The start of a new beginning...

Since I posted my last article here, many positive things happened and I now have found the time to share it with you!

As soon as I had decided to stop with the stock library I received an offer from one of the biggest independent libraries in the image industry, Photoshot. They wanted to continue what I had created so PictureNature didn't have to stop after all! I felt quite proud that our collection was chosen to be among the other strong brands they had purchased in the past. After a few visits to London, some negotiation and a visit to my solicitor, it was all formalised end of March. At the moment all of our 13,000 images are being transferred.
Read this press release for more background info.

From now on I will be one of the contributors and can focus my time on the creative process again. Letting go of something I had visualised but not able to realise, has created a new oppportunity which I couldn't have imagined beforehand! It really opened my eyes. The whole process has given me more insight in how to deal with hurdles in life.

A difficult decision

It has been a tough but inspiring week for me. First I received an invoice again for PictureNature's library website. Over the last few months, everytime I received one my stomach turned around. How can I afford this when there is not enough sales? How long can I sustain this situation?
Then I had a one-on-one workshop about intellectual assets and how to exploit these. After a full day of being confronted with new ideas my head was buzzing; " I could this and then that", "I haven't tried that yet so maybe that could make a difference and turn my situation" etc. Luckily, I had a good chat with my mum (as always) and she advised me to first think about it all before I go ahead with full speed as I'm used to. The next morning I got an eye-opening insight and symbolic comparison with my current situation by viewing a news item on television. It was about a building site in one of the English cities , that couldn't continue because of lack of funds. Many cities are currently coping with same due to the recession. The site was complete bare, hardly any work had been started yet. Inhabitants of the city were unhappy with the sight of it. A big wall separated them from this place. They thought something useful could be done with it, maybe planting some trees and plants. One of the cities had found a way; allotments. People loved it! Gardening on a small scale, back to nature and simplicity. Don't ask me how, but I got quite emotional at this point. later I realised that it a sign to make my final decision; ceasing the library. And so I did on Thursday the 12th of February.

The next day was physically very difficult. I had a splitting headache, probably the stress coming out. In the meantime, I had informed the contributors and received wonderful replies. That felt really good!
It's unsure yet what will happen with the collaboration with the Spanish agency. Hopefully it will be possible to keep the 12,000 images there so that we have some chance to sell our photos.

Whatever is going to happen, I will continue to work with Clifton who is running the photography workshops for PictureNature. Now I will have much more spare time and I'm sure something else will come my way. I've learned so much over the last years, so it hasn't been for nothing. I'm already thinking of combining my love for photography with my new hobby watercolours. I'm already looking forward to having more time to experiment with that and create more paintings!

Poetry-photography book 'Life'

A few months ago PictureNature published a unique poetry-photography book 'Life' in cooperation with Gillian Shearer, a poet from the North East of Scotland. It was first presented at the Frankurt Book Fair in October. It can be a great Christmas present for your partner, friend or family member! You can see a preview and place your order here.