Here is a list of 10 things Chase learned the hard way that every photographer, designer, creative–hell, every creative person–should know.

1. Experts aren’t the answer.
The blogs, the teachers, the mentors, the seminars aren’t the answer. They’re not there to tell you exactly what you need to know. If they’re good, then they are there to give you some ideas, some guidelines, or some rules to learn and subsequently break. This isn’t about the expert, it’s about you. In creative pursuits especially…what’s going on inside you is where the answers can be found. Hear what experts say, but don’t always listen to them.

2. Clients cannot tell you what they need.
Clients hire you because they have a problem. They need a great visual representation of something, a solution. They think they know the best way to photograph something, but they don’t really. That’s why they hire you. Take their suggestions to heart, because they definitely know their brand, product, their vision–perhaps even shoot a few versions of the images they THINK they want to see first–but then go nuts with own vision. Add value. Show them something they didn’t expect. Don’t be a monkey with a finger. Remember why you got hired…that YOU are the badass image maker. If you are good enough to get selected for the job, you should be good enough to drive the photographic vision.

3. Don’t aim for ‘better’, aim for ‘different’.
It’s funny how related “better” and “different” are. If you aim for ‘better’ that usually means you’re walking in the footsteps of someone else. There will often be someone better than you, someone making those footsteps you’re following… But if you target being different–thinking in new ways, creating new things–then you are blazing your own trail. And in blazing your own trail, making your own footprints, you are far more likely to find yourself being ‘better’ without even trying. Better becomes easy because it’s really just different. You can’t stand out from the crowd by just being better. You have to be different.

4. Big challenges create the best work.
If you get assignments that are pushing your vision, your skills, then awesome. Kudos to you, keep getting those assignments. If you’re not getting those assignments, then you need to be self-assigning that challenging work. Give yourself tough deadlines and tougher creative challenges. You do your best work where there is a challenge that is clearly present and 10 feet taller than you think you can handle.

5. Aesthetic sensibilities actually matter.
Go figure on this one… I’m constantly surprised as how much this is overlooked. Read this and believe it: You must develop a keen understanding of design, color, light, and composition. To just say “I know a picture when I like it” isn’t going to get you anywhere. You need to know –for your own sake as well as the sake of your clients who will ask you– WHY a photo is a great photo. WHY is this one better than that one. If you don’t have any visual vocabulary, opinion, or aesthetic sensibility you won’t be able to explain these things. You won’t get the job. Or if you do get the job, you won’t be able to explain why your photos are worth getting hired again by the same client for the next campaign, story, or video. Trust me on this. Develop a sense of visual taste.

6. Simple is good.
Almost every photo that is bad has too much information. Outside of technical basics, the number one reason that most photos fail is because there is no clear subject. Often this is the case with design, film, fashion, you name it. Remove clutter, remove distraction. Tell one story, and tell it well.

7. Make mistakes, learn quickly.
Simply put, you need to be able to learn from your mistakes. Avoiding failure is not the goal. The goal is recovering from mistakes quickly. That goes for ever element of your photography–creative, business, vision…you name it. If you’re not willing to make mistakes, you’ll be paralyzed with inaction. That is the devil. Get out there and do stuff. If it works, do more of it. If it doesn’t work, change it. Quickly.

8. “Value” is different from “price.”
Don’t compete on price alone. That is certain death in any creative field. Focus on delivering value and price yourself accordingly. If you deliver great value with your images — better than expected, and better than your competition– and you can illustrate that through any means, then you should be more expensive. And remember that value comes in many forms.

9. A-Gamers work with A-Gamers.
If you are good at what you do, then you work–or seek to work–with other people who kick ass too. If you suck, then you put yourself around sucky people to feel better about yourself. If you want to be the best, seek to be around awesome people–be it other artists, assistants, producers, clients, partners, whatever. Shoot high. Shoot for better than yourself.

10. Real artists create.
Do you just sit around and think of stuff you could create, photograph, build, ship, or design, but never output anything? Then you’re a poser. Take a new approach and make stuff. Maybe what comes out of your studio isn’t perfect, but there should always stuff leaving the door and hitting the web, the page, the billboard, the gallery, or the street. If you are for real, you’ll be pumping out work on the regular.

There you go. Now don’t just read this list, KNOW this list.

