Advice on how to earn money from your pics?

[MVCG]

Hi All,
I am a newbie to this forum and this is my first post. I see there is an assortment of amateur, semi amateur and pro's posting on this forum and wanted to ask for some advice / help with the following.

After over 13 years professional experience in the IT management consulting industry, I am considering putting it all behind and trying to make a living from my photography. I have been photographing since I was 13 and have always loved the world of photography. I first earned praise for my work in University where I achieved the "best of" for my photography. I am however still somewhat unsecure about my work based on what I have seen here and other forums. There is a lot of talent out there!!!

My question to those of you who do professional photography or at least supplement their income in this manner is:
Can you spare any "non-competitive 😱" advice on how to setup, what areas to look at, any tips, tricks or guidance on trying to make money from this love...?

Please accept my thanks in advance for your valuable advice!

Kind Regards,

Miguel

Just setup a Flickr account recently with some samples:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/miguelgraca
My personal site:
http://www.miguelgraca.me/galleries.html

 

[Turtle]

I take it you are keen to transition to full-time photography rather than 'semi-pro/part-time'?

Transitioning to full-time will require quite a bit of time, regardless of the field (not to mention considerable talent, dedication and luck). It might be worth thinking of which fields you consider interesting before thinking too much further. Once you have done this, you can consider a transition plan. My questions would be:

If it fails, can you go back to your IT job?
Can you continue doing your IT job on a part-time basis?
Do you have enough money not to worry about a good income for a while?
Which field/s of photography are you interested in making money from?

How serious are you?

Things to think about:

What can you do with your work that will make people want to use you?
What work do you have now that is representative of what you want to do in the future? Could you use this material to market yourself?

I have had a look through your portfolio and I do think you have some good images, but you also have quite a few that IMO look like fairly generic stock images. In some of the B&W images I could feel a style showing through, but less so with the colour images. I did not feel a clear and evident style or niche that would be the basis for going forwards. Some good general images, no 'knock outs' upon which you could sell yourself in a given field.

I probably don't need to tell you, but what you are trying to do is exceptionally difficult. With 13 years of IT under your belt, time is not on your side, but you might have the advantage of a flexible income from the IT. Before that you need a clear idea of what you are about. A general, passionate interest in photography is not going to come close to a basis for setting up a business. Now is the time to think really hard about specifics.

There are lots of people on this forum who can help and I am sure they will, but be prepared for some tough love!

 

[Roger Hicks]

What sort of photography do you want to do for money?

Cheers,

R.

 

[hipsterdufus]

The question that I always ask myself is whether or not I would actually still enjoy photography given the type of paid assignments that people generally get (studio/weddings/advertising). The answer always comes back as a resounding "NO". Your answer may be different, but I know that I would abhor being a professional photographer.

 

[Avotius]

I too am currently going through the photography as a profession thing as well. I have done a lot of commission work in the last couple years and it sucked the pleasure out of photography for me. I hate dealing with individual customers and their nit picking and constant bargaining/lying/late payment/no payments/other problems.

I am tempted to put together a different kind of portfolio and just go do journalistic assignment photography for some outfit even if it means being away for months out of every year.

But then again I think that what I really want is a stable income, and you don't really get that doing photography, or with just about anything anymore.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

My advice: Don't. Right now it is nearly impossible to earn a living in photography unless you already have a stable of clients. If you do not, then you'll need a lot of cash in hand to live off of for a couple yrs until you do find enough work, and then you still may not succeed. You'll be competing against people like me who went to school for this, have years of experience, and have all the gear we need like studio lighting and such (which is quite expensive). And people with education, experience, and established clients are hurting bad now. If you are making a living doing IT, do not quit. Your stomach will thank you; it enjoys eating. Every day.

 

[Spyro]

Ι've considered it as well. What put me off it is the current situation in photography. Basically today there is an abundance of photos and photographers who offer their services for next to nothing. And it is not going to get any better. I pictured myself trying to promote myself in this environment and, to be honest, I think I would feel a little bit like trying to sell ice cubes to penguins.

 

[MVCG]

hmmm, tough love indeed 🙁
Thanks all for your comments and guidance. Some good points raised throughout. I have come to realise that money is definitely not everything. I have had to things for my job I would not have done for myself or for those dearest to me. This sucks the life out of you regardless of your monthly income...
Again, I am just researching for the moment and paying attention to those who have professional experience in this field.
Most of my photography are people shots where I have had some success (I haven't posted alot of these as they tned to be more personal - friends and family). That being said, I do enjoy the full gamut of photography (possible exception being product shots). Due to this I have been thinking about wedding photography as this seems to be quite common and regular work and involve well, "people". IMO my natural style tends towards the photojournalistic style and I simply love the rangefinder format (Leica in my case) which is what I would hope to use (I know, RFs may not be suitable for wedding photography but can be a potential differentiator).
Has anyone actually done this transition and have a story to tell? hopefuly motivational but just as valuable - a life lesson?

thanks again guys!

