Reaction Paper 2: Studio Visit

Today we went to visit professional photographer Jim Lennon’s studio. It was a very interesting experience, and I was excited to go. Before today, I had never been to a professional photography studio, and it was so cool going to see how a photographer actually works. When I walked in, I enjoyed seeing all of Jim’s photographs hanging up around his studio. It gave me an idea of what he photographs. When Jim was talking to our class, I noticed he always spoke by saying "we" instead of "I", and that made me realize how much he relies on the people he works with. It is a very big production doing what he is doing, and it was interesting to see that he doesn’t take full credit independently for his success. I thought it was a good experience going to visit Jim’s studio because we got to see what a school can’t teach, which is real world experience. I feel like I learned a lot about how things go on a daily basis from hearing Jim speak. I liked watching him take photos at the end of the visit; it seemed so natural and easy for him, and I hope to one-day feel that way too. I liked watching him set up all of the equipment because I didn’t know exactly what his set up looked like until he had everything ready to go. One of the best things I heard Jim say was how to react to consumers who think his prices are too expensive. He said that his response is, “Okay, what would you like to take out?” I think this is valuable because it puts into perspective for the client that the prices are for a reason; it isn’t just an arbitrary number that is being charged. I thought Jim had a lot of cool stories to tell from his own personal experiences. He said that he has changed business models multiple times, and that showed me how complex it is running your own studio. In all honesty, it seemed very stressful having your own studio. I'm glad that for me it is years down the road, because it was a lot to think about. However, I did think that it would be exciting to potentially have my own studio some time in the future. All in all, I had a good time learning about how to run a studio, and I hope to be able to see someone else’s studio soon.