Creative: Blurb in Barcelona

I was in Barcelona twenty five years ago. I forgot how beautiful it is. While I am no longer a “city guy,” places like this make me rethink my life in America. Is Barcelona, or Spain for that matter, perfect? Of course not, but there is much to be said for the lifestyle here, not to mention the culture, history and strategic location. There are directs from Barcelona to just about every major city in Europe. And the diversity here is refreshing.

Spain was never on Blurb’s radar in terms of field events.

We have a wonderful customer base here, but for some reason we were never able to pull of any events. In fact, were it not for my Menorca bookmaking workshop with Raw Society I wouldn’t be in Barcelona. Were it not for my boss who said “Spain is on the rise, go to Barcelona,” I would be back in the United States buy now.

Our programming here was light. Photo Walk and meetup. That’s it. I also offered to review books or portfolios, and while numerous people reached out threatening to come show their work, well, none showed up. (more on this later) I had one “off day” here which was filled with email, downloading and backing up my earlier work, promoting the upcoming events in Seattle and Victoria, writing blog posts, pulling footage for a film series and completing the script for a voiceover I begin filming tomorrow in Eindhoven.

That’s an “off day” when traveling for Blurb. Don’t feel sorry for me, however, because I did get out to see some tourist sites which I did reluctantly and only because my “pro-FOMO” wife was buzzing like a saw. At one point, a friend mentioned a “duck pond,” and my wife looked over at me, sweat running down her face, hair ablaze like the Feral Kid in Road Warrior and asked “Danno, are we going to the duck pond?” Being the mature, kind individual I am I responded, “What the f^%$ are you talking about?”

The Photo Walk and meetup went exceptionally well.

The route was solid and the photo opportunities were stellar. Even for me, and I suck at street photography. And the books that emerged at the meetup were impressive as well. And being we are in Spain, the menu at the meetup was better than anything I could find in the US unless I was willing to spend my life savings and knew someone cool enough to reserve me a table. (The basics here are simply far superior to what we have at home, and this rings true for all of Europe, and it’s not even close.)

The entire thing lasted about six hours. Compliments and thanks rang out. It felt good to connect with local bookmakers. This is not an event that moves the needle for the company. That’s not what this is about. This is about saying “Hey, we are here, and we are appreciative of your business.” “Tell us what works, what doesn’t and what would make you happy in the future.”

And now a few words about what I mentioned earlier regarding people not showing up. Remember when I quit YouTube? One of the reasons I gave was that I felt there were more posers out there than people who actually want to make photographs and progress. When I announced I was going to be in these cities, London, Barcelona, Amsterdam, etc. I was flooded with messages saying “I’m coming to show my work.” London came through. Awesome time. But Barcelona and Amsterdam have been crickets.

I feel like many of us are talking more than walking. Watching YouTube, commenting on gear forums and finding a myriad of ways to waste time instead of going into the field to make work, have that work critiqued, learn, and then return to field to improve our craft. Perhaps I’m spoiled after a week in Menorca with people with purpose. People who devote the required time and energy, and people who see their projects through. (Eindhoven is stepping up, at least to a small degree.)

Trips like this remind me that time is limited. Talk is cheap. Are you gonna do something or talk about doing something? You don’t need a Q3 if you don’t use your Q2. And this applies to me as well. My job is no longer about making pictures, but I still have a bevy of goals. I still do projects, edit, print and move on to the next, regardless of restrictions. If you get a chance to have your work reviewed, especially for free, whether it be by me or someone else, just go. Don’t find a reason not to. Don’t turn to YouTube or Netflix. Don’t waste your time talking about things that don’t matter.

I’m sitting in a city designed, at least in part, by Gaudi. Gaudi was on top of the world until he was killed by a tram on his way home from work. Yes, he was confused for a beggar and never received the help he needed, which certainly didn’t help matters, but the point is he was here and then he was gone. This can happen to any of us. What you do, what you leave behind, needs to be shaped and created and doing so requires focus and attention to detail. If you spend all your time online and don’t have a portfolio, well, you might be dangerously close to that poser realm where nothing good happens. Step up and face your fate. You and your work will be better for it.