This Week's Judge: Mary Slone

This week's judge is the talented Mary of Mary Slone Photography. She's shared some candid thoughts of what inspires her, what frightens her, and what drives her. Enjoy!

1.                   Tell us about yourself...

I'm Mary, 30 years old, mama to 3 and happily married. We currently live outside of Memphis, but I hope to someday get us back to Northeastern Ohio to be with the rest of our family...

2.                   What ignited your passion for photography, and what fuels it now?

I've always been that person with thousands of pictures on their cell phone, or (back in the day) the little disposable camera close at hand. But the spark that started it all happened when my youngest was born two years ago. I have a friend who is a photographer and has a son around the same age as my Sophie. I'd see her beautiful lifestyle images of her family come through my Facebook feed, and I decided I wanted to be able to capture our memories like that, too. So I threw myself headlong into days and days of research...reading, youtube, snagging every tutorial I could get my eager little hands on. My husband bought me a little bridge-style fuji point & shoot – I clicked that baby into manual mode and never looked back (though I did upgrade to a Nikon D5100 pretty soon after that)...

3.                   What's in your camera bag right now, what do use the most? the least?

I ADORE my new Nikon D610.  The full frame (after spending so long yearning for it and pushing my  little 5100 to its limits) is still a new thrill for me every time I turn it on.  I couldn't be happier with it. 

                I do, however, desperately need to pump some life into my lens collection. Making the switch from the beginner D5100 & its accompanying lenses has left my bag a little bare these days. I use my 50mm 1.8 the most. I also still use my 35mm 1.8 when I'm desperate for a wider angle, but I don't prefer it (it's a dx lens and shows some pretty heavy vignetting when used on the Fx body. I can crop or clone it out, but I hate doing that and refuse to use it for any occasional client work). I have my heart set on the 85 1.4 as soon as I can swing it... but for now, I make do with what I have. Contentment is a choice. :-)

4.                   What's your dream project or shoot?

To finish a 365. LOL I know it sounds pretty low-bar, as far as dreams go. But for me, that's it. I've tried four times. FOUR. And I just cannot seem to stick with it. I get behind on the processing, not the shooting. But then it snowballs and I get overwhelmed and it all falls apart.

5.                   What is the biggest challenge you face as a photographer?

Fear. Fear of failing, fear of the unknown, fear of rejection. Fear of criticism. Fear of losing my passion for it as I embark on being a real business. Just, fear. I struggle daily to let go of as many of those fears as I can. I do it for me, to make me happy. I want it to move me and heal me. I want it to have soul. As long as it does those things for me, that's all I can control. I can't control how it affects others, but I know that I can control how I let the fear affect me. So I make a very intentional effort to manage it. A friend (the same friend who got me into photography in the first place) once told me she is “rabid protective” of her love of photography. I just love that. I think that's one of my biggest challenges. It's easy for me to get caught up in the “keeping up with the Joneses” aspects of it. So if I feel my passion start slipping, I'm not afraid to walk away for as long as it takes for it to come back. It usually doesn't last a week. And it's amazing what that little break can do to rejuvenate my spirit. I'm officially becoming a business this summer, and one of my biggest fears is how I will manage this particular aspect of it – when I can't just walk away if I need to. I plan to continue to adopt Erin's “rabid protective” strategy as best I can... we'll see how it goes... I'm extremely aware of my weaknesses in this area...

6.  If you had $500 to spend on photography...

How should you spend it?

Put it towards a good, pro-quality lens.

How do you wish you could spend it?

See above. LOL I have no delusions about my sweet little 1.8s …

How would you really spend it?

Again, see above. Sorry - nothing exciting from me on this one. Practicality wins.

7.                   Is there any one thing you wish someone had told you at the very beginning of your photography journey?

Don't get caught up in what you THINK your art should be. I spent the last two years convinced my “style” should be one way – squeaky clean, bright, airy. Turns out, in a moment of raw and unbridled epiphany, I discovered that isn't my style at all. Be willing to let your art surprise you. I'm currently reading David duChemin's new book, “A Beautiful Anarchy,” and this quote is my most favorite piece of photography advice to date:

'"I'm scared I'll fail and my work won't be what I hope it to be." It won't. Get OK with that now. It will be different. Sometimes it will be more than you ever imagined; it will surprise you to the depths of your being and the muse will whisper, "See? I told you so."'