What will people say about your work years from now?

by Skip Cohen

Today's Throwback Thursday is out of the SCU archives. I shared the images eight years ago, but it makes such a good point.

The two images above are of my Dad. The one on the left was taken around 1938. Seventy years later, Bambi Cantrell captured Dad, and it's one of my favorite portraits of him. But today's post isn't about Dad - it's about you.

"What will people be saying about your photography years from now? How will your work be perceived?"

My buddy Scott Bourne said once, "Shoot as if this is the last photograph of yours anybody will ever see!" 

The image on the left was hand-colored, and I love the Olan Mills signature. On the back is the ordering number and a stamp, "Olan Mills Portrait Studios, Springfield, Ohio." It's printed as an 8x10 on double-weight paper. 

The image on the right couldn't be more classic as well, even though I've cropped it for this post. Dad was around 85. I love the pose and the lighting - She captured how I see Dad, casual yet focused with a whole lot of love on his face. He had that same smile right up to when he passed away at 93 in 2015. 

If you've ever heard Tim and Beverly Walden speak or take one of their classes, they always talk about creating an experience for your subjects. It's not about "getting their picture taken" but the event itself. You're also not capturing a portrait but creating a new family heirloom - an image that will last the test of time and be handed down from generation to generation. A portrait session ALWAYS deserves your very best!

So, what's the answer to that question? Are you creating images that, years from now, your clients will be looking back and smiling, remembering the day you did their portrait?