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Break Through Imposter Syndrome

Lesson 13 from: Fine Art Photography: The Complete Guide

Brooke Shaden

Break Through Imposter Syndrome

Lesson 13 from: Fine Art Photography: The Complete Guide

Brooke Shaden

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13. Break Through Imposter Syndrome

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Yours is a Story Worth Telling

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Break Through Imposter Syndrome

Now this next thing is one that I guarantee almost every single person will identify with, that either if you have not felt imposter syndrome yet, you might one day, and it's something that I have often struggled with. The reason why I bring it up here is twofold. One, because this class is taking us from idea to concept to creation to selling our work, and if we feel inundated with imposter syndrome, we're never gonna get to that place where we sell our work properly. We're just not. Because we're going to undervalue ourselves, we're not going to know our worth, and Kenna and I were just talking about this earlier, this idea of, at what point are you undervaluing yourself because you think you're not worthy of something. Now imposter syndrome is feeling like an imposter. Feeling like, oh gosh, right now, for example, I could very easily be feeling this, and in fact have, at many points, in creating this class, why am I the one to teach this class? Why am I the one to impart this knowl...

edge? Everyone thinks that I can do this, but really, I can't. And, really, I'm just tricking everybody, with any success I may have had in this field. And so I could be standing here, tremendously nervous to talk to you all, because I feel unworthy of sharing this information. Now the same goes for art. Art is extremely personal, and if somebody tells you that you did a bad job at it, we immediately believe it, because we think they must be right, because they think it's bad, so it's bad. It's really easy to get into that mindset, because we don't always expect to be good at things. Some people do, and I really, really wish that I had more of that, where you're just like, I expect to be really good at this thing all the time. But others, and I would say most of us, don't expect to be good at things, especially right away, and so we develop this idea that if somebody does think that what we do is good, they must be wrong, and I'm just tricking them into seeing what I want them to see. How do we get over that? There is no short answer to this. I mean, I wish that I could say obviously, blah blah blah, you'll be fixed, it's fine. And I still deal with this, and that's why I say there's no short answer, because I really feel like I would have found one by now if there was one. But my advice is to recognize one, you might not be at your best yet. But that's okay. It's okay to not be producing the type of work that you wish you were yet. It's okay for someone to think that you need to get better at what you do, because what you do should be evolving, okay? It's like if you look at this picture of mine, and you're like, not very good, I'd be like, alright, I tried my best, I really like it, one day, maybe it'll get better. You just have to recognize that this right here, right now, is not the end all, be all, and you're not an imposter. You're just not. If someone likes what you do, that's equally as valid as if someone doesn't like what you do. No good words for that one, sorry. Alright, now this was a really interesting conversation that I had yesterday, and I felt the need to bring this up. There are so many people who will just not keep going. Who will not continue to create art. Who will be given a challenge, and they won't complete it. And I'm not, in any way, saying, shame on you for doing that. I am not at all saying that. What I am saying, is that if you commit yourself to this practice, and you keep making work, even when, and especially when, other people stop, that is what will catapult you into a whole other realm of creating, and a whole other realm of business. It's when we take what we do, and we don't listen to that imposter syndrome, and we don't listen to all those people saying your work isn't very good, this could be better, and we simply grow from that, and we keep making art, that suddenly, we'll still be there when everyone else fell off the bandwagon. And I would say that 90% of any success that I've had is just this. I just keep coming back. You can't get rid of me, like a rash, I just keep coming. It's a great example, you guys, okay? Lots of faces like, what, I don't know about that. Okay, well find a better metaphor for me, so that I don't have to be a rash, please. But it's true. I just keep coming back. I just keep making things. And I keep getting negative feedback. One day I'm just going to compile a book of all the mean emails I've ever gotten, and publish that, and be like, this is my homage to keeping going, and that would be great. But it's true. The fact is that if you want this badly enough, and you keep trying, and you meet those goals that you have, a lot of other people won't. But you will have done that. And that is worth everything to me. Your instincts will lead you to a true and honest place. The same thing as curiosity. Our instinct, our curiosity, they go hand in hand. And in the end, we're trying to get to a true and honest place. Truth and and honesty in art is one of the most compelling things that I've ever witnessed. When you see a piece of work that feels like it had to come out of that artist, is there anything better than that? Than witnessing somebody creating what they were meant to create? It's rare that we'll get there in our lives. It's rare that we'll create that thing that just spilled like blood from us and had to be created. But when we do, if we're striving for that, that's the pinnacle of fine art, is that thing that had to come out of us. This is one of my final points about this topic, which is that your narrative will constantly change. And that's why it's called a story, because it's meant to change. So if you're worried about being original, if you're worried about not living up to your potential, you might as well stop, because you will continuously, like a cycle, not live up to your potential, and then meet your potential, and then not live up to your potential, and then meet your potential. And you're meant to do that. We're all meant to do that. I like to say that I would rather live and die a thousand times than just live one boring life. I would rather live and try and fail, and then let that fall away and be reborn into a new artist, doing something new, doing something crazy and unexpected. And in the course of that cycle, I will feel like an imposter, I will feel like my work isn't good enough, and then one day, I won't anymore. And then, that's when I know it's time to start that cycle over again. It's a story, it's cyclical, every single story that's ever been told has a circular pattern, where somebody goes on a journey, this is the classic hero's journey that Joseph Campbell laid out where you go on a journey, and you're meant to go on that journey. And you learn things, and you battle your demons, and then you come back home, and you teach other people what you've learned, and then you go again on that journey, over and over, and that's one of the most inspiring metaphors that I've ever heard. That idea that we're meant to be on this cycle.

