2023 - A Year in Review
As I reflect on 2023, I would like to highlight some of the principles which got us to this point almost a year down the line. Starting a new company in a new space alongside my day job in finance has not been easy but I believe that in pursuing anything in life, there are a few key criteria for success. Research, a clear vision of where you want to go, unshakable discipline, uncompromising pursuit of excellence, and careful consideration of your approach.
That brings me to my first point:
Research: We live in a time where everyone is a photographer, we all have iPhones and it would be rather daring of me to sit here and judge who gets to call themselves a photographer and who doesn’t. The way I see it though, people having phones with cameras does more good and drives more awareness to photography than it does harm. The challenge, however, is that there is a plurality of content. This means that for a picture to sell for a premium price, it needs to be really good, and by good, I mean exceptional. The image should show a new perspective on whatever it is you’re photographing, and it needs to stand the test of time, meaning that it should be exceptionally difficult to recreate.
I tend to release prints less frequently than many other artists, but this is to ensure that I have done all of my research. Once we have established a concept, I typically scan the internet and other artists work to make sure that what I am photographing has not been done in any meaningful way before. The last thing the world needs is two artists creating the same type of work, that’s boring and inauthentic and art should never be boring.
Next, I assess the target market because once I commit funds to a shoot, there needs to be a return on capital deployed or we will go out of business. In assessing the target market, I look at the commerciality aspect of the print in question. One needs to ask why anyone would or should spend their hard-earned money on a print.
Lastly, its important that when you’re photographing a subject that you are photographing the best example that you can find. Let me break that down.
We recently did two shoots in South Africa, one with Cape Buffalo and the other with Zulu warriors. I am going to focus on the Zulu’s. When I briefed my team on the ground, I emphasized the importance of finding traditional practicing Zulu’s. I did not want city people for a warrior shoot, and if I was hoping to get my work presented to any respectable leaders in the community or at leading galleries and museums around the world, I needed the real deal. I also wanted to be careful not to offend anyone by capturing an image with the title of “Shaka” as a homage to Shaka Zulu and cheapening it by putting any ordinary guy in the shot. In short, what I was asking for was for my team to uncover the modern-day Shaka Zulu which is exactly what they did. My first release from this body of work is a portrait of the current Commander who is held in high regard by the King. Luckily to my earlier point of not offending respectable leaders, my subject who I cast as Shaka will be showing my work to the King this weekend. You can only imagine if he saw the image and it wasn’t with the right subject, it would eliminate my credibility in one move, which brings me to my next point.
Have an unshakable commitment to excellence: Excellence like many things in life is a spectrum, and truth be told in most cases “excellence” really depends on who utters the word. For that reason, you need to be incredibly tough on yourself. In a shoot with thousands of files, I will be lucky if I have 5 images which make it to the next round of edits. In being this tough, you ensure that you do not allow your critics the ability to criticize your work.
Another key aspect of committing to excellence is ensuring that your team around you are the best in the business, and this means interviewing vendors, deciphering who they work with, and lastly and the bit that no one likes, you get what you pay for. Our editing, printing, and framing is outsourced to the best companies in the world. When you think Rolls Royce, it’s become synonymous with excellence, luxury, and prestige. Be uncompromising about your products, they have to have the same expectations attached.
Supply: Nothing that is mass produced appreciates in value. Our art pieces are investments meant to transcend generations and outperform markets in all market conditions.
Going back to a car analogy. We can all agree that Ferrari makes spectacular products which are synonymous with prestige and excellence. So why is it that if you buy a Ferrari 488 for example, it depreciates as soon as you drive it off the lot? No one can argue that it is “sub-par” or not special, it’s a Ferrari for goodness sake. However, the Ferrari 488 does not have a fixed supply, anyone with a big enough bank account can go out and buy one if they want to whereas a La Ferrari is limited to just 499 units and the fortunate few lucky enough to get one realize that before they have even seen the physical car, their car has appreciated in value. It's for this reason that we limit our prints to just 10 examples in 2 sizes.
Distribution: There is no use taking great pictures but being unable to sell them. Carefully consider your distribution model, there are pro’s and cons to every choice. Build a financial model and evaluate at what point you might need to reassess your current approach, a lot has to do with cashflow and of course, your reputation.
- Kyle
