The Value of Volunteering
No Pay, Big Payoff — from Illinois mine shafts to New York publishing
One thing I discovered long ago was the value of volunteering. Certainly, if I did what I volunteered to do, it would be helpful to whomever or whatever I had volunteered. Over time, I learned something unexpected: volunteering often benefited me in ways I could never have anticipated.
While studying photography at the University of Southern Illinois, a professor from the journalism department asked if there were any photography students willing to volunteer to take photos for a journalism project on coal in the region. My classmates weren’t interested. They wanted to learn how to shoot portraits or products in a studio. I was the only one who raised my hand.
Right away, it turned out that I was pretty much on my own. This was 1975, there was no internet, no cell phones. I dug up a map that vaguely showed where coal activity was in the area, and I started driving.
Near Pinkneyville, Illinois, I stumbled across a site where a new coal mine was being built. I walked in, grinned, and explained that I was a college student working on a project, and...somehow that was enough. Instead of turning me away, they gave me a hard hat and full access. FEMA would have had a fit today.
The mine was nothing more than a half-mile-deep vertical shaft. A crane raised and lowered a huge bucket that served as an elevator, cement bucket, and cargo lift.
Of course, they immediately invited me down where I discovered right away that there was always water dripping like rain. I couldn’t see to focus because of the close quarters, and the only lighting was from their head lamps. My little flash was useless. After a short stay, I gratefully took the next ride back to that distant dot of light above.
Back at the surface, I managed to capture a shot of a shift heading down to work:
Months later, I submitted the photo to a “Minolta Manpower” photo contest. To my delight, I took first place for the Midwest, along with a brand new camera and lens.
The journalism students eventually published a full tabloid-sized newspaper, with my photographs from a number of different mines illustrating the entire issue. That led to a paying job on the school’s daily paper and other photojournalism projects. Those became great portfolio pieces that helped me land the Associated Press as my first client when I moved to Denver to start my professional career.
Through the contest, I had made what became a lasting connection with Minolta. It eventually led to free gear for me to evaluate, so photo magazines could interview me about it.
None of it was ever expected when I raised my hand.
Years later, I got involved in the Colorado chapter of the American Society of Magazine Photographers. I joined in order to learn more about the business side of photography, but once again I found myself volunteering whenever help was needed. Sometimes that meant being the host to our guest speakers, big-name photographers whose work I had studied in school. The exposure and learning were invaluable.
Eventually, I became a chapter officer, then chapter president, and finally on to the national board of directors.
That role took me to New York several times a year (on ASMP’s dime). At my own expense, I stayed longer on each trip to meet magazine editors face-to-face. I became a familiar presence in their offices and landed more assignments as a result.
All of this expanded my knowledge of professional photo business practices. I became a sought-after speaker at ASMP chapters and photo conferences nationwide.
Without any such expectation, my career was once again advanced through volunteering.
While the expectation of reward should never be the cause for volunteering, it is a wide-open door for making new contacts, new experiences, and opportunities you might never otherwise encounter.