Honesty

Day 312 of 365

I often reach out to brands I like to collaborate on shoots.
Not as much as I used to but I still do it from time to time specifically with brands who have products I like or who tell stories that inspire me to make new work.
Today I got an interesting email from a brand that I think is just okay.
They sell buckets particularly for wetsuits.
So when you get out of the water and get to your car you can put your salty soaked wetsuit in a bucket of fresh water this helps clean the suit on your way home.
For me this means a cleaner car and less time spent cleaning my wetsuit.
I figured this would be a cool easy brand to collaborate with so I sent them an email yesterday and they replied this morning.
The email read we like your work but there is nothing on your site that indicates you would be a good fit for us.
I was kind of shocked I was like all I’ve been shooting lately is surf stuff and photos that seemed to match their instagram to the T.
It was a great email though because his honesty gave me the chance to present them with a look book I just shot which was way ore on brand for them.
It also made me take a look at my website and realize how it needs to be updated to show the work I want to make with the brands I want to work with.
Honesty is rare in this line of work.
People most of the time totally ignore you which gives you no chance for improvement.
Instead this mans honesty gave me a chance to correct course and evidently try again.
Honesty goes a long way and although it may hit you right on the chin without it there can be no progression.