Photographer Meg Bitton believes it’s time to acknowledge—really, to celebrate—the fact that art and business aren’t natural antagonists.
It’s easy to think the opposite: For any creative person who pursues their passion as their business, the juggling and toggling among a constant merry-go-round of tasks can make it seem like artists really are just meant to starve. But once we have a moment to pause for breath, recoup our energies, and refocus on the vision that empowers us, it becomes easier to see that what looks like a zero-sum tug-of-war between opposites is really more like a dance.
A widely accomplished portrait photographer and digital content creator, Meg Bitton has given her clients one sensitively captured image after another. In addition to teaching a popular series of classes covering multiple technical aspects of photography, she is an experienced businesswoman who shares with fellow photographers her insights on the best practices for thriving as an artist-entrepreneur.
In Meg Bitton’s own practice, she tries to keep her eye on the beauty inherent in this tension, and on the healthy balance that can emerge when a photographer runs a successful business. It’s all about the perspective from which you view it.
Mutual enrichment
Why not allow the warm heart notes and the soulful blue notes of creative work to mix and melt freely into the crisp black-and-white of spreadsheets, Excel charts, and bank statements? Viewed with its inherent positives to the front, each of these spheres of life strengthens and supports the other. An artist’s vision enlivens their business dealings, opening creative new angles that can often bring increased profits. Your business can, in fact, be a masterpiece.
Likewise, the strategy and precision needed to start and sustain a business can bring important sharpness and clarity to a creative project. A focus on the business aspect of your artistic calling can bring your work full-circle, giving you new ways of connecting with people and expanding your professional and social networks. The greater professional exposure can provide additional support for your creative work. A solid cash flow can give you a safety net that allows you to reach beyond your previous artistic goals.
An iconic example
The great portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz observed in the 1980s that it was very possible for an artist to build a financially stable and successful business while making time for more personal creative projects. After getting her big break by joining Rolling Stone in 1970, she switched over to Vanity Fair thirteen years later.
In the 1990s, museums like the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC began showing exhibitions of Leibovitz’s work. Then, between 2009 and 2011, she was able to take the time to dive deeply into a project. She named this project Pilgrimage and put into it examples of her work that held the most personal resonance for her.
Inspired by Leibovitz’s example, a photographer can begin mapping out a schedule that balances commercial endeavors with passion projects. Intention is key to success in organizing these two spheres of life.
Make appointments with your soul
Meg Bitton advises setting a goal with yourself: During a hectic week, carve out specific blocks of time when you’ll allow yourself to focus only on your art. Even if these efforts consist of a few minutes when you walk into your garden, frame an interesting view of the landscape, and make a few clicks of the camera, you’ll have achieved a goal and refreshed your mind and spirit.
You might also want to plan time to deepen your connection to your art through continuing education. You could learn a new artistic technique or technical skill. Or you could take an abandoned project out of storage and see if it now speaks to you in a new way that invites completion.
Both art and business bloom in a climate of innovation. Remember to let some light into your soul every day, even as you keep your business humming, and always seek your own ideal balance between the two.