. . . . who’s to say what “normal” will be? (I’m betting that it won’t be the same as normal was before.)
Coming from me, this question is really oxymoronic, because I’m one of those guys who doesn’t just think outside of the box, I live outside of the box, so who am I to know what normal is anyway? All our married lives, Saundra and I have been nonconformists, but don’t blame Saundra, the fault is mine. When I met her she hadn’t intentionally developed a maverick attitude, she just excelled at everything she did, which put her in rarefied air. I’m the one who is never content with the status quo – the one who (unlike most of my family, save my favorite uncle) thinks that the way things were done in the past is not necessarily the way things should be done in the future; the one who thrives off of change. (Although these days it seems like we’re only seeing pocket change, and no one can thrive off of that!) Any of you who have known me for long realize that my tendency is always to travel “the road not taken” — but back to the question at hand: “When the economy straightens out, will it ever again be ‘business as usual’?” Unfortunately — or maybe fortunately — I think not.
I was talking to Brian Ainsworth (Harmon’s Photos Ar’ Nice in Gainesville, Fl) recently and realized how important it is to commune with kindred spirits every so often. (Like me, Brian is an idea factory.) We commiserated on how much the photo industry has changed and how important it is to find new markets, and if you want to stay ahead of the field, find those new markets before everyone else does. It is so important to communicate with others of like mind and similar interests these days. Trying to chart a course through these very uncertain times is daunting – getting input from others only makes sense. I remember one of those “Pursuit of Excellence” documentaries from the 1980s where they followed some of the “Contemporary” card designers from Hallmark Cards — four or five writers and artists sitting around a coffee table throwing around (sometimes literally) ideas and comments – it really looked like great fun. It is so important — and refreshing — to do that with contemporaries whatever your industry or field may be. You may not agree with others’ opinions, but oftentimes disagreement is the catalyst necessary to solidify your own ideas and many times our cohorts can steer us clear of pitfalls — but you must keep an open line of communication. Besides, you can’t beat the intimacy of one-on-one or a small group. Don’t get me wrong, seminars and classes are great, but these days who has the right to call him- or herself an expert? A facilitator, sure — but an expert at what – doing seminars?
As for FotoTechnika, in 2000 we decided that our destiny is to serve the fine art community and come hell or high water, I don’t think that will change. But in serving the art market (which in our case includes fine artists, graphic artists, photographers and historians) we have been especially hard hit during this economic downturn since large prints that are “suitable for framing” are always early casualties. But during this time we have also learned that the fine art market, especially film photography, is still thriving on many college campuses — only now, in many schools it has moved into the genre of “alternative processes.” Even though we’re talking “niche market,” it is a passionate niche market that we think is worthy of attention, thus our decision to sell film and photo supplies. After all, when the automobile was invented, the buggy whip industry didn’t become extinct. There are folks out there who still make buggy whips – just not many. We plan to be the folks out there catering to the film market as everyone else is chasing the latest digital upgrade. Who knows, we may carry inks and papers for the digital fine art types, too, and I’m sure we’ll have all of the latest digital scanning and output processes, but we think our passion for our craft can serve us well into whatever future.
Well, enough of my opinion for now – I’m really interested to see where you see yourself in a couple of years. As Brian Ainsworth is so fond of saying “What say you?”