 

[MatthewThompson]

IMO my natural style tends towards the photojournalistic style and I simply love the rangefinder format (Leica in my case) which is what I would hope to use (I know, RFs may not be suitable for wedding photography but can be a potential differentiator).

PJ Style wedding work is "in" right now, so you might be able to squeeze yourself into a niche depending on your market. Are you in an area that can support a specialized thing like PJ weddings on RF/135? Your target demographic is going to be upper middle class/old money families with the disposable income to be eccentric. Sadly, these are often some of the most difficult people to please.

If you're hoping to jump into the ring with architectural, industrial, commercial and food photogs, you're going to end up broke and punch-drunk.

My advice: have a spouse with stable income you can squeak by on. If you want to do it, power to you. It's a grind for those of us with a stable of commercial clients, but it's rewarding, interesting work that feeds itself through networking and relationships.

 

[MVCG]

Thanks Matt, yes, I live in London where in and around of is, as you can imagine full of the demographic in question. I'm also a swing tradder and have web design / development skills (my bread and butter) so feel I have a few compatible skillsets which may be of commercial use alongside my photographic aspirations. My only concern is "take up". I'm not too sure how to go about it - market via website, specialist recruitment, word of mouth, door to door???

 

[konicaman]

I surely can relate to your story and feelings. Many years ago I tried to make a living as a full time photographer, but had to give it up. I too have been working as an IT consultant for some 15 years now. About 5 years ago I quit a job with a firm supporting small to medium sized business clients and started doing support for private people in the local area. It is less stressful, doesn't pay as much, but it gives me time to go out shooting, have a few exhibitions and sell an occasional photo. If I should have made a living out of photography, I would have had to shoot weddings, babies, school classes, and a lot of soap packages, tin cans etc. For me that gets boring; I have been there. (And I should have been quite lucky as well).

On the other hand if you don't mind doing all kinds of photographic jobs, and you live in, or set up business in, a small town (5-20.000 people) with no competition your might have a chance. In such surroundings you might also shoot for local small businesses and craftsmen, which I personally find interesting as you get to know people and their trade.

I don't know where you live, but if you try to set up a business in London, New York or Copenhagen, it is almost impossible if you haven't worked for a well know photographer and build your network from there - unless you have a very small niche with almost no competitors.

 

[konicaman]

Ohh - London, your comment ticked in, while I was writing 🙂

 

[Roger Hicks]

In London the only real hope for making contacts is to work as an assistant for something between 3 months and 3 years, and I wouldn't do it again. It was OK when I was 25 but as soon as you have ANY responsibilities or debts it's a bit wearing.

Cheers,

R.

 

[PaulW128]

Very interesting thread.....Every now and then I dream about photography as a full-time profession and then I read the resonses in this thread and I wake up from my daydream!!

Paul

 

[atlcruiser]

I started the business I now own one afternoon.... I closed my previous business and made a new one. Really! I had no experience in the field and had no experience in owning or workign in that type of business. I did have a skill and passion for what I wnated to do. It is successful but it is a LOT of work.

I dont see lines between "professional" or "part time" or just "amature wanting a few bucks". Very few professional photographers make 100% of their income from photography itself. Many/most need to suppliment in web design, teaching, classes; crap like that. Not a thing in the world wrong with that and in no way are you more or less a professional.

In my current business I had to go outside of the lines to make money until I had a solid customer base that could support what I was doing.

My suggesstion would be to find an income stream that allows you a small income while you try to build the business. The photography business in no different than any other. You need a base level of skill but hard work, confidence and effort will make the difference in the long run.

go for it but jump in with your eyes open

good luck

 

[nimcod]

Ive always had a want to do this, either at the studio photography side, or also the printing/dev side of the trade, also in London.

the problem being, that you very much need to assist/intern to get the contacts and work up in that area, but unless you have the means to live as it seem nearly all are unpaid assisting/intern work for 6 months to however many years it takes (which i defiantly cannot in central London) then it seems you're stuck unless you can fund yourself through it already.

 

[ashfaque]

There is one area where the photography is still lacking - war photography without any army escort ... it's quite dangerous but if you think you can provide for your family whilst away (say in Iraq, Lebanon, Lybia, Somalia, India, Pakistan, etc.)... presumably it would be better if you speak to the locals beforehand. Otherwise, it's quite risky.

 

[wblanchard]

A lot of success in a particular market comes from your ability to network and befriend the right people. You find several niche markets with a very select group who have made it a full time profession. Most of their success comes from their self promotion techniques, and unique viewpoint in their images.