Vibe Shift

Welcome to Archival Recordings 25

Looking back on how this all started, things have evolved quite a bit since I began last November. Born out of the frustration I felt about where my photography career was heading in, I decided that a big change was necessary. Up until that point, my practice was built (and dependent) on assignments from publications centered around Los Angeles. Those types of projects started to dry up and became less lucrative once the pandemic hit, forcing me to think hard about what I wanted to do with my photography going forward. In the years that followed, other avenues of distribution became less effective as well. Instagrams ever changing algorithm and the sale/self destruction of Twitter hit my practice particularly hard. From 2020-2022, those were the main platforms that I used to promote my work and sell my self published photo books. Although I have largely adapted to the changes in how Instagram works (and found some success on Threads), I shut down my main Twitter account a few months ago. The relevancy death spiral that occurred after Twitter’s purchase and transformation into whatever it is today made it essentially useless to me as an independent artist/photographer.

The entire chain of events made me realize that I had invested too much into platforms that were out of my control. I was left scrambling and really started to doubt if my photography was something that I could continue doing in a relevant way. I know I wasn’t alone. Last year was extremely difficult for almost every creative that I know across multiple industries, from animation to design and, of course, photography. This was what was going on in the background when I decided to start Archival Recordings. 

It was a pretty dramatic rebrand for my photography practice. The biggest change was replacing my traditional portfolio site with a branded newsletter. I was terrified of taking myself “off the market” as a freelance photographer but it was an important step to take in order to center the new project. I was placing a bet that there would be more opportunities if I focused on the work that has always been the foundation of my photo practice instead of simply offering up my services for hire. My ability to provide context for the images I produce has always been an advantage. Living in Los Angeles for my entire life gives me the ability to offer a local perspective on the ways the city continues to evolve. Archival Recordings is based on my lived experience and that authenticity is a key element in my approach to photography.

So what have I learned, 25 newsletters and 2 printed zines into this reimagining of my photography practice? A lot actually:

1. By essentially dropping out of the freelance rat race and choosing to develop my practice organically, I have rediscovered the joy that I found when I first seriously picked up a camera. 
2. Not everything that is important can be monetized and every assignment I accepted was a step towards someone else’s vision and away from my own. I’m not saying I’ll never accept another outside project but my priority is cultivating Archival Recordings.
3. Never depend on any platform other than your own. Starting a newsletter and zine subscription has been a real eye opener and it seems like the only viable way to continue my work going forward. Twitter (X) is a dead end for me and Instagram is hit or miss. As I mentioned earlier, Threads is interesting (and the upcoming Fediverse integration is a big plus) but NOTHING beats having complete control over your email list. It directly translates to the ability to connect with people who are interested in your work, something every social media platform has gamified to the detriment of the creative community. 

I hope that sharing my own journey has been enjoyable or even helpful. I’ll provide updates on things like this periodically but I hope the main takeaway is that you don’t have to just accept the limitations of the major platforms or jump to the next one that is released. There are some tools to build your own but they are hard, take time, and don’t pay off immediately. They do however, give you the ability to hold on to the gains you do make without the threat of them being wiped out at the whim of some billionaire. And for me, that’s the key right there.

Peace and thanks for reading! The next Archival Recordings will focus on the 3rd printed zine I’m working on, due to be released in late August/early September along with some updates to the Zine subscription tier of this site. If you sign to the Zine Subscription now, you will get the two previously released Archival Recordings zines immediately along with 2 more to be released this year. Click the link for more info and thanks for the support!