Class Materials

Bonus Materials with Purchase

Guided Daydream & Writing Exercises Workbook (Lessons 1-11)

Creating an Original Narrative Workbook (Lessons 12-18)

Finding Your Target Audience Workbook (Lessons 19-27)

Planning Your Series Workbook (Lessons 28-34)

Set Design Workbook (Lessons 35-41)

Compositing Workflow Checklist (Lessons 42-49)

Editing Workflow Checklist (Lessons 50-55)

Location Scouting Workbook (Lessons 56-60)

Stock Image Downloads for Practice (Lessons 61-72)

Organizing Your Portfolio Workbook (Lessons 77-81)

Pricing & Editioning Your Work Workbook (Lessons 82-89)

Writing Contracts & Licensing Images Workbook (Lessons 90-98)

Gallery Best Practices (Lessons 99-106)

Pitch Package Workbook (Lessons 107-111)

Writing Your Brand Workbook (Lessons 112-117)

Marketing Workbook (Lessons 118-122)

Social Media Workbook (Lessons 123-127)

Printing Methods Checklist (Lessons 128-133)

Self Critique Workbook (Lessons 134-137)

Bonus Materials Guide

Syllabus

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Brooke Shaden

Brooke explores the darkness and light in people, and her work looks at that juxtaposition. As a self-portrait artist, she photographs herself and becomes the characters of dreams inspired by a childhood of intense imagination and fear.

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topics covered in this class

Fine Art Digital Photography

Ratings and Reviews

April S.

I tuned in for most of Brooke's lessons in this course and watched some of them more than once as they were rebroadcast. First I want to say that Brooke is a very good instructor. Her easy-going, friendly, down-to-earth, somewhat quirky manner cannot be mistaken for unprofessional. She is very prepared, she speaks well (not a bunch of hemming and hawing), she is thoughtful, she is thorough, she is very relatable and at ease, and she is definitely professional in her presentation. I really thought when I first tuned in that it would mostly be background noise while I was at work, sound to keep me company. Not because I didn't like Brooke but I really didn't think I was into fine art photography nor did I think I cared about the business side of things much. Not now anyhow. I was really wrong. Brooke sparked a deep interest in me to delve into fine art photography, to consider creating images for myself, from my imagination. In fact, I realized that this was something I'd been thinking about for a couple of years though I hadn't put a name to it (the idea of creating pre-conceived images based on my own creative goals). I gleaned many little treasures from her about image sizes, working with printers, different types of paper, selling, interacting with galleries, and so much more. I may not need all of what she taught right now because I'm definitely headed in another direction at the moment, but she planted ideas and information in my head that I know will be useful at some point. Things I may not have thought of on my own, but that seed is in my head now so when the time comes, I'll know. I'd really like to buy her course but at the moment, with the holidays right around the corner, it's not in my personal budget. I'm grateful to have caught the live and rebroadcast lessons though, and her course is on my list to own. I think it's a great reference to be consulted over and over again, not watched once and forgotten. Kudos Brooke for really putting together an excellent course.

