What motivates you as a photographer?
Watch the video or read the article to learn about the top three motivations that keep CJ going as a photographer in Lake Tahoe.
A: Creation. Light. The brevity of life.
Motivations of the photographer: Creation
I was first drawn to photography by looking at the natural world around me. As a Christian, I believe God created the world and all that is in it and that core belief makes it more striking when I see a beautiful sunset, the glowing light behind an aspen tree, or the alpenglow on the mountain peaks. I know that a faith in God is not essential to appreciate the beauty of our natural world, but I think it helps when you know it was created and the one who created it. Nature and landscape photography was a huge factor that got me into photography at the start and it's an area of my photography that I need to keep doing for my creative health. Like mental, physical, emotional, or spiritual health, I'm realizing lately that creative health is something I can't afford to neglect. I love being outside, exploring, and looking for interesting scenes to photograph. If the photography part doesn't work out that day, at least I can say I had a good walk.
Motivations of the photographer: Light
As I began my photographic journey, I started to pay attention to light everywhere I went. Driving in the car, running errands, taking the kid for a bike ride or dog for a walk, and any other mundane moment. I was training myself to notice the direction of light and why I was appreciating what I was looking at. I was emersed into the world of thinking like a photographer; And mainly, that’s noticing light. It’s direction, quality, harshness, softness, angle, etc. Often, one of my biggest obstacles on any given photoshoot is light – especially the mid-day sun in the summer months. And when I’m on a photoshoot that I can’t control the timing of, it’s my job to figure out how to photograph it well. So, in that sense, light is a challenge, but other times light is an absolute inspiration. Light can make the dullest subject interesting to look at, and I love finding those moments and making interesting photographs of them. I am by no means a master of light, however; I would consider myself a student of light and I am always learning.
Motivations of the photographer: The Brevity of Life
I got serious about photography when I moved to Tahoe, partly due to the amazing surroundings I found myself in – I wanted to learn to capture the scenes and show them in a manner that did the scene justice. The other part that got me into photography was chasing my baby daughter around and trying to capture all the moments of her childhood. I purchased a second hand 20mm lens on e-bay for my canon rebel dslr and was blown away at the difference in image quality. That one lens purchase gave me so much motivation to use my camera more and take pictures; and my primary subject was my daughter. My motivation to photograph her was the obvious, 1. I love her, 2. She was insanely cute, and 3. Time is short.
Our time on earth is short. Those who have lost a loved one know this is true. The preacher/author of Ecclesiastes said it best,
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
2 a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3 a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5 a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6 a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
7 a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8 a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.[1]
There is a season for everything. I think that should remind us to savor the sweet moments a little more -- They should be celebrated, cherished, and remembered. I remember looking at photos of my grandparents as teenagers for the first time and being slightly dumbstruck of how pretty she was, handsome he was, and that they were once my age. And they would sincerely say that, in a sense, “it seems like yesterday.” As a photographer I consider it an honor and privilege to be able to freeze these important moments in time and, hopefully, make them look as beautiful as the moment felt.
Now there are several other motivations I could mention as it relates specifically to different genres of photography but that will have to wait for another time.
What motivates you to do what you do? Have you ever thought about why you do what you do? I’d love to hear from you.
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2025), Ec 3:1–8.
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