Big fish, small pond.  Small fish, big pond. How about someone else’s pond?  I met with a potential client sometime ago who said, “we have some projects that would be appropriate for a local photographer.”  This idea that ‘local talent’ is somehow compromised is short sighted and ridiculous.  Especially here where I live in Jackson Wyoming.  The talent around here is off the hook.

So I began to give this more thought, where does this idea come from that bringing someone in from another place is going provide a better product.  I’ve worked for clients in Hawaii, Turks and Caicos, countless places in Europe and all over the US.  Yet I may not be good enough to work in my own town! I wondered how I could dispel this myth, how could I break this down and make it clear that talent is right here.

Then I realized, I don’t want to dispel this myth.  If someone wants to hire a photographer from New York or Los Angeles and they think that makes them a better photographer, fine.  Perhaps there’s someone in New York who wants to hire me because I’m not from New York!  I certainly appreciate my clients who fly me around the world and country to take pictures, I can only imagine someone is pretty psyched to come here to Jackson to make a buck.

In another post I’ll be sure to talk about the benefits of hiring local talent.