[This list was unabashedly, profoundly inspired by my pal Guy Kawasaki's article "What I learned from Steve Jobs." If you like this version that I've adapted to and reworked to be creative industry/photography centric, you'll still love Guy's version here.]

mrjoemorgan – that would be me!

ScottBourne – photographer, author, teacher, speaker, new media pioneer

jeremycowart – Photographer to the Stars and the Suffering. Founder of Help-Portrait.

photojack – world, travel, lifestyle, stock photographer. Social Media coach and consultant to photographers.

strobist – Professional Flasher

memorygate - Photographer, blogger and all round nice chap… Memory Gate Photographic & PhotoCreative 365

simonapps - Play: family, shooting, nature, growing veg. Work: MD national PR photo agency with over 70 snappers UK wide serving PR Co’s large and small.

xryanrussellx – Rock photographer. I post behind the scenes photos from tours, photoshoots, etc here. I ramble about video games and comic books too!

Jonathan360 – Photographer and Social Media Ninja. Fashion and Twitter addict.

TheBigKlosowski – Allen Klosowski is a professional photographer based in Denver, Colorado. DenverTweetup organizer.

TreyRatcliff – A warm-hearted, old-school gentleman explorer with really cool toys.

fleurdeleigh – 75% photog, 3% uberdork, 92% adoring wife and mom, 2.7% mathmatically inept, 12% blogger, 9% superhero, 3% spy.

LaraJade_ – fashion photographer, creative director, dreamer.

scottwyden – New Jersey Portrait, Travel, Band and Event Photographer.

DamienFranco – Photographer, web author/blogger, and all around nice guy. Great art is supposed to make you think…

JeromeShaw – Photographer Traveler Teacher Writer PT Aspenite–Lover of hoppy beer, chocolate, travel, strong coffee, occasionally wine, too infrequently women & always song

thomashawk – Quiet Observer of Modern Nihilism with Box that Captures Light

jimgoldstein – Web Strategist / Photographer: Capturing the worlds beauty one photo at a time. Photographer of landscapes, nature and anything beautiful

PaulManoian – Child, Family and Wedding Photographer. Voted #1 Best Portrait Photography in Detroit for 2009.

CelticCamera – Gareth Glynn Ash – The Celtic Camera Specializing in Music (Concert, Publicity, Promotional); Product/Food Styling; Landscape

iYassin – I tweet about photography, tech, apple, design, blogging. and i love coffee.

iamatyler – photographer. check out my blog. if you feel like it. no pressure. you are your own person. or my flickr account at http://bit.ly/d1Q2S0

frederickvan – Photographer, Blogger, Instructor, and Host – This Week in Photography Podcast (TWiP)

nicolesy – I’m a full-time photographer in SLC, Utah. I’m into photography, computers, geeky tech stuff, and Lightroom & Photoshop.

keatonandrew – Visual ventriloquist. Oh, wait… photographer or something like that. I photograph people, they tend to be in bands as well.

tofurious – Wedding photographer / marketing consultant (currently Grace Ormonde’s Chief Marketing Officer) who loves tofu, Chipotle and wonton noodles.

zemotion – Gundam Wing pilot wannabe. Hearts bagels, scones and dark chocolates. Photographer, traveller.

jorycordy – photographer, film maker, couple others.

TrevorCurrent – Photographer, Graphic Designer, Gadget Lover – Bringing you the latest photography news, tips, tools and reviews for beginner through professional photographers

StevenTaylor – Photographer & Pop music lover.

willbl – Pro wildlife photographer looking to share info & connect with other togs

natalienorton – love wins. forever.

seanmclellan – To do: Insert most exciting description of a wedding photographer you’ve ever seen, here. Later.

crismitchell – Photographer, Publisher of ProPhotoResource.com / PhotographersHandbook.com and Author of Internet Marketing Techniques for Professional Photographers

lindsayadler – Lindsay Adler is an energetic and passionate fashion photographer living in New York and London.

ap4a – Web developing grape addict and photographyist. www.ap4a.co.uk/about/

ahetherington – Freelance editorial/commercial photographer available anywhere.

