Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 12:08 PM
A couple months ago we watched the first bit of the movie The Wizard of Oz with our friends Kate & Nick. I hadn't watched film in years, but it really got my head spinning as I saw the relation to the road to Oz being much like the journey every creative, freelancer or entrepreneur is on. As most of you know, the movie chronicles the adventures of Dorothy on her journey down the yellow brick road to meet the Wizard of Oz. Along the way she encounters the Scarecrow who only wants a brain, the Tin-man who wants a heart & the Cowardly Lion whose only desire is to have courage. The yellow brick road is frightening for them, they face many obstacles along their long journey. Oftentimes they don't know what is around the next corner, they are just following the Good Witch of the North's advice to follow this road until they reach the Wizard. Throughout their journey they are forced to depend on one another. In the process of getting to the Wizard, it becomes apparent that all along the Tinman, the Scarecrow and the Lion had the qualities of heart, head and courage that they each so deeply desired.

There is nothing safe about being a creative. There is nothing "easy" about following the yellow brick road toward that which you feel called. The more scared we are of the work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have no choice but to do it and step into the fear. Oftentimes in this journey I feel a lot more like the Cowardly Lion rather than the brave leader on this road towards the "Wizard of Oz." What I have to keep reminding myself is the heart, the brain and the courage is within myself even when I am not keenly aware of it..as it was with the characters in the story. Sometimes it may be difficult in various seasons to see those attributes within ourselves, but I must remember they are there, and oftentimes seeing them manifest is a matter of stepping into fear and seeing your heart expand on the other side of things.

And just like the story goes, on the road to Oz I need others. much like Dorothy needed the Tin-man, the Scarecrow and the Lion to complete her mission. As freelancers it is very easy to become islands unto ourselves. We spend hours every day alone working. We have a "system" and a way of doing things. But the truth is, this life is meant to be shared. The richest experiences I have had through this journey have never been by myelf. The rich moments have been moments when I can celebrate the success of my friends... collaborate with others, and do something bigger than what I could do on my own. After all, I am merely a tree in a forest of many other beautiful tress. And as the very true saying goes, "a rising tide lifts all ships." This story would have never been turned into a book or movie had this been just a story about a girl and her dog getting to the top. Can we say lame? The other characters are really what made the story evocative, intriguing and interesting. The reality is Dorothy couldn't have made it to the Wizard without them. The road to Oz is to be shared.

Ultimately this is a story about how life is always more about the journey than it is about the final destination. In our valiant effort to focus on goals and the future, oftentimes us creatives miss the beautiful things along the way. That is something I personally have to be intentional about, otherwise my ambitions take over and I'm living five years from now. The destination is just one very small part of the journey to Oz.

here are a just a few snaps of a couple friends we picked up along our little yellow brick road...


Thoughts
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Cameron Ingalls says: Wednesday, May 18, 2011, 10:01 AM

you are incredible... somehow it's like you put words to the things that i've been thinking and feeling. i was just talking about the Journey with Drew yesterday at his birthday lunch. about being thankful for all and who is surrounding us now. finding true wealth in the balance of contentment and ambition given through Godliness.
love you. love and miss the Rhoads!

Kaysha says: Thursday, May 12, 2011, 02:00 PM

Your words always hit a chord with me, thank you for sharing!!

Kate Maxwell says: Thursday, May 5, 2011, 11:59 AM

Just watched your Beloved seminar last night - thank you so much for your honesty and encouragement. Then I find this post today. Such inspiration. Thank you a thousand times for your words.

Anthony Quesada says: Wednesday, May 4, 2011, 03:17 AM

Hey Sarah,
I absolutely love this post and the parallels that you drew to the classic movie. In almost every other industry people work together towards a common goal, there should be no reason we can't do the same in our pursuits of photography

Alex says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 09:35 PM

I love this post!! :)

Tiffany Lowry says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 07:51 PM

dammit- that picture of you with the maroon skirt and your with tank with you bag- Breath taking!!!!!

Jenn says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 04:02 PM

Sarah, you share your passion so beautifully and articulately. I've watched that movie so many times and never thought of it that way. Thanks for sharing!

