Why it’s okay to dislike your work

Will I still like this image in a few months’ time?

Do you ever suffer from social media rush?

I have certainly experienced this. I have made an image that I think is wonderful. I can’t wait to share it on social media. But, a little while after I have posted, I wish I had curbed my enthusiasm and waited a little. The image no longer seems so wonderful.

A lot of photographers speak of taking time to mentally process our work. We need time to see whether an image really works for us or not and whether or not it will stand the test of time. I agree that we should take time to review our work properly.

However, I’m not sure about the approach that some people recommend of leaving images for a few months. Here’s why:

Our view of what makes good work should be constantly changing

If we wait too long to review the images that we have made our tastes will have often changed, even if only subtly. We might no longer have made those images in the same way.

As photographers and artists, we should be constantly developing and trying new things. I am in a constant state of flux, trying new ideas and wanting to push things forward. This doesn’t mean dashing from subject to subject or from style to style. It is more about refining my ideas about what I want to express and how I want to express this.

We should be critical of what we took last year

We should always strive to be moving on with our work. We should want to develop stylistically and technically. We should be thinking about the right techniques to express what we want to say and we should making sure we are comfortable with them. We should be experimenting with new ideas as well.

It is also important to develop what we see and how we see it. Why did we take what we did? What were we trying to say? Did we succeed in saying it? Could we have said it better? Do we still want to say the same things? These questions are worth reviewing whilst we are making work and afterwards as well.

Finally, we should always be searching for new inspiration. I will be writing more about this next month.

Are you pushing yourself enough?

If you still love all your recent favourites, are you developing your potential? Or are you staying in a comfort zone that could be ultimately unfulfilling?

Naturally, most of us make images for pleasure. We want to be able to enjoy what we do without feeling that it is work. However, the chances are that we will find more pleasure in what we do if we seek to develop on a regular basis.

If we are changing as photographers and artists, it is also okay that some of our past work displeases us. We will have moved forward. Some of our past images will not stand the test of time. They can be technically excellent but they may no longer express what we hoped they would.

It’s OK to have old favourites

There are images that last the test of time. Some bring back memories. Some are worthy of hanging on our walls for the pleasure that they bring us.

But that doesn’t mean we will want to go and make the same work again. It is often time to move forward and make something new.

So what happens when we no longer like an image we posted on social media?

If you look back at work you posted a few months ago and it no longer speaks to you in the way that it did, that’s fine. Accept that your approach has evolved. Be pleased that your technical abilities have moved on. Know that you have developed as a photographer.

On the other hand, if you hate an image the day after you’ve posted I, this may be a sign that you are suffering from social media rush! Maybe it’s time to live with your work for a few days before rushing to share it with the rest of the world.