Enough is enough. I am fully vaccinated and enjoying the benefits of it. I’m getting out more and visiting family and friends. I am tired of seeing my friends on Zoom or Skype. I am tired of emailing each other. So, today and for the days to come, I’m starting something new. I’m calling my friends on the phone.
I got this idea when I received a call from someone who was on one of my workshops a few years ago. To say this person was a problem attendee would have been an understatement. I dealt with it when and how I could at the time. A few days ago, I got a call out of thin air from this person. His first words were, “I’m sorry for being a dick on your workshop.” He then proceeded to tell me he was an alcoholic in recovery, and he was making calls to people that he affected because of his alcoholism. Wow!
We spoke for a while, and he told me how things were improving and that he was photographing again and enjoying it and was ashamed of how he behaved but more how he may have hurt people as a result. That was cool, and we talked a while about photography, life, and how it has affected us for the last year and a half. I wish him the best in his recovery, and maybe we’ll see each other in a workshop in the future.
It took me a few days to process, and it got me thinking. I should start calling my photographer friends and catch up with what has happened over the last year and a half, as well as what they may be planning as the pandemic begins to wind down.
Today I had a chance to call and catch up with my friend Charlie Cramer and William Neill. It was great to have a chat and find out how they have dealt with the effects of the pandemic. It was also a chance to let them know I haven’t forgotten them or dozens of others on my list to call in the days to come.
Why not make your list of your photographer friends you haven’t spoken to for a while and start giving them a call. You can do this in the car, over a glass of wine after work, or with coffee in the morning. Just make a few calls a day. It will brighten your friend’s day and make you feel good too.
For the first time in a long time, I feel very optimistic and hopeful. More than anything else, I feel good getting back out there with my camera. Stay safe and make some calls.
Kevin Raber
June 2021
Elevate Your Vision
Read this story and all the best stories on The Luminous Landscape
The author has made this story available to Luminous Landscape members only. Upgrade to get instant access to this story and other benefits available only to members.
Why choose us?
Luminous-Landscape is a membership site. Our website contains over 5300 articles on almost every topic, camera, lens and printer you can imagine. Our membership model is simple, just $2 a month ($24.00 USD a year). This $24 gains you access to a wealth of information including all our past and future video tutorials on such topics as Lightroom, Capture One, Printing, file management and dozens of interviews and travel videos.
- New Articles every few days
- All original content found nowhere else on the web
- No Pop Up Google Sense ads – Our advertisers are photo related
- Download/stream video to any device
- NEW videos monthly
- Top well-known photographer contributors
- Posts from industry leaders
- Speciality Photography Workshops
- Mobile device scalable
- Exclusive video interviews
- Special vendor offers for members
- Hands On Product reviews
- FREE – User Forum. One of the most read user forums on the internet
- Access to our community Buy and Sell pages; for members only.
You may also like