Annie says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 03:14 PM

When I read the title I thought you were coming back to Australia! :) But this post is amazing, and I am going to save it and read it often, because it is just so good. Thank you :)

anda says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 01:50 PM

as always, perfectly put. and i wish i lived out there so we could hang out and cross paths more often on our journeys. xoxo.

Rich Park says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 01:41 PM

so very scary to step out there - but you never know what can happen until you do. my wife and i don't know where our yellow brick road will lead but we're at least happy that we started walking =).

Josh says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 01:14 PM

Thanks for sharing this, Sarah! This is really helpful as i'm re-starting on this journey in a sense. I have a pretty good sense of where God is leading me and it scares the crap out of me, but thats ok.

Susan See says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 01:04 PM

Really reallyyyy needed this right now to help me remember I'm not alone even when I'm feeling so very alone. Thank you.

Lily says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 12:31 PM

Thank you for the beautiful post, the wonderful encouragement and the reminder to join forces with other creatives! Love your work and thank you for sharing your journey!

ShariLee says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 12:28 PM

awesome Sarah!...your thoughts and photos are always inspiring. I need to go watch that movie again :)

Andria Lindquist says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 12:20 PM

awesome parallel sarah. :)

Friday, April 29, 2011, 09:53 AM
Last week Seth Godin did a post that really connected with where we are at in our lives and business. His blog post was entitled Economies of Small. I recommend you go over and read it. Seth is a pretty smart guy. It is a piece on goals and being smaller because in the end it may ultimately be what is better for you. Godin asks about the motivation, and your goals and challenges us that maybe bigger isn't always better. 

This year we were in a place where we could have chosen to expand our wedding business in some neat ways... make it bigger, take on a staff and a few associate shooters etc. Instead we actually did the opposite. We scaled back on our wedding bookings and decided we would only work with a very select number of couples for the 2011 season. We made this decision based on a variety of reasons; but mainly because ultimately we wanted more time to make more art. We wanted to re-focus, and take a year to live life outside of working 24/7. This was a carefully considered choice... although we could have gone big, we scaled back because it was better for us. Big isn't always bad, it's just perhaps it isn't always the best decision for you. As Godin says, don't be small because you can't figure out how to get big. Consider being small because it might be better. 


Thoughts
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Jade says: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 07:24 AM

spoken so wisely. my husband and I were just discussing this last night. it went hand in hand with our "pain is so difficult and so beautiful" discussion. thanks for sharing Seth's thoughts as well as your own.

Kat Harris says: Monday, May 2, 2011, 07:33 PM

It's so true...a fuller schedule is not always better. It's refreshing to read that other artists are fighting for balance and space in their lives.
PS. this image is beautiful.

David Mendoza III says: Monday, May 2, 2011, 09:31 AM

Wise.

tif says: Saturday, April 30, 2011, 02:13 PM

Like:)

Sarisa says: Saturday, April 30, 2011, 08:33 AM

Hi! Just wanted to say hello, and that I really loved your Beloved talk last week. Thank you for posting this, and the link. I always look forward to reading your thoughtful blog entries.

Annie says: Friday, April 29, 2011, 11:01 PM

Going to read it now :) This photo is so beautiful.

Jen k. says: Friday, April 29, 2011, 02:26 PM

I can't wait to see what you two have been working on! I'm so excited for you!

Ryan says: Friday, April 29, 2011, 12:00 PM

Congratulations on your carefully considered decision. It is easy to creep larger until you don't recognize the ground under your feet. Looking forward to seeing what you produce in the coming year!

Rensche Mari says: Friday, April 29, 2011, 10:29 AM

Spot on! I was recently asked why I didn't expand, why I didn't take on more work because I have the interested clients? These are tough questions and one always think that maybe if you have more or expand, that all will go well...the option for me is to stay small, only if its just so I can have more quality time with a client and build a bond that would last a lifetime!

Love Godin's post, thanks for sharing!

shawnee pedraza says: Friday, April 29, 2011, 10:22 AM

Sarah! what are your favorite lenses for e-sessions? I'm in love with all of them!

Thursday, April 21, 2011, 08:53 AM
They say the most important decision you will ever make in your life is who you decide to link arms with for life. I feel so grateful that I have such a fearless, funny and selfless partner in crime. Chris pushes me to be better on a daily basis. He makes me laugh till I cry and fills in my many weak gaps. He dreams big with me and understands me... I am one VERY lucky girl. 

