist residencies I mentioned…) It has always seemed an excuse, though, and it certainly seems like I should be able to get out and photograph on a more regular basis, and I’ve wondered whether the backlog served as a disincentive to take more photographs and make my problem more severe.

As spring comes here in Maine and I finish the backlog, I hope to find out if removing the backlog also removes the extra burden on taking new photographs.

Pecha Kucha and Other Things to Keep You Busy

Back on January 31st (which seems like forever ago), I was one of the speakers at the Pecha Kucha night for Midcoast Maine at the Rockport Opera House. If you are looking for an entertaining hour, you can find the video online here (I’m the last presenter, FYI):

If you are an artist and want to use this time to work on the business or marketing side of things, I highly recommend this collection of resources from the CMCA.

Another link worth checking out is this compilation of free art and art history courses from Don’t Take Pictures magazine.

The artist/photographer Amy Parrish has compiled a list of free calls for entries and such here.

Enjoy!

The Photographic Life in the Time of the Coronavirus

Obviously the global coronavirus pandemic has been dramatically impacting news and lives of late, and details about how best to respond to this in terms of one’s life are beyond my expertise except to say follow good advice and be safe! I’ve temporarily shut down in-person contact in my printing business accordingly (though I’m still open for pick up and mail-order as of now).

Assuming you have been fortunate enough to stay healthy and remain employed, the biggest impact on you is probably a sudden clearing of the schedule. Schools and after-school activities are closed, large group gatherings suspended, gallery openings canceled, and so on.

For myself, I hope to take advantage of this sudden freeing of time to deal with many long-term projects. Articles I always meant to read, getting caught up on processing my photographs, writing an artist statement for my Pale Fire project, reading some of the many photobooks on my shelf, maybe even taking some new pictures finally. All while trying to spend too much time reading the news.

I hope all of you out there stay safe and also find some time to be creative or to learn!