When last I left you, in this history of my photo-taking career, I was humming along, making more money than I was used to and feeling pretty good about myself. Then, early in 2000, I took my portfolio full of classic B&W portraits down to Toronto to show off some new work. It was met with impressed nods and positive noises. Nothing like a bit of the good-old ego-boost, is there?

The last meeting of the trip was with Clare Vander Meersch, a most respected photo editor at Report on Business magazine. She met me in the lobby, flipped through the work and proceeded to rip me a new one. She wondered why the images seemed so old-fashioned looking, competent but so complacent.

I set off home straight after the meeting. As I left Toronto, I remember thinking, “What the fuck does she know?” By the time I got half-way home, I was wondering if she had a point. When I finally pulled into my driveway I knew she was right.