Today is my sweet man's birthday. He deserves a celebration like no other, with fireworks, ponies, clowns and face paint but he's a simple guy and eats humble pie and wouldn't let me organize anything with friends because he didn't want to 'inconvenience' people. He is not a guy for 'fanfare' (he married a girl that is ;) That is just the type of guy he is. 

But on this special day that I am so grateful Chris was born, since he wouldn't let me throw a big party, I just wanted to put up a little post so I could still make Chris feel immensely loved, even if it is via the interwebs by my lovely friends and blog readers. Here is Chris' twitter if you want to send him a shout out. Now to the smartest, funniest, seriously most awesome guy I know... Happy Birthday babe!

Thoughts
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Annie says: Friday, April 22, 2011, 03:08 AM

Happy Birthday Chris! (Love that last pic lots! :))

Adam Pratt says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 09:03 PM

From one birthday-avoider to another, blessings!

Gemma says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 03:51 PM

Happy birthday dude!
Such lovely words from your Sarah.
Enjoy. xo

Rebecca Cash says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 02:51 PM

Happy Birthday Chris!!! You & Sarah are amazing! Have a wonderful birthday!

Greg Hoskins says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 02:46 PM

Happy birthday Chris! You rock!

shannon sewell says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 12:59 PM

hope you are having a fabulous day chris!!! cyber jump house & balloons sent your way! :) happy birthday!

~S

Patrina says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 11:23 AM

Happy, happy birthday, Chris! Here's to another awesome year for you!

Marissa Maharaj says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 10:16 AM

CHRIS YOU ROCK. What would we do without your tech support, your hilarious quips, your serious musical talent, and your taste for fine whiskey? Our lives would be far more dull, for one thing. Love and birthday hugs from California!

Tonhya Kae says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 10:15 AM

Happy Birthday Chris! : ) I hope you have a wonderful day!

tif says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 10:08 AM

Magic!!!!!!!!!!!

chriStina e says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 09:39 AM

lovely!

Kim newsom says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 09:14 AM

Beautiful

Airika Pope says: Thursday, April 21, 2011, 09:10 AM

Happy birthday, Chris. Gerald & I feel so lucky to have you and Sarah in our lives. We too appreciate your thoughtfulness and genuine love for the people around you. And of course, Gerald loves having a golf buddy. I hope you have a wonderful day and let's celebrate in person soon!

Monday, April 4, 2011, 12:30 PM
Anyone who knows me well knows that I am a sucker for a good business book. Since we travel quite a bit, I end up logging most of my reading hours on a plane somewhere high in the sky. A couple years ago I read Malcolm Gladwell's book, Outliers and it rocked my world. His findings on the 10,000 hour rule have really stuck with me in those moments when I am tired & exhausted, I remember his words about punching the proverbial timecard toward being the best artist/photographer I can be. 

Gladwell says the best way to achieve an un-parralled success in any respective field is to spend 10,000 hours honing your skills. Gladwell says, "Ten thousand hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert - in anything. In study after study, of composers, basketball players, fiction writers, ice skaters, concert pianists....and what have you, this number comes up again and again. Of course, this doesn't address why some people get more out of their practice sessions than others do. But no one has found a case in which true world-class expertise was accomplished in less time. It seems that it takes the brain this long to assimilate all that it needs to know to achieve true mastery."

It's a simple lesson in hard work, blood, sweat and tears and the powerful payoff they have. Nothing great in life comes without cost and sacrifice. I've noticed that a lot of kids of our generation don't want to put the time in necessary to achieve the level of success at which they strive for. They want a quick workshop or online tutorial to be the answer to it all, and although those things can be beneficial tools, there is NOTHING that will trump time and hard work.

These past two weeks Chris and I have been shooting a commercial campaign where we were pulling 12-16 hour days on our feet shooting. Our shutters got more action than they have seen in a while and throughout the experience we kept looking at each other and saying "we're logging the hours" with smiles on our faces.

This is Chris and our good friend Whitney somewhere in the middle of Moab, Utah. I'm really awful about scanning in our film and finally got around to scanning and uploading this 360 film that Chris took. It was taken with a fun little lomography toy camera and I was really quite impressed with the results. 

Have an awesome Monday friends!


