My worst driving skill

If I say every assignment of mine as been as smooth as a butter on bread, I am clearly lying to you all. If I say every client treated me professionally I am not honest. If I say I didn't learn and grow from the experiences I am definitely bluffing. As a freelancer in the early days of my career, I did the mistakes which come from an anxious mind, untrained attitude and the inability to trust people.

To inject it is still a little difficult to trust people but I have no choice than to calm the f**k down myself and let the flow take it along its pace.

I am here to share a few things which I did in my early days and I am sure many out there did the same and in fact, must be in the phase currently. There is no right or wrong way to go about freelancing and but there are few things I feel are basic and I wished someone would have helped me understand things better.

Communication:

Early days comes with an ego and an urge to specialize over things and one goes downhill from there, every time a client calls and if it doesn't fall your genre if you tend to say "No", you are potentially losing an opportunity to have something for yourself. Just because you feel you are good at something it doesn't mean you have to restrict yourself to that arena. Say yes to every opportunity and find a way to make it happen and when to say No, read along to know about it.

Be curious to know what the client is looking for and be humble to hear what they want from you and be patient to do things again and again.

The entire urge to bombard and get the best and do the best comes along the time so let yourself be in a learning curve as long as possible.

TRUST:

The urge to jump into a project and not keeping things over mail and often clients feel skeptical to keep it over mail led many to feel anxious about many things and up above remained the fact if they will pay one on time as per the telephonic conversation. The anxiety grows and the urge to ask for money is embarrassing, it is if one ask at the wrong time.

Many even do a mistake of not keeping the terms clear and let the client have a zone where they ask for more than agreed and with no written confirmation one gets handcuffed to do the job, that's the con of being early in the career.

Keep the information and terms and conditions as much as possible over the mail, an absence of response keeps the client in question, not you.

ANXIETY:

The overwhelming feeling of many things does rupture a lot many elements than you can imagine. Your subconscious mind has things to say and you are bound to hear to it and believe it than anyone else and there is absolutely no harm. One thing to learn along the way is anxiety is just going to degrade your image for future prospect so practice the art of being calm. F**k the calm out of yourself!

Instilling the art of meditating and building focus in your day to day work is the best thing you can gift to yourself.

CHAOS:

Creativity takes birth in chaos, a chaotic mind wanders enough to let you see things which others don't see and this is something you should not get rid of but learn to cage it enough for it to not overwhelm you when you don't want or need. Early days look like everything needs to be perfect and perfection is an enemy not a cure and frankly let the chaos be there in you in some way which helps you to bring the best out of you.

There is a clear difference between chaos and panic, the feeling of everything going out of hand to do happen in the early days but there is no cure than to breathe in and breath out and simply take things slow.

Potential Red Flags:

• When the client doesnt agree to come over mail. They tend to keep everything over a telephonic conversation.

• There is no clarity about the job description in terms of quality and quantity expectations and keeping the assignment as an open experiment.

• Raising questions to every terms and condition you have kept to work along.

• Asking too many options for one potential assignment on the job floor.

• A habit of bargaining for everything even after confirmation.

One of my personal experience dates back to 2014 and one of my initial commercial assignment where the client bargained and came to a mutual price, argued my choice of having my assistant and then later agreeing to it, Eventually flying me down and I was little taken aback with the fact of doing more than asked for and hanging me with my advance untill and unless I had to shamelessly ask for it in the middle of the work floor (don't do it). My chaotic mind led me to miss a piece of equipment back in the hotel which pushed the shoot time and I was guilty enough. I realized they pushed the agreement on the day one and I dropped a mail to state my position to do a certain aspect of the job and not been able to do other (always keep things over mail). Well eventually things went well and I ended up doing the job at my best.

---

Hii, I am shovona, a freelance commercial photographer who resides in the economic hub of India, Mumbai. As an artist, I undergo the above almost every day and I am here to support others to let them feel cool about anything happening in life.

Feel free to contact me for any portrait, corporate, food, product photography related queries or just drop a hi! at

shovonakar@gmail.com

#dailyblogger #mumbaiphotographer #freelancetipsandtricks #portraitphotographer #freelancer

I almost committed suicide.

There is no death with no disease. Wow! I just made it up... But why to score your death if it is coming anyway?

There are few things as a freelancer we tend to practice for the death of our own career and there are ways to avoid it. There is something we have to deal with no prior experience is to deal with new people and understand human behavior and gauge the best possible among the many. Every day I get calls from an average of 5 people looking for my services and there are days when none of them turns into anything potential client and it is totally fine. What is not fine is to lose a potential opportunity. Very recently the Indian economy was effected post its overnight decision of demonetization in 2017 and it took a year for many freelancers including myself to recover. As I looked back I saw a few things I took as a final call for my better tomorrow and I am here to share the secret with you.

Creating art may not seem very relatable to you with being commercial but they both are intertwined except the kind of attitude you carry. Either you change yourself or hire, it is totally up to you.

