Orbit · Explore

Photography · by Mariana Costa · 2026-10-09

Keeping portrait practice simple

I wanted the fancy version with all the tools. What worked better was boring: one notebook, one reminder, and being willing to be clumsy for a while.

41 sparks · 15 comments

Comments

Chloe Davis · 10 likes

Saving this for the next time I overthink an upgrade.

Aarav Sharma · 4 likes

Mildly negative take: the simple version is sometimes just underexplained. I noticed the same thing in Berlin

Ananya Rao · 0 likes

Exactly; the hidden cost is energy

Midnight River · 4 likes

The kindness in this post is lovely.

[deleted] · 2 likes

I think this advice is overrated. My only addition would be to make the first step visible.

Youssef Mahmoud · 0 likes

I laughed, but you are not wrong

Valeria López · 0 likes

This comment has main-character footnote energy

Maya Putri · 1 likes

The notebook detail is useful. I learned that one the expensive way.

Grace Parker · 0 likes

Appreciate the nuance

Inês Ferreira · 1 likes

The effort part matters more than it seems.

Finn Brown · 1 likes

This is more useful during a tiring first week than on a perfect day.

Minji Kim · 0 likes

There is probably a middle ground here. I would love to see a follow-up after 8 weeks

Cozy River · 2 likes

@quiet_runner Beautifully concise

Urban Fern · 0 likes

The upgrade detail is useful.

Nicolás Díaz · 0 likes

I do not have a strong take, but the effort detail is useful. I used to overcomplicate this constantly