Start Where You Are

I don’t remember when I first heard the phrase “start where you are”, but it’s stuck with me ever since. At first, it sounds like simple advice: just get going. But there’s more to it than that.

In photography terms, it’s like saying: take the shot. Whether you’re capturing an image or working on an edit, just do it. Do something. Try something. Experiment with a new technique until you’ve learned it.

For me, this phrase is a reminder to take action - any action. What you do might be good, it might be terrible, but it won’t be perfect (nothing is). The point is, you’re doing something. And that’s how you learn and grow. You won’t improve if you never try. (And honestly, no one’s watching anyway.)

I avoided learning masking for years - not an exaggeration. I was afraid I’d mess up my photos, or worse, fail completely at understanding it. But once I finally decided to dive in, I realized it wasn’t hard, and it wasn’t scary. I didn’t ruin anything. In fact, I got so comfortable with it that I ended up creating a course about masking.

That experience taught me something important: there are no real excuses for inaction. Whatever your circumstances, you can take a step forward, even a small one. You don’t need perfect conditions (they don’t exist), and you definitely don’t need permission. Just start.

The result doesn’t matter nearly as much as the act of starting. Your first attempts at learning something new won’t be great—and that’s okay. Repetition is how you improve. And along the way, you’ll shed the fear that’s been holding you back.

So how do you actually begin?

• Do a little research—YouTube is perfect for this.

• Set a timer for 5 minutes and just try a new thing. If you feel momentum, keep going. If not, you still experimented without pressure.

• Practice, practice, practice.
  

You might be surprised at how much easier learning becomes once you simply start where you are.