A Hump Day Classic: Eight Ingredients to Make an Icon

AI image from Adobe Stock

Today's post is out of the SCU archives. I'm sharing it, not because I didn't want to write something new today, but because the topic seems even more relevant. As the industry changes, it's taking more and more creativity to make your work stand out. Yet the basics for success NEVER change.
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The kind of commitment I find among the best performers across virtually every field is
a single-minded passion for what they do, an unwavering desire for excellence in the way they think
and the way they work. Genuine confidence is what launches you out of bed in the morning,
and through your day with a spring in your step.
Jim Collins

by Skip Cohen
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A few times over the years, I've referred to myself as one of the luckiest guys in the industry. One example is having the privilege of working with all four of the icons above. Don Blair and I wrote our first book together. I have dozens of Monte stories from so many different workshops and programs. Avedon made me lunch once in the flat above his studio, and Scavullo's dog tried to take a piece out of my leg on a couple of different visits.

I chose these four because I had the privilege of spending time with them, and there are so many of you who never got to see them in action. There are so many other artists for each of us to remember, along with contemporary icons active in the industry right now.  The common denominators between all of them are the traits below.

Kicking off the last quarter of the year, it's the perfect time for all of us to remember the ingredients that made those four above iconic, along with the traits of so many younger contemporary artists we admire today.

Image Quality:  They NEVER compromise on the quality of an image. Exposure, composition, expression and impact are as consistent as the sun coming up every morning. 

Lifestyle Quality:  They maintain a lifestyle of giving back and a strong sense of family and friendships. They have integrity, they have poise and they follow through on their promises.  They also surround themselves with people with similar commitments.

Loyalty:  Whether it's to the vendors they work with or their friends, their loyalty is rarely questioned.  Everyone watches each others backs and the mutual respect and admiration, at least from my perspective, is pretty much unmatched in comparison to most other industries.

Humor:  They don't take themselves too seriously. Think about any program you've attended that you loved and learned something - I'm willing to bet you laughed...a lot.  Today's photography icons are comfortable with admitting when they do something stupid, have fun with a client or completely screw up a job and live to tell about it.

Humility: Not everyone has it, but even those few we might consider a little arrogant - if they knew how they were being perceived they'd be upset and ready to work on a different persona.  So, I'm not sure if the quality I'm trying to describe is humility or a willingness to listen, but they've got it.

Confidence:  They believe in their abilities, their willingness to learn new skills and they understand their camera gear and photography cold - there's no second guessing and no "chimping."  Even when they talk about a new idea or technology, you'll pick up a unique tone in their voice, almost as if they've been shooting that way for years.

Diverse Skills: It goes with confidence, but there's nothing they can't shoot.  We might know them as a portrait photographer and then we'll see work that's fine art, landscape or architectural - they refuse to be type-cast into any one skill set. They may have a signature specialty, but none of them are one-trick ponies. They're always experimenting with new technologies and growing their skillset. 

Passion: It's the last word on the list, but it drives everything they do!  It's not just about photography, but about life in general - they simply never stop loving the craft, their lives, their friends, families - you name it and passion is what drives them to succeed.

Here's the bottom line - how do you stack up against the ingredients? Or more importantly, how do your customers feel you stack up?

Happy Hump Day!

"The only way to do great work is to love what you do.
If you haven't found it yet, keep looking.
As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it."
Steve Jobs