Angel Ricci

When the title says comprehensive, it means comprehensive! I loved every part of this course. It's inspirational, motivating, and insightful towards creating art work. Even if you are not necessarily considering a fine art specialty, the concepts discussed in this course are applicable to many areas! I find this super useful as a videographer and photographer and look to apply all of these exercises and concepts for my personal and business work moving forward. It is lengthy, but you will not regret a single minute. Brooke Shaden is an amazing artist and educator. I recommend keeping up with her work, presentations, and any future courses that may come in the future.

Ron Landis

I'm retired now, but spent decades in the people and training business. Brooke is extraordinary! Even though this course is extremely well organized and she's left nothing unattended, she moves through it with friendly conversational manners and without a sense of it being stilted. It's as though we are all her friends, not students, as she shares her heart and passion with us. What a joy it is to listen to her. And what a clear, unambiguous command of her subject. Wow! She explains it with such ease using explanations and techniques that won't overwhelm artists just starting their portfolio or the Photoshop-squeamish among us; but despite its simplicity her resulting art is breathtaking and beyond original. I wish more of my professors at school were as engaging. This was by far my best buy at Creative Live yet.

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Break Through Imposter Syndrome

Break Through Imposter Syndrome

Lesson Info

13. Break Through Imposter Syndrome

Lessons

Class Introduction

Storytelling & Ideas

Universal Symbols in Stories

Create Interactive Characters

The Story is in The Details

Giving Your Audience Feelings

Guided Daydream Exercise

Elements of Imagery

The Death Scenario

Associations with Objects

Three Writing Exercises

Connection Through Art

Break Through Imposter Syndrome

Layering Inspiration

Creating an Original Narrative

Analyze an Image

Translate Emotion into Images

Finding Parts in Images

Finding Your Target Audience

Where Do You Want Your Images to Live?

Create a Series That Targets Your Audience

Formatting Your Work

Additional Materials to Attract Clients

Which Social Media Platforms Will be Useful?

How to Make Money from Your Target Audience

Circle of Focus

The Pillars of Branding

Planning Your Photoshoot

Choose Every Element for The Series

Write a Descriptive Paragraph

Sketch Your Ideas

Choose Your Gear

How to Utilize Costumes, Props & Locations

What Tells a Story in a Series?

Set Design Overview

Color Theory

Lighting for the Scene

Props, Wardrobe & Time Period for Set Design

Locations

Subject Within the Scene

Set Design Arrangement

Fine Art Compositing

Plan The Composite Before Shooting

Checklist for Composite Shooting

Analyze Composite Mistakes

Shoot: Black Backdrop for White Clothing

Shoot: Black Backdrop for Color Clothing

Shoot: Black Backdrop for Accessories

Shoot: Miniature Scene

Editing Workflow Overview

Add Fabric to Make a Big Dress

Edit Details of Images

Add Smoke & Texture

Blend Multiple Images Into One Composite

Put Subject Into a Miniature Scenario

Location Scouting & Test Photoshoot

Self Portrait Test Shoots

Shoot for Edit

Shoot Extra Stock Images

Practice the Shoot

Introduction to Shooting Photo Series

Shoot: Vine Image

Shoot: Sand Image

Shoot: End Table Image

Shoot: Bed Image

Shoot: Wall Paper Image

Shoot: Chair Image

Shoot: Mirror Image

Shoot: Moss Image

Shoot: Tree Image

Shoot: Fish Tank Image

Shoot: Feather Image

View Photo Series for Cohesion & Advanced Compositing

Edit Multiple Images to Show Cohesion