Choose your words with care

One of the more unexpected facets of becoming a professional photographer is that you will become a role model to those following behind you

- Paul Wilkinson

Over the course of the past week, our photography studio has had some students from the local school join us to gain some work experience. Having them around has been a real breath of fresh air: their energy, laughter, and, ultimately, creativity has given us all a swift energy kick, which has been excellent for the business, and has brought us new ideas and a vision of the future. In so many ways, these students' excitement and enthusiasm 0 remind us of why we became professional photographers in the first place.

One of the students shared with me a story of how their art teacher, disappointed with some work the student had submitted, tore it up and threw it in the trash. Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, the teacher insisted that the student rework it during their lunch break.

Now, I honestly don't know the entire story: perhaps the student had failed to follow the brief they'd been given, or maybe there was more to the incident than the student was telling me; but this still seemed to me like a ruthless critique of a young person's creativity and ideas.