stevesimon – Obsessed with documentary photography and all things photographic

Carsten_Peter – Addicted to nature, loving extremes, National Geographic photographer, biologist, adventurer, environmentalist – EMMY & World Press awarded, go: www.ow.ly/twUu

photosil – Italian amateur photographer. My works are for sale athttp://www.redbubble.com/people/sil

alpower – Photographer and Web developer who likes good UI design, web standards and general web geekery.

rob_sheridan – Artist/designer/photographer/geek. Creative Director for Nine Inch Nails.

bluelilyphoto – Photog. Check out my blog. bluelily.squarespace.com. It is the epicenter of rad. In my humble opinion. Get it? Because it is horribly arrogant? Nevermind.

heygrover – Founder of PhotoShelter, SportsShooter.com, and TasteTequila.com – a website for tequila freaks, like me.

SvenSeebeck – I’m a Landscape photographer and publish my images and articles on my website. Feel free to visit.

davidbean – Advertising and Musician/Celebrity Photographer. Art is not my life. Life is my art.

chasejarvis – Maniac Photographer Director

EverywhereTrip – Travel blogger and photographer. I’m a one man National Geographic. I’ve blogged and tweeted from over 60 countries and territories since March 2007.

JeffRodgers – Husband, Father, lbobi Shephard, Photoshop Alchemist, Designer of things and Photographer to the people.

theshutterclick – Profesional Photographer, I shoot people!

brianlarter – Halifax based photographer and Studio Manager at Aperture Studios.

Greg_Easton – I take pictures.

alexlindsay – Random musings and 140 char discussion of film, photography, and life’s random bits.

abbyharenberg – Weddings/portraits/events/lifestyle photographer, love to photograph people.

mikeluter – I twitter about photography, photography tips and techniques as well as some personal stuff.

chaselisbon – Photographer Videographer Owner Supercult.com Writer/photographer FLNGS.com FILTHYGORGEOUSTHINGS.com FLNGS.com

mostlylisa – Photographer & blogger. I love my Canon 5DMKII, iMac & L-Lenses. i sleep with my iPhone under my pillow.

jefflynchphoto – Photographer, blogger, author, husband and father

RodHarlan – Author, Artist, Director, Educator, Entrepreneur, Photographer, Videographer, DV Junkie, Photoshop Addict! Using social media to make Media social again

RachaelDCruze – Freelance journalist and photographer. Loves writing, photography, most things arty, anything girly.

wizwow – Designer. Photographer. Author. Entrepreneur: Loving life at 100MPH. Love working and teachng.

jessicaclaire – fun, fresh, fabulous photographer living the good life in the OC

chrismarquardt – What’s the Buzz? http://tfttf.com/buzz :wq!

warandpeace – A photographer who finds it very difficult to write about himself

monophotography – Donald Cameron – black and white landscape and seascape photographer.

christinebpc – Wedding Photographer, Blogger, Knitter, Geek. Share & Learn athttp://bigpinkcookie.com

pattyhankins – In search of the next beautiful flower to photograph – Does life get any better than this?

MichaelZelbel – I tweet about photography. I do love artistic nude photography. Ask me anything via @MichaelZelbel, I never check DM’s.

thebecker – wedding photographer, educator, entrepreneur, wannabe pro poker player, follow @thebschool too!

newmediaphoto – New Media Photog’er: A photographer who publishes to the web. Rosh is also a blogger, podcaster, author speaker, consultant, Univ. instructor Bio – www.rosh.com

Photocritic – Photographer, author, blogger, motorcyclist, technonaut, geek, Apple-fanatic, pan-european import-Londoner

bonnietsang – lifestyle + wedding photographer (for my art, design & food talks, follow @bforbonnie)

stacyreeves – I take pretty photos of pretty people in pretty places. Best job ever.

danesanders – writer, photographer, learner, teacher & entrepreneur who loves to get curious with my friends

stanflan – photographer based in western washington shooting weddings and assignments nationally and internationally

toddowyoung – Your favorite concert photographer.

phillprice – Photographer and EMC Documentum Developer and ocassional @photowalklondon co-organiser

chromasia – Editorial, fine art and commercial photographer, photoblogger, photoshop fiend, and husband to @libby_chromasia

JeshdeRox – spiritual explorer, experiential photographer, lover of life

GKPhotography – Photographer, Mother, and Creative Thinker

nickonken – photog of life.

leggnet – I’m a full-time professional photographer specializing in stock photography. My tweets are mostly photography and tech related.

