My father will pass away at the age of 82 (our joint birthday is next week, dad will turn 82, I will turn 50). With my dads health being so fragile, I have been thinking a lot of my future years and how I wish I could spend them. Nothing is a given, life is constantly in flux and changing but here is my ideal plan for the future if health and other things fall into place.
I would make photos until I am 70 years old, I figure with enough determination I can still carry my larger cameras and gear until that age. After 70 no one knows, maybe I could still be making photographs maybe not. In the years 70+ the plan would be to remove myself from the field and enter the darkroom. I would print my life's work in my final 10-12 years. It all depends if I live as long as well as dad did, my father worked hard everyday until he was 80 years old. I have never smoked or drank in my life (never been drunk) so hopefully that will help a bit with longevity, I need to lose weight thou and start to work out consistently.
If I can manage to get enough money together I plan to spend 5-6 months of every year after I am 54 years old in Asia photographing. I would work in Canada for 6 months and spend the rest in Asia making photos, using Bangkok Thailand as my base of operations. I will have to quit my better paying security job and take any job I can get when I am in Canada. Leaving my job after 20 plus years of nights will be frightening and difficult but it would also give me the freedom to travel and photograph for extended periods in Asia. Photography and telling important stories is what matters most so I need to put aside job worries and concentrate on making the pictures while I am still young enough to do so. Sometimes to achieve your goals you need to be a selfish bastard, not sure the end justifies the means here but I would rather live with trying and failing than with the regret of never having made the effort.
I would make photos until I am 70 years old, I figure with enough determination I can still carry my larger cameras and gear until that age. After 70 no one knows, maybe I could still be making photographs maybe not. In the years 70+ the plan would be to remove myself from the field and enter the darkroom. I would print my life's work in my final 10-12 years. It all depends if I live as long as well as dad did, my father worked hard everyday until he was 80 years old. I have never smoked or drank in my life (never been drunk) so hopefully that will help a bit with longevity, I need to lose weight thou and start to work out consistently.
If I can manage to get enough money together I plan to spend 5-6 months of every year after I am 54 years old in Asia photographing. I would work in Canada for 6 months and spend the rest in Asia making photos, using Bangkok Thailand as my base of operations. I will have to quit my better paying security job and take any job I can get when I am in Canada. Leaving my job after 20 plus years of nights will be frightening and difficult but it would also give me the freedom to travel and photograph for extended periods in Asia. Photography and telling important stories is what matters most so I need to put aside job worries and concentrate on making the pictures while I am still young enough to do so. Sometimes to achieve your goals you need to be a selfish bastard, not sure the end justifies the means here but I would rather live with trying and failing than with the regret of never having made the effort.
