Best ways of Breaking into Photogrpahy ?

<p>I've been told this is a great place to ask this question,so here goes. As many have, I have been laid off now since January.this has left me searching for manufacturing work,which I am afraid there isn't a whole lot of northeast of Boston. Thats not the real point. I find myself with time,something I never had before.My passion is photogarphy,and I have been in and out of it ever since I had my first Pentax K1000.<br>

I have been practicing Photoshop and am actually getting good with layers and masks.Also working quite a bit with HDR as well.<br>

But heres the question: whats the best way to actually make a little money in Photogarphy? I have offered my services free of charge for editing and retouching,with little results. I thought maybe I could take the overflow for pro's who have better things to do than color balance or get rid of artifacts or blemishes on images. I also thought of getting a Nikon Coolscan V scanner and doing slides and neg scans, but ahven't found one yet for a good price.<br>

I am willing to put in the time and already have especially with post processing, but I'm sure I will learn a lot more with a little guidance.<br>

I have also been told to show my images to locak resterraunts and place s where they might sell,but I'm still not sure what would sell,and I'm not much of a promotor either.<br>

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.</p>

<p>Bruce:<br /><br />It's kind of like asking "how long is a piece of string?" since there are so many variables. Photography isn't a way to make money quickly - rather the opposite. I photograph editorial stock and as far as that goes the best way is to find a niche, develop deep and wide coverage of that niche and keep at it for years. For this to work you need to find a niche that you really love to photograph and where you can bring something different, more, extra to the table compared to the competition.<br /><br />In these tough economic times I think you'll be hard pressed to find many professionals who are willing to outsource their work, especially to someone new. Many professionals that need that type of service - color correction etc - either do it themselves or have a relationship with a lab or similar.<br /><br />Sit down and think about what you want to do as far as photography goes. Events, weddings, stock, freelance work for newspapers etc? Then start looking at local possibilities and figure out what the market looks like. If your local market is already over-saturated with competent photographers that shoot events and weddings on the cheap that specific area/topic might not be the best to go for. <br /><br />Hope that helps. </p>

<p>I guess the first place would to spekk Photography right,Is there a way to edit your posts?</p>

<p>Bruce, if you're not much of a promoter, you'll have much difficulty in finding success in photography. The business of photography is 10% about pictures and 90% about marketing and promotion.</p>

<p>So if you feel you need more confidence with people, find a Toastmasters club, or some similar resource that will allow you to build confidence in a safe environment, before you go ask a stranger for money (which is what selling your photography is all about).</p>

<p>The suggestion of showing your work in restaurants and coffee shops is a good one if that's where your intended market will see them. It does little good to exhibit your work where your market won't see it.</p>

<p>Mikael has it right, you need to look at your market, figure out which niche isn't occupied or is under served, and figure out how to sell your services in that market.</p>

<p><Chas><br /></p>

<p>I guess I was hoping my photography would speak for itself.But I also see that promoting your images, and in a way yourself would be very important also. Thats where I fall flat on my face.I guess thats where a lot of photographers fall as well. how many stories or histaory has great artists that were never even barely heard of while they were alive,suddenly become famous when there art is discovered.They did it because they loved it,and that served them to a degree.<br>

I've put my images up on Flickr,here,on Pbase,and I think out of the few I did post that I liked,I think I received one comment.Its similar to being a molecule of water in a flowing river...it goes right by and is never seen again.</p>

<p>you sound a lot like me, hoping the work speaks for itself and not having to do much. However I have learned over the years that its all about how much effort I put into it. If I put a lot into sales/marketing I get good results. If I just wait for it to come to me, I get nada. I do a lot of sports photography, and knowing the right people help. However that isn't enough. I have to rub noses with the parents, I have to talk football, hockey, soccer with them. I need to know those sports as well as they do. They think I'm a fan, not someone trying to make a buck.<br>

Another genre I'm interested in is studio work. There isn't much call for scantily clad women hanging on restaurant walls. At least not here! So I have to find other outlets. Local stores that sell clothes to do fashion work, local magazines to do glamour work. <br>

Like was stated above, its 90% marketing, networking, and being a people person. The successful photographer is extroverted, outgoing, and engaging. Ironically, most photographers are introverted by nature. Preferring to hide behind the camera or in the dark room. <br>

Another thing to consider is teaching. If you can teach those skills such as photoshop, you can make money that way.</p>

<p>Bruce:<br /><br />Why not placing some of your best images with an agency like Alamy? Once you have a few hundred/a thousand or so images and have had them up for a year or so you should see some indications - if not sales - that'll tell you if the images are marketable or not.<br /><br />Remember that there's a big difference between <strong>artistic</strong> photography and <strong>marketable</strong> photography. If you want to make money from your photography, it makes no difference how great artistically your images are if they don't sell.<br /><br />Your photography will not speak for itself unless your name is well-known and people will look your photography up because they know who you are or because your photography is already well-known. A bit of a Catch 22.</p>