IlanBr – Photography for me is a way to find my inner peace. Same with blogging. So I combine the two.

SarahRhoads – i take photos.

anneruthmann – Wedding & Lifestyle Photographer, Creative Business Consultant, World Traveler, Music Lover, Etsy Buyer

koltregaskes – Used to work in the games industry, a very keen photographer, likes music, movies, sport, computing + games, web development, art, tech, sci-fi & FriendFeed.

kennykim – Chicago-based photographer available for weddings worldwide & author of Digital Wedding Photographer’s Planner by Wiley Press: http://bit.ly/bFULCv

gallagherphoto – photographer; i view life one eye at a time…….not really!

jmarkwallace – Photographer, traveler, artist

polaroidgirl – I like polaroids and plastic deer.

ronbrinkmann – mostly awake, wish I was traveling…

leesteffen – Photographer, Creative Director and Founder @ PenguinCreative.com. World-traveler, musician and advocate for social justice and equality.

MartinBailey – Nature & Wildlife photographer based in Japan. I do a photography Podcast, run workshops and sell fine art prints. Available for assignments and seminars.

extrajection – Amateur photographer, covering abstract, macro, nature, landscape, architectural and industrial subjects

kevinswancom – Great KISSer

jasongroupp – NYC’s most awesome photographer.

twps - Writer, Photographer, and Website Designer.

If you wish to be added to the list, please leave you Twitter handle below and Bio and I will add it.

So inviting and warming was this bed, we managed to sleep through the alarm and miss breakfast. Hungry again we suited up and made our way down the valley to a small cafe for some brunch, it wasn’t nearly as good as the Scandinavian breakfast we had at the lodge but it filled a hole!

Just across the bridge was the small Swedish town of Karesuando. We were on the northern border of Sweden & could see the village across the Muonio River from the lodge. Most notably seen is the church, it’s spiral can be seen from the top of mountain that we had been star gazing the night before.

After a short walk we came to the bridge, with it an old iron sign marking the divide. The river was frozen solid with a thick layer of ice, if it weren’t for the ski, snowmobile and footprints it would have looked like the icing on a cake. People were free to cross the border without any checks, a bit like England and Wales really.

Our first stop was to the church, which we learnt is the most northerly church in all of Sweden! It was quite modern inside, I wasn’t allowed to take photos but it was more like the happy clappy churches you get in America. From the outside however it stood tall and proud at the top of it’s drive, overlooking the river.

There wasn’t a great deal going on in the village, a couple of shops and residential areas but that’s it. It was very pretty though and nice to walk around. The only people we saw were those serving in the shop, a bit if a ghost town. They are probably hibernating, which I don’t blame them for, it’s freezing!

After lunch came the activity I was most looking forward too, Husky safari! Saying I am dog lover is an understatement, I adore them, especially huskies! As we approached the farm you could hear them howling with excitement, they had 92 in total including a few pups. Most of them are crossbreeds, either with greyhounds for speed or arctic wolves for strength. People think its cruel making huskies pull a sleigh but I can honestly say they genuinely love it. The sleighs are tied to a tree with a pack of six huskies tied to the front, they with howl, jump, spin round in circles until we finally until the sleigh and whoosh they are off! The two at the back are usually the matured males, wolf cross breads for strength, they do most of the work, the middle two are younger, very cheeky but hard workers. The front are usually female, they are the more intelligent ones who can lead.

They were pretty easy to steer, a bit like riding a bicycle, you lean the way you wish to turn and you have a foot break. On the up slopes you have to give the dogs a helping hand and push the sleigh.

After two hours out in the wilderness it was time to day goodbye, we were introduced to the leader of the farm, Roy! He looked like a St Bernard’s but was a cross of some other breeds. He looked like a huge White fluff ball, a mini polar bear almost. If any of the heard were to escape he would herd them back into the kennel.

That evening it was time to unwind and relax, the first night we could have a good sleep. We curled up in front of the fire in the Sami lounge, with beer in hand and enjoyed sharing stories with the other guests.

Cheers!

Breakfast was a gods send, a full English Scandinavian style. Having settled the hunger, we retreated to the Sami lounge where Ian welcomed us to his hotel and gave us a bit of history. The lounge we were sat is was named after the native Sami’s, who are Europe’s northernmost and the Nordic countries’ only officially indigenous people.

