Mistakes are a good thing
I am a perfectionist, an extreme perfectionist, but only in my professional life. My personal life is always all over the place! But the one thing that matters in my business is how I am in studio and at on location sessions. I always push myself to do things that are out of my comfort zone, not my specialty, things that are going to put my creative work in overdrive. Sometimes it doesn't always work the way I want it to. Yesterday I had one of those experiences.
I was doing a session out of my comfort zone. It was a large group and outdoors at a time that wasn't "Golden Hour" and I had no control over the time so I just went with it. I did what I always do even though the light was very harsh. I thought I could handle it. I couldn't be more wrong.
Turns out my lens had a small scratch in it. It hadn't been an issue because I had been doing sessions in studio and outdoor sessions were in the shade. I had no idea the effect it would have in direct sunlight. Well it caused a huge purple sunflare on all of the pictures I took. Luckily it is a session that can be reshot since it was only 4 shots that we needed. I have researched the equipment I need and it is on my list to get asap.
I was devastated, so upset at myself, couldn't believe I had allowed myself to commit to something I wasn't 100% I could handle. But then I started to realize (with help from the hubby) that without this experience I wouldn't have researched and found what I needed and learned about how to deal with those types of situations.
So the next time you make a mistake throw a little pity party (because it really helps), then get up, kick yourself in the butt, and figure out what needs to be done to fix the situation. Embrace mistakes, they only make you stronger.