When I looked back into the years when I just started my career being a freelancer in 2014, I was approached by people looking for talent at a cheap price, well I cribbed for the lack of budget clients carry but self-authentication to be a professional worth the bucks was not well signed by many and then I took up the job at the price they offered me, I still thank myself I did coz every experience matter and you tend to start somewhere in your career. The big bang theory exists but it's not all in one indeed it is an amalgamation of many. I ended up with a beautiful portfolio carrying various portraits and products which lead me to get my very first international client The Morningstar based out of Chicago, USA.

It is not important to earn the highest in every project, gaining credibility is indeed a currency one needs to earn and invest in itself for better opportunities tomorrow

The biggest problem is to understand and dissolve it in our mind is everything comes gradually, I have been rejected by many talent agencies for not fitting into the bill they are looking for and many agreed to make me a part for a sum I am still not able to afford it.

I do say No! to too many of my clients for the amount they offer against various factors of lack of enough to feed my assistant's effort to the inability to hire the equipment I require and more. I have negotiated enough to gauge the best they have to shed for the project. I have come to terms finally where I have made a style of myself the way I wish to work for better outcomes cause now I have things at stake.

Nature is the best example to relate to if and when we seek answers to all the worries and queries and doubts we have in and out. Evolution as a word is going to stick to you for the rest of your life and I have evolved enough to come to terms with the way I wish to work. It is been 6 years where I have done everything possible at my best to understand the circumstances I work the best and I work from my heart to give the best I can and I have committed to my clients. They come to me post seeing what I have done so far and where I have been me at the optimum as a photographer and professional artist.

I have a crew which helps me to work at ease, I have a production assistant which figures the things which I am not supposed to and I have a co-mate which brings the best out of my images, my stakes are high, my work experience has expanded, I believe in customer experience and indeed the productivity one is approaching me for. If one can't bear the minimum of what I need I can't take the risk to give an outcome I can't commit to.

I highly encourage everyone to take a risk and do things that are beyound your comfort zone and I myself practice it in every way possible. I have shot 1000s of images in a day to just 10 in a day and it took a while to understand what I do best and how I do best in what circumstances.

For anyone having a work style and aesthetic style is two different aspects relatable to each other and it takes years of being under pressure to be a diamond to define your worth.

Once you know and feel you have taken enough, step up and stick to your working style.

As an artist, we have a mind with thousands of things wandering around in and out and we either go speechless, talk endlessly or talk our heart out and as a professional, we need to train ourselves. Train not to stop wondering but to calculate the way we let other people know what we think and how we think and what we have to offer. Early in my career, I tended to crib a lot and talk endlessly and I still do in and over meetings with clients and people in general and I regret the big time when I self realize, over the years I have been open to criticism and words people around me looking out for best for me, have told me to follow and It has helped me a lot eventually but the child within does error from time to time and I have stopped taking control over it.

Stop talking before they stop listening to you

is a mantra I came across a book (The art of creative thinking) and I found it very amusing. I have been invited to many local and national conferences and they invited me to talk and talk the heart out, well I have had to brief it up as much as possible due to the same mantra above. When it comes to the meeting I tend to practice listening more and talk the least and it has worked the best for me. Listening holds more capacity to engage with our audience than talking to them and many called it a scientific way of human dominance in a way they tend to depend on you.

The very exchange of words turning into a potential transaction is a study every freelancer needs to do and evolve accordingly.

The death of a freelancer comes with the haste, jealousy, anxious mind and ever over the top self affiliation attitude. As a freelancer one needs to lead itself along the lines of evolution everyone goes through and has gone through and will go through. The attitude of settling down too soon in your career makes you stagnant. Fear of working out of the comfort zone doesn't bring anything new out of you. The hunger doesn't need a la carte to raise the symphony rather simplicity has given birth to many la carte.

I have seen many photographers going off the track due to the lack of passion and vision and exposure of what good work is.

The eye, the ear, the nose, the tongue every sense needs to get trained and needs to get fooled more than getting the right answers. Aspiration and inspiration are at the tip of your hand, how you practice are what makes you who you are.

I hold and no hold any guarantee for a miracle to happen in your life and yet the insurance is in your efforts and attitude you behold. We and I can learn from what others have for us to give away.

---

Hii, I am Shovona, a freelance commercial photographer who resides in the economic hub of India, Mumbai. As an artist, freelancer and a businesswoman, money, and creativity always intrigue me and I am passionate enough to share my knowledge with others too.

Feel free to contact me for any portrait, corporate, food, product photography related queries or just drop a hi! at

shovonakar@gmail.com

#coronaindia #mumbaiphotographer #femalephotographer #portraitphotographer #commercialphotographer #freelancecommercialphotographer

The magic of 600 seconds

We just need 10 minutes to have a mindblowing start for the day especially if you are working from home. 10mins is nothing very scientific but a personally tested regime that works wonders for many. The restriction lets you get over with something and keeping your attention span intact. We, humans, are evolving with a degrading quality of commitment and attention span. We flip from one job to the other and we similarly flip from one relationship to the other.