A Sami family in Norway around 1900

Having been welcomed to the Davvi Arctic Lodge, our holiday guide, Greta, lead us down to fetch out thermal snow outfits. Neither of us were expecting the sheer extent of the sub zero temperatures. It was minus 26 out and my nostril hairs instantly turned to ice. After just 5 minutes I had lost feeling in my hands, feet and ears. That will teach me for going outside in nothing more than jeans and a rugby shirt!

Abbey enjoying her thermal suit!

We spent the rest of the afternoon dressed like Michelin men, layered up to the neck exploring the Davvi Artic Lodge and it’s surroundings. You could hear a pin drop it was quite surreal how quite it was, there was not a human, bird or vehicle in sight. We trekked up to the top of the hill and through the woods to discover a gleaming full moon surrounded by a bed of purple and pinks. Although by 5pm the night is drawing in we were too early to see the northern lights so we took a look around and made our way back to the lodge for dinner.

A night spent gazing at the stars

The food here was fantastic, warm hearty food full of nutrients and protein. Flavorsome soups to start, roasted or stewed meats for main and rich sweet deserts. The beer was pretty good too, I’m not a massive larger drinker in the UK as I find it usually tastes of chemicals, but when on the continent I enjoy a good bottle or two of the local brew, this one of which was called Koff, which the most popular of beers in Finland.

Tonight was the night in the Igloo, sleeping among the stars and spirits of the Arctic Circle under a thick wall of ice. Abbey was not looking for to it, she gets cold under her 3 large quilts and full PJs when it’s not even in the minuses at home so not sure how she will cope in the igloo.

It’s been a steady -24 degrees for most of the day, with temperatures dropping to around minus 30 in the evening. We were reassured it would be a warmer -5 in side the igloo, so with our full Artcic thermal gear on, including 3 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of long John’s and 10 other layers covering everything else we made our way into the igloo. A candle lit snow trail awaited us guiding us to our front door. We were passed our hot chocolates and climbed into our arctic sleeping bags resting on the ice mattress. I felt rather snug inside, my body heat slowly warmed the sleeping bag and felt safe in the knowledge I was warm. Abbey on the other hand, didn’t feel the same reassurance. She was shivering from the word go, I could just about see two eyes poking through the thermal layers.

Our bed for the night!

So on that note, its time to snuggle up & get warm or face another sleepness night.

Hyvää yötä!

For those of you stuck in a similar situation to me, here are a few time wasting ideas:

• Strike up a conversation with an old man on a bench
• Hug a stranger
• Buy a pensioner an Ice Cream
• Play every song on Guitar Hero in the arcades, bonus points if you draw a crowd!
• Give an apple to a bored security guard
• Wish an astronaut good luck (Write to: NASA HQ, 300 E St. SW, Washington DC, USA.)

The flight to Tromso in Norway was delayed for 45 minutes, so that gave us a little longer to shop just incase we missed anything in our previous rounds. I’ve never been to Scandinavia before, its always been on my to go list, but more the Heidsinki and Stockholm city breaks rather than a visit to the Arctic Circle. I am, however, very lucky to have won a 4-night holiday to Lapland thanks to the guys over @transun and will soon be enjoying a very relaxing & rather chilly holiday to the remote wilderness of Finland.

I have always been mesmerised by the beauty the Arctic holds, especially during the winter when the Northern Lights can be seen in all its beauty across the snow frosted mountains. From a husky safari to a night in an igloo this was sure to be an incredible experience, with my various pairs of colorful long johns packed and my camera at the ready, it’s now 4am local time and we are climbing the various mountains through southern Norway into Northern Sweden. In 3 hours time we will arrive in the remote wilderness of Karesuvanto in Finland for a few hours sleep at the Davvi Artic Lodge before our adventures begin…

In my two weeks on Sun Island, just south of Male in the Maldives, my camera saw plenty of action. Here is just a snippet of the adventures and the beauty. To see the entire gallery, please visit my flickr: www.flickr.com/bekids

Our mode of transport to Sun Island

Sun Island, Maldives

The Pool & the Bar

Flying Summer

The Pier, the Villa & the Italian

Hermy the Hermit

Walking in Paradise