To build a successful and sustainable business, we need to look beyond our own industry and understand the broader landscape. Strong decisions come from seeing how everything connects, not from focusing on just one piece of the puzzle.
In visual communication, three elements always matter:
Message
Messenger
Audience
Message
The message can take many forms. It might be a person, a group of people, a cause, a topic, or even an entire industry. It also includes the ideas, values, and issues attached to that subject.
Messenger
For this discussion, the messenger is the photographer or visual communicator—the person responsible for shaping and delivering the message.
Audience
The audience is the group for whom the images are created. They are the ones receiving, interpreting, and responding to the message.
My advice is simple: explore all three in depth and consider every possible angle for each.
Become an Expert on the Audience
The more you understand your audience, the better you understand what they need and want. When you truly know them, it becomes much easier to connect your subject to their real lives—how it affects, challenges, or inspires them daily.
Without that understanding, even the strongest images can miss their mark.
Become an Expert Messenger
Being a strong messenger means mastering more than just photography. It means learning all the communication tools available to help you reach your audience—and how your audience communicates with you.
Photography is only one part of the conversation.
Common Mistakes
In response to my earlier blog post, “Photographers are becoming obsolete, unless …”, many of the comments were overly linear and short-sighted.
Here’s one pretty typical comment:
“… the only thing saving us professionals is a better ability to understand/use composition and lighting.”
This kind of thinking focuses on just one piece of the puzzle. In my opinion, that’s a sure path toward obsolescence.
From comments like this, it’s clear that some photographers have little understanding of their subjects or their audience. You can create an incredible image of an issue—but if the audience has no interest in it, that work isn’t sustainable.
How Successful Visual Communicators Adapt
Over the course of a long and successful career, visual communicators inevitably change. As they deepen their understanding of subjects, communication tools, and audiences, adjustments are necessary.
Here are three areas where change often happens:
Message
Think of this as your subject matter. Over time, you may discover that your market is shrinking. Your growing understanding of your audience may reveal that fewer people are interested in that topic. When that happens, you need to find a new subject or issue to sustain your career.
Audience
The web is a perfect example of how audiences shift. In the past, you may have only been able to shoot for a local newspaper. Today, you can reach a worldwide audience through blogs, forums, and social media. At the same time, some traditional publications—and their audiences—have disappeared. Adaptation is not optional.
Messenger / Medium
Mediums change, and so must you. You adapted from film to digital. Now you’re adapting again as technology continues to evolve. Staying current with tools and platforms is part of being a professional visual communicator.
When Mediums and Audiences Blur
Not long ago, a publication was the audience. Today, blogs and social platforms bring the medium much closer to creators, which in turn brings the audience closer.
This closeness allows for dialogue. Communication is no longer one-way. Your audience tells you what they want—and what they think—in real time through comments, shares, and conversations. You no longer need focus groups; the feedback is happening every day.
If you focus only on lighting, composition, and technical skill, you are moving toward obsolescence.
Those who are growing their businesses are expanding their horizons. They’re learning more about the world, becoming experts on their subjects, and paying attention to what truly interests people.
As you deepen your understanding of the message, the messenger, and the audience, you’ll have those “eureka” moments—much like Steve Jobs did when he introduced technology we didn’t even know we needed.
The Bicycle Wheel Metaphor
I think visually, so here’s how I picture this idea in the future: a bicycle wheel.
Each spoke represents a different strength in your business. When the spokes are balanced and under the proper tension, the wheel stays true and wobble-free.
How Many Spokes Do You Have?
In bicycles, fewer spokes can mean speed and efficiency. More spokes usually mean strength and durability.
I often see new faces in the industry gaining attention quickly with fewer spokes. In contrast, those with long, sustainable careers tend to have many spokes—multiple subjects, mediums, and audiences supporting them.
My Advice
Master a subject.
Master a medium.
Master an audience.
Then add another subject, another medium, and another audience.
If your career feels shaky right now, it may be time to adjust the spokes.