However, the options will expand and we will be mutated enough to not to stick to something sincerely, this 10min practice is a way to go if you don't know to understand the side effects of your monkey mind.

I am not giving away any magic tips and tricks, neither I am slipping anything extraordinary but basics stick longer than you think and basics are what makes you look cool and basics are what we crave for at the end of the day. I have the top 5 basic 600 seconds exercise good enough to change the way we live and to initiate our mornings.

IT STARTS FROM THE NIGHT BEFORE: A good morning is always been a pre-marinated dish, you need to put aside and get done with many things a night before you start your day after. Sorting what you want to wear and preparing your bag is one of them, have you thought of flushing and getting nice dental hygiene done, we all in-fact a majority of people suffer from dental hygiene. Your mouth is a factory of many bacteria pulping inside you as you sleep, killing them not only gives you a feel-good factor to go but no insecurity kissing your better half a goodnight and as well as a good morning.

There is this trick which does works for late awakers, brushing and flushing your mouth prior a goodnight let you be awake a little early. I don't know how it works but it works amazingly well, especially for someone like me who loves to sleep.

Sorting the list of things needs to be done is also much practiced, it is indeed optional as many feel good about planning the day about as the first thing in the morning and both works.

For those who live alone or have someone to take care of, pre-preparing a meal or at least keeping them arranged and set to go saves time. All this you can't do in 10 minutes but break it up.

MAKE YOUR BED FOR TONIGHT: We are up, we grab our phones and we get distracted. We bump on our own plans and we bang many to set the day. 10 minutes is a good analogy to do something and achieve one job at a time, the feeling of fulfillment from various jobs done make the day worth it, setting your bed for the day is one way to go and don't forget to change your sheet once a week.

The bed is a heaven where we dream, we share, we cry, we laugh, we stare and we ponder over things and things we want and we don't want. We love the fact of sleeping and it is always in our hands to set the tone of how we do it.

I have met many minimalistic who love a fresh set of white sheets and it is totally fine as nothing much to ponder about, I have even loved one who loves to use the bed as its canvas with as many pillows as possible and throwing some lovely set of textured sheets and comforters hurts no one. There are many ways to set the dream you like it, just make sure it is something you desire from within as it shapes the dreams you dream.

GET INTO YOUR OWN SKIN: Let's creep out, getting into your own skin is anytime better than someone getting into your skin. Ancient Vedas, I don't know if it says or not but stepping into the arena of meditation has helped me a lot and guided meditation is for anyone who has a monkey mind like myself, I admit it! My mind has always struggled to struggle with my ever nonstop thoughts, and it has given me anxiety like never before. Antidepressants do take care of the lack of many things in my brain and I am somewhere dependent on it, if you are looking for a place to begin from HEADSPACE is a good way to go from its 3 min session to 10, 15 and 20 is a place from my personal experience to start your journey into meditation. The best part you just need your phone and pair of headphones (I use a noise cancellation JBL headset) or speaker incase your phone has low-intensity in case of volume.

Try it! It has helped me to put myself to sleep better and have a better temperament towards life and others unless they talk crap.

BE MEAN TO CLEAN: 10 mins may not be sufficient to have a deep cleaning session and we are talking here about those small tasks which give you the feel-good factor, arranging your desk or your work station is a way to start doesn't matter if your work from home or an office, an altar next to my work table has helped to groom my mind, few things you can consider keeping next to you while working which can help to lift your mood.

1. A bowl of almonds: gives you no excuse to boost your mind and soul with some goodness.

2. Picture of your loved ones: Always makes you feel connected and belong to someone.

3. A nice candle: I personally love one from Song of India and oh man its heaven (be careful where you keep it)

4. A pen and a notepad: With everything to note down in your phone, little good old school tricks go a long way. Writing once is like reading something for 26 times.

DON'T MISS THAT CALL: I am living all alone past 15 years and eventually stopped having any homesickness but the attachment, I have with my parents is inseparable however and how many fights I have with them. We all love to go and fly in our own sky and leaving them behind to deal with their own anxiety and loneliness. Past many years I have realized the effort to be in touch with them and make them feel being with me has helped me count my blessings. 10min is all you need to give a call and be dedicated to it. Don't do anything while you call someone who means a lot to you. I can't put enough stress how much a call can build your relationship

the list may go on but I guess these things will not take much from you, teaching basics of life is a privilege and we are somewhere getting detached.

I hope this article may help you to connect yourself back to you and your roots.

---

Hii, I am shovona, a freelance commercial photographer who resides in the economic hub of India, Mumbai. As an artist, I undergo the above almost every day and I am here to support others to let them feel cool about anything happening in life.

Feel free to contact me for any portrait, corporate, food, product photography related queries or just drop a hi! at

shovonakar@gmail.com

#commercialphotographer #femalephotographer #mumbaiphotographer #portraitphotography