<p> the comment about marketing is right on. There are a lot of ways to do that these days, and the internet really helps. I get almost all of my work now through the internet, but it took a long time to build my sites. I specialize in aerial photography now, after doing babies, schools, dance schools, pets, stock and a lot of other stuff. You won't get wealthy with "art" photography. Many of the photos that get used commercially are actually quite mundane. look at your local newspaper for example. ( papers don't pay much at all by the way, but you get your name out there ). Product photography is very important now to sell stuff online. I get good ebay sales because I know how to photograph what I'm selling. The photo business is a lot about people skills, dealing with customers, models, clients, etc. Find a niche that you're passionate about, and build a deep inventory. Get a website too, and put a few samples on various sites that are out there.</p>

<p> the comment about marketing is right on. There are a lot of ways to do that these days, and the internet really helps. I get almost all of my work now through the internet, but it took a long time to build my sites. I specialize in aerial photography now, after doing babies, schools, dance schools, pets, stock and a lot of other stuff. You won't get wealthy with "art" photography. Many of the photos that get used commercially are actually quite mundane. look at your local newspaper for example. ( papers don't pay much at all by the way, but you get your name out there ). Product photography is very important now to sell stuff online. I get good ebay sales because I know how to photograph what I'm selling. The photo business is a lot about people skills, dealing with customers, models, clients, etc. Find a niche that you're passionate about, and build a deep inventory. Get a website too, and put a few samples on various sites that are out there.</p>

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<p>the best way is to find a niche, develop deep and wide coverage of that niche and keep at it for years.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>This is the best advice you are going to get. These days, the world is awash in photos and there has never been easier access (via the internet) to photos of just about anything. It's only by having something that other people don't have that you will be really successful at this point in time.</p>

<p>I have the world's largest collection of high quality muay thai kickboxing photos that I know of, and I get a lot of requests. People find me because I'm the only one marketing them as that. I am published in magazines and books and licensed out to fightwear through my collection. I get business from gyms and coaches. I got into it somewhat accidentally, but ever since I realized what I have, I've been focused on it. That's what you have to do.<br>

<br /> I occasionally have shows, but I have no expectations. Even if you sell every print in a show, the costs are high and the shows take a long time to prepare. You don't have one every month.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Bruce,<br>

Although it's not my way of doing things, perhaps you need a partner. Someone who can promote your business and sell and market your work. It seems like you want to shoot and not do the rest, so find someone who has the skills you lack or are not interested in developing.<br>

Art will sometimes sell itself, but there isn't a lot of disposable income floating around these days. Bread and butter photography needs to be sold. Concentrate on a specific type of photography so you can develop your craft and purchase the necessary equipment. If your scope is too broad, you won't have the proper skills and equipment to do it all....-Aimee</p>

<p>Hey Bruce, I'm in the same boat as you. I think to make any kind of money selling photography as art, you have to be even better at marketing than you are at photography. How are you at sports photography? If you have a long lens, good reflexes, and can talk to strangers it might suit you. If you don't have any experience with sports photography, see if any of your friends have kids that are into youth sports. You could practice on them to see if its for you. You might also pick up some paying customers along the way.<br>

That's my next project in an attempt to turn my long term hobby into a paying gig. Parents are suckers for pictures of their kids (I know, I'm a parent.) I don't stand a chance at getting the contract at team photos just yet, so I'm going for action shots. My wife and I have made up flyers and plan on hitting some youth soccer games this weekend. We plan to circulate among the parents before the game and offer action shots. We'll take down names, phone numbers, and email addresses of parents that are interested and then concentrate on getting as many shots as possible of those kids. The plan is to send proofs by email to the parents within 48 hours along with paypal links for ordering.<br>

BTW, 2 reasons I am involving my wife. 1) I really need an assistant and my wife knows a good bit about photography. And 2) I'm hoping that will help put people at ease about a stranger photographing their kids. There are a lot of freaks out there and I want to do all I can to keep people from thinking I might be one of them.</p>

<p>Hey Rick. Yes I guess you might say that we would like to make money at something we've always enjoyed.I have a 70-200 and the 100-400, although I really think its too slow for action shots, especially If you go by all the Bird in Flight shots I take that turn out rather blurry.<br /><br />I would like to try Real Estate Photography, but the outlay for software and a new head to take panorama's is pretty expensive..<br /><br />My favorite things to take shots of are about the same as yours, although we are a little sparse up this way in New England as far as wildlife goes, especially compared with Florida. What lens will you be using for those actions shots?<br /><br /><br />I tried sending you an email but it was returned for being thought of as spam.</p>