Lesson Learned #15-Keeping It Simple

...For As Long As Possible

Believe it or not, this Swarovski image above… needed this set below… And this was as simple as I could make it. The reason it looks like a press conference is because things just have a way of piling up - which is why today’s lesson learned is: KEEP IT AS SIMPLE AS POSSIBLE FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE.

My very first assisting job was for a still life photographer who shot 8x10 film of rather mundane stuff; middle-of-the-road cosmetics and catalogue tchotchkes. He worked really hard and his pictures almost bored me to death. However, I did learn some very important lessons during my months there - especially relating to putting a set together.

The one lesson that really stood out started from a simple premise; Don’t use one light stand to do two things. [Commercial still life’s version of a “first principle”?] Assign each stand a discrete task; for example, don’t use one stand to hold a light and a reflector. While initially it may seem more efficient to use one light stand to achieve two things, it probably isn’t. Inevitably you’ll end up wanting to move one thing without moving the other and then your aesthetic judgment will get clouded by inertia, as in; “C’mon, do I really want to take half this set down to fit another light in there?”. It can be a slippery slope towards mediocrity. In this case, two stands are better (and simpler) than one.

This ‘Keep It As Simple As Possible For As Long As Possible’ approach or KIASAPFALAP (acronym needs some work) also affects my decisions with photography. Most commercial photographs are pretty straight-forward affairs, communicating with clarity, brevity and focused direction. Despite all attempts at simplicity, complications become apparent when you realize your competition is taking the exact same approach and this is where things in our business get interesting. But complicated and interesting aren't necessarily the same thing. When I’m shooting I have a voice in my head like a mantra, “Am I communicating this as clearly as possible?”. (It’s fine to have complicated and subtle ideas, but then you have to try even harder to communicate them as clearly as possible.) The temptation to add interest by adding complexity can lead you quickly down the wrong path. In this case, one stand is better than two.

My ‘light stand rule’ has expanded to myriad aspects of a career: A website needs to be simple and easy to navigate, an Instagram feed needs to have a cohesive ‘brand’ message and the clearer your career goals are, the more likely you’ll be able to figure out how to reach them.

Unfortunately, simple DOES NOT mean easy. In many ways, complicated is easier than simple. Gobbledygook thrives in complexities.

One stand? Two stands? You’ll need to figure that out based on your intention and then how best to get there. (In this case, better get a few more stands to support my extended metaphor.)

Looking back, as unexciting as it was learning the ropes during that first assisting gig - Lord knows how many assistants have wanted to jump out the window of my studio after a long day - the fundamental lessons have stayed with me for decades and proven themselves time and again. The discipline needed to develop things simply and methodically, while a bit tedious to learn in the beginning, will prove their value later on… when things start to get really complicated.

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