one of the most beneficial though least talked about skills that really shows a measure of a visually involved person is the ability to edit work. and by far the toughest part of that job is editing one’s own work.

this is not a skill that can easily be taught or absorbed but rather is refined over time. there are no hard and fast rules but you will notice guidelines and trends the more you do it. as your self editing skills are tied directly to the work you pursue you won’t see a rise in one without the other. and as you are the one producing and editing the work it is far too often a conflict of interests as your story, or more precisely, the story of the image is drawn into your conscience by merely seeing the work.

after i moved back to the states 10 years ago i had a bulk of slides to sort through but as much of my work was then unpublished my editing had no direction. it took me years to find a market that i felt passionate about and then learn what that field needed and didn’t have. the eye is a funny tool that definitely ages well with time.

this is another reason that i’m an advocate of keeping ALL your work around, personal and otherwise, as you never know when you’ll be reviewing old jobs and find that gem. i’ve done this numerous times and only miss the thousands of slides i jettisoned during that cross pacific move a decade ago.

in case you’re wondering what brought this thought about, i was reflecting on an image (below) that i have in the exposure section of outside magazine this month. though i truly am attracted to that moment in time it leaves me wondering about another ski image that is similar but has remained unlicensed. they both are winter shots, both feature at least one person skinning uphill, both are in stunning landscapes + both are even in canada. why is it that one is more marketable than the other? i have always considered the ‘lesser valued’ image (above) one of all time favorites. is it the work involved, the backstory that creates that personal bond? does that bond affect your editing? does photography require us to remain uninvolved with our subjects to portray them fairly?

if you ever get a chance to sit down with an accomplished pe let me know what they say.