5 tips to improve your skills without ruining your hobby
A bee on Black Cohosh flowers. Image by Martin E. Dodge
This summer, I settled into the camera gear I had acquired the previous year. My desire to photograph small, fast-moving critters while out on nature walks required specialized gear. The gear I started with was ideal at the time, but as my interests expanded, it became clear that I needed new tools. But this blog is not about gear. Today, I will discuss processes that are crucial for any hobby. And at the end, I've included some of my favorite photos from this summer. Here are five basic tips to help you improve your hobby skills:
1. Create a list of recurring problems and research what is needed to solve them.
I needed new gear because: When out walking, my racing heart and shaking body often left me unable to hold the camera steady. Birds don't stick around long enough to set up a tripod and determine settings. My new camera solves this with in-body stabilization and stabilized lenses. A list will also minimize wasting money when buying new stuff.
2. Plan your hobby sessions to minimize the need for gear and improvisation.
Purchase planning prevents most buyer's remorse. Even then, sometimes you only realize the deficiencies of items when you use them. Recommendations for cameras, accessories, bags, and tripods are abundant, which added to my confusion. I bought inexpensive items because I wanted to try something, only to replace them with better quality alternatives. Unfortunately, no one item was perfect for all situations, so I ended up with similar items to cover various situations.
3. Improvement is the result of your effort.
Read the manual and consult other reference materials before and after acquiring new gear. Even then, there is no substitute for learning by practice. My living room isn't the ideal environment for using my gear, so I need to go out and practice – but only after becoming familiar with the basics, such as button placement and settings. I don’t want to go somewhere and spend valuable time staring at the camera instead of the subjects. Don’t grind and toil – flow and grow.
4. Take a break or do something else when you get stuck.
When I get stuck, I sometimes start reading and watching things for learning and inspiration. I thought this would give my subconscious something to think about, but it often didn’t provide a solution to my issue. I found that taking a break and doing something unrelated to the issue for a while or multiple days allowed my mind to reset. Obsessing over the blockage only makes it worse. Comparing your work to professional standards or a celebrity is unhelpful and unrealistic.
5. Most importantly, don’t lose sight of the hobby’s real purpose.
Relax, de-stress, learn, and enjoy your time as you gain new experiences and insights. Share your interest with others who can appreciate it as well. Skip the money-making side hustle unless you want to add business-related headaches. First, build your skills, hone your craft and style, create your workspace, learn your gear, and allow time for experimentation. In fact, prioritize the healthy aspects of the hobby over negative habits, such as gear acquisition, imposter syndrome, and money-making schemes.
Admittedly, I feel hypocritical in advising against the side-hustle mentality. I have a website where I sell stuff, but I got swept up in it when learning to open my business, uduforu, LLC. I wrote a book about my experience with a hip replacement and needed a place to promote it. Acquiring the skills needed to put the book together, including writing, photography, and video, sparked my creative drive, which has since evolved. And I have lost sight of my purpose numerous times. Now I am content to use my website to showcase my refrigerator material while I continue to grow creatively. Eventually, I will complete some ambitious projects and have breakthroughs in between. Hopefully, I will inspire others to be proactive with their minds and purchase some of my creations. Now here are some of my favorite pics from this summer:
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