Thoughts
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Dave Stark says: Friday, April 15, 2011, 04:55 AM

I read Outliers a few years ago and more than anything else the "10 000 rule" stuck in my head. This year I have made it one of my goals to take every opportunity I can to shoot so I can get closer to that number. Thank you for your inspiring post to remind me of that goal. :)

Philip Harper says: Thursday, April 14, 2011, 08:57 AM

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS! IT'S BRILLIANT. TOTALLY AND UTTERLY!

Stine Pedersen Photo says: Sunday, April 10, 2011, 03:43 PM

I love this picture! You made me wanna head down to Barns & Nobels and buy that book! Love your work Sarah!

annawithlove says: Tuesday, April 5, 2011, 08:23 PM

After pulling a 12 hour day this was the perfect read to end it.
THANK YOU
you are always such an inspiration.
x
annawithlove

jenhowell says: Tuesday, April 5, 2011, 04:24 PM

So in love with this!

Aileen Reilly says: Tuesday, April 5, 2011, 12:18 PM

I think this is one lesson that new photographers or new anybody often don't understand or take into account. All a new-to-the-industry sees are the successful photographers (who may be offering a workshop) and the newbie wants "the answers," the "shortcut" to the success. In reality, as you point out, what you don't see is the 10,000+ hours behind the curtain, the blood, sweat, and tears, the late-nights, the failures, etc... that have all led to THIS moment of the hard-earned success. What no one sees now are the ones coming, the ones who are working to find their personal vision, who are putting in the hours, mastering their technical skills and honing their business skills. Yep, these are the hours. ;) Great reminder. Thank you.

Tiffany Lowry says: Tuesday, April 5, 2011, 10:28 AM

Swoon!

Dan says: Tuesday, April 5, 2011, 10:15 AM

Loved that book!

10,000 hours was definitely a requirement, but so was opportunity. We can't leave out opportunity!

Each case study in his book talked about the unbelievable opportunities each person had/didn't have. In his own words...

"Our ability to exceed at what we do is powerfully bound up with where we are from..."

"People who have extraordinary success are those who have been given opportunities and who have had the strength and presence of mind to seize them."

Ultimately, lets not forget that hard work is 99.9% of success. It is also true that hard work creates incredible opportunities for us... Focus on the 10,000 hrs and your mind will become sharp enough to see the opportunities.

Prepare, practice, work, search, create and pray for eyes sharp enough to see opportunity!

italida says: Tuesday, April 5, 2011, 05:54 AM

wonderful!!!

chriStina e says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 05:23 PM

Interesting!

ajja says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 04:27 PM

such a cool picture, love the rows and rows of school buses. just keep shooting, just keep shooting....

Annie says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 04:20 PM

Love this film strip! I was once told by a photographer I was silly for wanting to develop film this way. He had NO idea! :)

Sean says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 03:51 PM

Love me some Gladwell and dig the film strip

Mark Andrew says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 03:41 PM

Outliers is one book that is a mainstay in my business library. My favorite thing now when traveling is loading up my iPad with biz and photography books to kill the down time.

Kaethe says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 02:55 PM

Gladwell is one of those authors who just sticks with you. Blink is a great book as well!!:)

anda says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 02:21 PM

and this is why you guys inspire me more than almost anyone. because you're two people around my age who value hard work the way i do. xo. can't wait to see more from this 2 week campaign!

Amanda VanVels says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 02:09 PM

this is just what i needed to hear! sometimes i get frustrated that i'm not an "amazing" photographer yet...but i have to stop and realize that i'm only 20 years old and have definitely not logged even close to 10,000 hours yet. thanks, sarah!

los mikhailos says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 01:33 PM

great post! Always a brilliant writer and motivator- thanks for the great monday pick-me-up - im sounding redundant- although i want you to know im greatful!

boom!

Rog says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 01:01 PM

Second best use of buses since evil kenevil and Andy Samberg.

Cortney Kelley says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 12:57 PM

I LOVE Malcolm Gladwell! If you haven't already read Blink and the Tipping Point, you will love them as well.

David Mendoza III says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 12:56 PM

Dude such a kick in the face to hear that number. Must needs to work at it more. Good word Sarah.

jeff awesome says: Monday, April 4, 2011, 12:50 PM

those guys are so hot right now