On a Mission
The creation of a Mission Statement
Without Crying or Setting my Camera on Fire
I decided it was about time I wrote an actual mission statement – I’ll let you in to secret here – this was not something I spontaneously decided to do, no no no, rather I read about it on a business course I have just started.
'Step 1' it said, and me, a lover of steps read on - ‘Write a mission statement’.
Easy I thought, as I settled in to write...
'My mission, is to make it through until lunch without even a snack'.
Mission accomplished.
Apparently, that is not a Mission Statement.
(Cue dramatic music and slow zoom-in on my face, dripping in self-doubt.)
The following are the steps I had to go through to write a proper Mission Statement…
Step 1: Realize I Have No Idea What I Actually Do
At first, writing a mission statement sounded easy.
“Just a few lines about my business,” I thought, sipping at my coffee like a polite camel at a dinner party.
Fine Art Portraits of your loved ones
Three hours later, after looking up other photographers’ mission statements and I’m staring at a blinking cursor wondering:
Do I “capture authentic moments”?
Do I “celebrate individuality”?
Am I just tricking people into standing in front of bushes while I admire the negative space created by the branches just behind and to the left
Existential crisis: 7/10.
The Family Cat, silently judging your life's choices
Step 2: Google Other Mission Statements and Immediately Regret It
A quick search led me to other photography mission statements that all sound like they were written by pretentious poets with automatic trust funds:
“I believe in the beauty of raw emotion, the sacred dance between light and shadow, and the timeless power of storytelling through the lens.”
Okay, relax, Guru Ghandi.
Some of us are just trying to get a toddler to stop licking a window or willing two dogs to stay in one place without blinking...
Step 3: Attempt to Sound Professional (But Accidentally Invent a Cult)
I tried to write something serious. Something a little inspiring even. I lean heavily on where others have gone before me and I end up with:
“At Cathy Dee Photography I believe every soul deserves to be seen. I am more than a photographer – I am a visual shaman of the human experience.”
...Okay, now it sounds like I’m starting a portrait-based religion, about to charge people in crystals and dreamcatchers.
Time to delete and walk it back...a lot.
Step 4: Be Noble
Eventually, I realize: I’m not saving the world. I’m just really good at making people look less weird on camera.
And THAT, my friends, is noble. But it’s not enough, I can’t write a serious statement, I simply cannot. For reasons I shall now outline…
My mission statement doesn’t have to win a Pulitzer. It just has to sound like ME — the person behind the lens, trying to keep it together while a wide mouthed, overly ambitious bulldog sprints towards me at the speed of light.
So I write what feels true.
And I am reminded that no one reads mission statements anyway.
They’re just looking for pricing and whether you have Saturday availability.
And yes I do.
SO Here it is in all its Glory….
MISSION STATEMENT
‘At Cathy Dee Photography, my mission is simple: to make you appear so good, even your ex will zoom in for a second look.
I specialise in capturing the raw, unfiltered essence of humans, large and small, and their four-legged (or winged, or scaly) sidekicks. Whether you're a lazy, lanky greyhound, a cat who judges everyone from the lofty heights of a book shelf, or a human just trying to look less like a tax accountant on camera.
Whatever you identify as, I’m committed to immortalizing your identity in pixels so glorious, even your future grandkids will say, “Sweeeet”, or “Dope” or “Smacks” or whatever future superlative is current at the time.
One thing you won’t hear them say, is... “Yikes”.Because I aim to freeze time, flatter your face, and immortalize your furry sidekick’s judgmental stare forever.
Come for the photos.
Stay because your pet stole my heart and possibly, my snacks’.
