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How do i make a living out of Photography ?
- Thread starter Olivia
- Start date
S
Shea Daisy Photos
Guest
First: don't listen to people like Emmy or you will not know how it is in the business.
Photography competition is fiercely competitive, but not impossible. Like Claire said, you need to brand yourself. Your logo, business card, etc should all reflect your photographic style and your personality.
Decide what you want to make a living doing: commercial, portrait/wedding, fashion, stock? If you want to do everything, it's best to do have separate websites and cards. It would be silly to hand over some fancy flowery business card designed for a wedding photog to a prospective client who wants a commercial shoot. And, to add, many people want to know that you only do one thing, and do it very well, rather than doing everything only "okay" (even if you do everything pretty well).
It's hard to say what type pays the best, depends on a combination of your talent, style, how you handle business matters, and most importantly, how well your market yourself.
You make a living by having a different, steady job while you build a portfolio. Then you make a part-time job out of it while you build a client base. Then, once you are getting more in demand for your services, you start full-time. That's how it is for many people. Some people are instantly lucky and make a great living quickly. But most of the time that's not what happens.
You also need to worry about licensing, fees, taxes, accounting software, a lawyer (you are bound to hit someone who's unhappy with the work, even it's amazing), website design, etc.
Photography competition is fiercely competitive, but not impossible. Like Claire said, you need to brand yourself. Your logo, business card, etc should all reflect your photographic style and your personality.
Decide what you want to make a living doing: commercial, portrait/wedding, fashion, stock? If you want to do everything, it's best to do have separate websites and cards. It would be silly to hand over some fancy flowery business card designed for a wedding photog to a prospective client who wants a commercial shoot. And, to add, many people want to know that you only do one thing, and do it very well, rather than doing everything only "okay" (even if you do everything pretty well).
It's hard to say what type pays the best, depends on a combination of your talent, style, how you handle business matters, and most importantly, how well your market yourself.
You make a living by having a different, steady job while you build a portfolio. Then you make a part-time job out of it while you build a client base. Then, once you are getting more in demand for your services, you start full-time. That's how it is for many people. Some people are instantly lucky and make a great living quickly. But most of the time that's not what happens.
You also need to worry about licensing, fees, taxes, accounting software, a lawyer (you are bound to hit someone who's unhappy with the work, even it's amazing), website design, etc.
You have to be really good at it to make a decent living. Anyone can get a nice camera and take photos, but good photographers know the terminology, the latest trends, and art. I would say the best way to get started and make a living would be to market yourself. Get a good logo, nice business cards, flyers, ads in newspapers, and maybe a website too if you can afford it. Brand yourself and get it out there.
Pass things around town, spread the word as much as possible, offer to photograph a friend's wedding just to get experience and then go from there. I would say you'd probably find the most money in wedding photography because people are willing to pay more. However, there is also much more pressure with weddings and your business is mostly based upon referrals. Maybe consider getting another photographer to help you get started to let you shadow them for a bit.
Best of luck
Pass things around town, spread the word as much as possible, offer to photograph a friend's wedding just to get experience and then go from there. I would say you'd probably find the most money in wedding photography because people are willing to pay more. However, there is also much more pressure with weddings and your business is mostly based upon referrals. Maybe consider getting another photographer to help you get started to let you shadow them for a bit.
Best of luck
A
and your bird can swing
Guest
sometimes magazines decide to pay you like 100 dollars for the picture itself instead of a steady job, so it depends how hard you work
Pretty much anywhere you go photography will make good money. Either people will pay you to get their pictures done, or even newspapers and magazines will pay you as well. I know a lady who lives in my town who lives on this beautiful land with losts of acres and takes peoples pictures there. she makes a living for her (divorced) and her 4 kids in her photography career.