Can We Talk Shop?

Dear Friends,

Can we talk about becoming a professional photographer?  About this crazy roller coaster ride I’ve been on for the last 8 years?  I’ve wanted to talk about my job (and the industry in general) for awhile, but haven’t been sure exactly what to say or how to say it.  I want to be honest without being discouraging, and for some reason that’s been a hard balance to find.

First, I want to dispel the myth that becoming a professional photographer is as simple as buying a fancy camera or an easy way to make money.  Truly it’s neither.  That said, professional photography can be wonderfully fun and successful … with hours and hours and hours and hours and hours and hours of hard work, effort, energy and sacrifice.  Second, I hope to point you in the right direction if you choose to start your own journey as a photographer.

Dena recently joked that you shouldn’t become a professional photographer unless you are prepared to:

- kiss your clean house, social life and sanity good-bye

- work 80 hour weeks for less than minimum wage for the first few years

- spend your first born’s college tuition on professional equipment

- spend your second born’s college tuition 3 years later upgrading or replacing your professional equipment

Guess what?  It’s funny because it’s true.

Before you consider a career in photography, ask yourself these questions:

– What do you know about photography?  Are you familiar with aperture, shutter speed, and ISO and can you manipulate each in camera to achieve correct exposure?  Are your images in focus?  Do you understand composition and the basic principles that make an image dynamic or dull?  Have you studied lighting (natural or artificial).  Are you comfortable working with photo-editing software to appropriately enhance your images?

– Who are you as an artist?  Have you developed creative vision? What will you add to the industry that is unique to you?  Have you honestly evaluated your strengths and weaknesses?  Have you had your portfolio reviewed by a professional?  Do you feel ready to take on commissioned work?

– Do you want to run a business?  Are you prepared to deal with licenses, bookkeeping, taxes, accountants, copyright, contracts, budgets, branding, marketing, search engine optimization, continuing education, clients and competitors?  Are you prepared to make the shift from photographer to small business owner, since a majority of your work hours will actually be spent running your business?

Deb Schwedhelm posted two very insightful articles on her blog about launching a photography business that I highly recommend reading if you are considering photography as a career.  You can read her articles here and here.

Jefra recently posted an article on finding your voice as an artist.  This is a must-read as you work to develop your own artistic vision.

Ken Rockwell posted an article titled “How to Go Pro” that is a brutally honest take on full-time photography.  Some of it applies to becoming a part-time child portrait photographer and some doesn’t, but it’s still worth a read.

There are so many things I love about my job.  I love interacting with my clients who almost always become my friends.  I love watching families grow and recording their lives year after year.  I love the challenge of shooting and I love watching my vision for each image come to life in post-processing.  And (most of all) I love showing my clients how beautiful their children are – it’s so fun to know those client slideshows are watched over and over and over again by teary, smiling parents.

And there are lots of things I don’t love about my job.  I hate the administrative side of things:  I spend so little time actually photographing and so so so much time keeping my business ducks in a row.  I also get discouraged:  no matter where you look, there are always photographers doing more and doing it better.  There are a bajillion photographers in the market and more entering the field every day, some who are willing to work for so little they can only be losing money.

So why am I writing all this?  Because if you are considering going into photography, I want you to go into it with your eyes wide open.  I want you to have a solid understanding of both the craft and the business so you can work to develop a strong foundation in both.  Because if photography is your passion, I truly want you to succeed and hope that this post gets you one step closer to your dream.

Bonne journée,

Reb

p.s. Interested in learning more about photography?  Here are a few links to get you started:

Nicole’s Photo 101 course and Photoshop 101 courses and textbooks – Nicole is the gal behind the popular blog, A Little Sussy and is a Brooks Institute of Photography graduate.  Nicole knows her stuff and has loads of experience shooting professionally and teaching.  Even better, her classes and textbooks are very reasonably priced.

Beyond Snapshots is a new site dedicated to helping regular folks take their “snapshots” to the next level.  The talented ladies behind this site also recently started an online workshop.

Click ‘n Moms is a forum for Moms who have a passion for photography.  I have mixed feelings about forums in general so proceed with caution.  Sometimes forums can be really helpful, or they can simply be the blind leading the blind.  Generally speaking, paying for access is a good thing since it keeps out a lot of the riffraff who are only there to stir up trouble.

Better Photo.com offers over 80 online photography classes for people looking to improve their photo skills

Digital Photography School is a website that offers simple tips to help digital photographers get the most out of their cameras.  Natalie’s recent post on the 10 deadly post-processing sins was hilarious!

p.p.s.  here is a favorite Dena and I shot at a recent newborn session.

p.p.p.s. all the newborn sessions we’ve shot lately have me baby hungry.