So you want to be a Professional Photographer? [Pt 2]
In this second part of my series I'll be looking at where to go once you've made the decision to become a 'professional'
In case you missed the first part here's a link - https://steemit.com/photography/@skiesandsports/so-you-want-to-be-a-professional-photographer-pt-1 - the takeaway from that post is 'Get out there and take photos!' so, assuming you've been doing that, where do you go next?
Honestly, for me this was all about monetisation. How could I make photography pay my bills in the short term. When I made the decision to make photography a profession I'd had a few years experience shooting live music for bands and a few publications, followed by three years at film school. My degree really showed me that still images were where my passion lay and at the time I was taking a lot of Landscape shots. The problem is Landscape photography is a notoriously difficult field to break into and definitely not something I was going to be able to make money from by the time I graduated.
So I thought about where there was money in the industry, a few that immediately came to mind were - portraits, commercial photography, food photography (kind of commercial, but there is enough work in it to warrant it's own category!), sports photography and events. In many ways something like commercial is a huge category in it's own right and there's plenty of other niches that I haven't listed - or even thought of!
For some reason I didn't like the idea of commercial work at the time, probably my own insecurities about being a young 'just starting out' photographer! I loved shooting people and I knew there was money to be made in weddings so that's where I landed. It might - and probably will - be different for you! For me it was a style of photography I liked the idea of. I didn't love it, but it was a way for me to make my photography earn money instead of just costing me money!
As it happened, after just one or two weddings I was hooked, I'm sure you'll end up finding the same! If not, any photography experience is useful! Remember, it's all about getting out there and shooting! The more you can try, the better, and if it's earning you some money it's definitely not time wasted!
'Breaking into the industry'
Ok, so there's two main schools of thought here, both require a portfolio of some kind. The more the better really. That's not to say it has to be in your chosen field! I booked more than 20 weddings without ever having shot one! In fact the image below was my websites HOME PAGE image for all of those initial bookings!
1 - Second shooting/Shadowing
This is the traditional way to get into the industry. Finding a photographer that is willing to take you under their wing and show you the ropes. Usually pay is pretty poor, so many have to get part time jobs to subsidise the photography income. That said many of the bigger portrait and commercial studios do take on junior photographers where the pay might just cover the bills.
There are some huge advantages to this way of getting into the industry. Firstly you don't have to worry about getting yourself out there to potential clients, or selling yourself. Your studio does all of that work and you get to learn how things work with the safety net of an experienced photographer doing the heavy lifting. You also have guidance on your journey, an experienced photographer - almost regardless of talent - will always have SOMETHING to teach. Obviously the better your portfolio, the more likely your chances of ending up with a really talented and successful mentor.
On the other hand there are downsides, for instance you're always going to be learning to shoot how your mentor does. That isn't to say that's a terrible thing, but it's certainly a much harder way to develop your own style that will help you establish yourself as a credible photographer in your own right. The other, more obvious limitation is pay, it's arguably more profitable to be an incredibly cheap freelancer than it is to be an employed studio assistant or second shooter.
2 - 'All in'
Or there's option 2. It's probably worth pointing out that this was my preferred method, but I'm sure that will become increasingly obvious!
To me, once you can take a photo, I mean comfortably take a photo in a variety of given situations. As long as you know your camera well enough to know how to expose an image well, you can get out there earning money. That doesn't mean everyone can do it - hell, if you have a terrible eye there's not a lot anyone can do, but I genuinely believe anyone who takes a lot of photos, and looks at a lot of great photography and art, WILL be able to take photos well!
With that in mind, what's wrong with starting out cheap? When I first started out the local going rate for wedding photography was around £1000-£1500. I went in at £200. Yep, 200 quid. I had a fairly basic website put together on Wordpress, with just a few pages. But that one headline feature '£200' was enough to get me bookings.
I'll also point out now that those who disagree with my chosen method of starting out often do so vehemently! Many in the industry say this approach brings things down, but I have to wholeheartedly disagree! The truth is that if a photographer five times your price is losing business to you, they are doing something wrong! Equally once a cheap photographer starts getting booked up, their prices rise accordingly. Remember price, or value, in this industry is all about the price your time commands. It's simple supply and demand.
I'm not saying go out and 'fake it till you make it'. Far from it! I'm saying be totally honest with your potential clients. When clients would email I'd say something along the lines of 'Awesome, thank you so much for emailing. I'm free and I'm excited to say you'd be my 5th wedding!'. My prices reflected my experience, and I didn't mind people knowing that. But lets not forget these are people who wouldn't have had too many options in that price range, or perhaps weren't considering getting a photographer at all. To them, even if I just caught a few good moments, it would be worth it.
Hustle
I'm not talking about salesman hustle by the way. Hell no. I just mean that if you're going to make it in this industry, as a second shooter or going alone, you'll need to work hard! That means engulfing yourself in the industry. Getting inspiration from everywhere you can and learning everything you can. From getting clients (more on that in part 3!) to figuring out a productive workflow. Articles are in abundance online, use them!
In part three I'll go into how to actually get those clients!
Thanks for reading! I'd love to answer any questions you might have, and upvotes/comments/resteems are always hugely appreciated!
beautiful
I believe that if the photo conveys the emotions of people, it will always be cool!!!! Good luck!! I will follow you!
Wedding photography is brave. I could never take the stress of having someone's wedding memories in my hands. Scary thought.
Haha it is scary if you get yourself hung up on it @jfolkmann, but ultimately we're all just human, it's just about being prepared and conscientious! It's incredibly rewarding for the same reason it's so scary!
I've done a couple of weddings... and it was super stressful until I realised that I was running the whole show... and then it wasn't too hard at all.
The emotions at a wedding are like nothing else, both good and bad, so I'm glad you've made a solid run at it. That photo with the glitter is just incredible!
Definitely a stressful business but an element of control really does help take some of it away! It's probably not a job for the super nervous though!
Thanks dude! Yeah, we've been very lucky! (and worked hard of course!)
Haha, it's a job for someone who doesn't mind yelling at all the people.
One thing I never quite got sorted was the crowd you attract while you're taking photos... everyone wants to take a shot in your exact position and potentially mess up your shot. I almost needed a bouncer.
Super educational! Thanks for this informational post!
Love this...great and informative!