lok | einde | la fin | τέλος | В конце | نهاية | Samer Farha
“The End”
Part of any endeavor that we start on is having a passion and the drive to see it through to the end. From time to time, though, we find ourselves in situations of our making that we no longer wish to be in. Quitting, though, is often the last thing we do. We keep on keeping, soldiering through it, hoping the bits we don’t like will magically change to things we do. Eventually, we are done. Relieved, we look back and pronounce it "good enough."
"Good enough" might be good enough for the government. It might be good enough when compromise is required. It might be good enough for a anything not life changing or impacting. But "good enough" should never be good enough for things born of passion: exploring, art, or inspiration.
Part of any endeavor is knowing when to quit. It is knowing when a project has gone from inspired to repetitive; from exploration to familiarity; from art to fish wrapper. More importantly than knowing it is time to quit is the act of quitting, itself.
This is the 278th picture in my 365 Days Project. I had intended to explore myself, to become more comfortable in front of the camera, and to produce, along the way, some imagery that one could call art (if one were so inclined). I’ve accomplished some of that, and I’m happy with the parts that reached beyond “good enough.” The problem is, “good enough” is what this project has become.
This project should have ended a while ago. I even realized it a while back: I didn’t want to direct people to my Flickr account for fear that would see the mediocrity this has become. Repetitive shots, taken poorly, with little thought. That wasn’t the idea at the beginning.
This project hasn’t sapped my creativity, but it has mirrored my lack of enthusiasm. I have thousands of pictures shot over the last few months that need editing. I’m not really motivated to do so, and part of it a feeling of mediocrity. Recently, though, I had the opportunity to do a shoot with a model. Her reaction to the finished photos left me speechless, and has certainly reminded me that I can still be inspired when I decide I want to be.
I don’t know where I’m going photographically, but I do know that I want to distance myself from this level of mediocre. I want to go back to basics, and to shoot those things that I enjoy. I want to be creative again, and I don’t think I can do that with this particular subject. With any luck, this is the next chapter of photography for me. Stick around, it might even be good.
