Generalized Value of Patience

What’s someone to do if they like to use the Queen’s English but face the tyranny of software that is keenly intent on replacing your use of the letter “s” with a “z”? Truly, a challenge for the ages, nevertheless we march onwards.

There’s an old saying that patience is a virtue, but there is almost certainly more to it than just sitting and waiting. It’s not as if waiting patiently on the couch will somehow bring you a quality photo, produce a quality piece of journalism, or make you rich. Patience may very well be confused with quality in planning and the necessary attention to detail required for success. This takes time and effort; the time component potentially being why it can be mistaken for patience.

Patience is no substitute for planning and preparation.

A recent example had to do with a very lovely sunrise we had here in the Okanagan, where the cloud cover was just right and as the sun crested the mountains you got a brief period of absolutely brilliant cascading colors. Surely getting a good snap of this horizon was just luck, or just a matter of waiting for the right opportunity? Patience played a role, but there’s also the consideration of checking the weather forecast, making sure your equipment is packed and ready (many are the stories of photographers bound for nature only to find they don’t have batteries or memory cards with them), scouting a good location, and then actually getting there ahead of time.

Maybe there was some luck involved, and patience was certainly important, but I could have been patient all night long without it making a difference had I not planned ahead and been ready to take advantage of that opportunity. It’s easy to miss an opportunity, but can be frightfully difficult to seize one.