Well, that sounds a bit gloomy right? Adapt or die. Thing is, we need to constantly evolve as photographers and creatives. Good isn't good enough and and if it ever is you know you're in trouble. We need to constantly push ourselves to be better.

I meant to blog about this much sooner, however I've been going non-stop since the beginning of August. This has been really good for my confidence and it's also been flexing my creativity and I think this specific shoot was the main catalyst for getting me off my ass and creating again.

In mid August my friend Karien and her husband came from Dubai to visit family and friends. She had reached out to me some time during June about doing a shoot with her and of course I immediately said; yes. I wanted to do something a little more conceptual than the usual portraiture stuff and I knew she'd be keen.

I had a very specific concept in mind, but I quickly realized that I was going to have to approach the idea differently. My initial concept wasn't going to pan out and I needed to adapt it slightly. As a photographer this happens more often than you might think. You have a pretty solid idea in your head/written down/drawn up, but there are so many variables at hand and often times you need to make a judgment call and kinda hope for the best.

We were running slightly late and I had to skip the location for the first image idea I had. This was okay, because I really wanted to make the image at the top of the page. Here's what went into the retouch.

Speaking of retouch; click here to see the details about my upcoming workshop. Please note: Dates might be changing for the workshop.

Here are several more images from the day including some scribbles of what I was thinking in terms of how/where/when I wanted to shoot etc.

I really wanted to shoot the selection of above images with Karien enveloped by branches and leaves and ivy, however it just wasn't possible, so again, some adaptation was needed and I am really stoked with the final results.

I always feel it's essential to have something written down or drawn on a piece of paper/napkin or whatever, just to get your initial idea out there. From there it will change shape or remain exactly as you envisioned it. The point is; sometimes you'll go in with an initial idea and come out the other end with something completely different.

Adapt or die as they say.

PS: Go view Karien's work here. She's awesome!

Thanks for reading.