FOR THE STUDENT..

So on Thurday night I went to this years batch of photography degree shows down at The Old Truman Brewery, which apart from sounding like a location from Scooby Doo, is a collective mix of the next batch of photography student hopefuls to descend on the streets of London. Folios and i-pads in hand, I wish them all well before stating that they may find it a little hard at first, and then much harder later, but lets not be too discouraging..
I could think back to the days when I was a student (the first time around) and say how fluffy the whole thing was, but I really do not think so much has changed. There will always be the deadpan portrait, although a lot of that know is filmed portraits, the sitter awkward in front of a canon 5d, but the principle is the same. Then theres the nudes of a friend, or oneself sat in a corner. The fashion shoot, again of a friend, possibly in their mother vintage 60's wardrobe. The still life of a cabbage, tower blocks at night, a Nadav Kander field, an old fella in a workshop, and perhaps some more portraits of folk on a beach, nude, with a tower block in the back ground, a cabbage in the sand, and an old fella from a workshop sat on a deck chair....
My hope is that the student stays positive (easy to say but hard to do), and for those who do not get legless at their own show (bad idea folks), remember this;
This is the point where you can say what you want to say and do what you want to do. People will tell your ideas are daft, won't work, or you are wasting your time (they may also tell you you are brilliant of course). You can either listen to them and become something else. Or, stick at it and be yourself. Afterall, that is what makes a great photographer...