17 year old photographer

<p>Hi, <br /> I am a 17 year old, I have won some national / international awards and have sold some of my work. I have been asked by people over time if I would be a photographer for their families / events and have shied away from the opportunity because I am not sure I am qualified. Also I am not sure if I should or could advertise my services at all because of my age. <br /> I have covered events for my school, of course not charging them but giving them the pictures which they have used in their newspapers/advertising I have covered plays/musicals and sports for them. I have also covered a couple of adult hockey games where my more recent requests have come from. <br /> I am lucky enough to have good gear Nikon D700, SB-900, 14-24mm ED f2.8, 24-70mm ED 2.8 50mm 1.4 and some telephoto and macro. I also have a Leica M8 and summicron 35mm and summilux 24mm. Is this gear acceptable to use for work? I really am not sure about what I should add to my kit?<br /> so yeah my questions are, is it possible for me to do work as a photographer charging for my services or would it be degrading to professional photographers who have committed much more time to this and do it as their main source of income. <br /> and also what else should I add to my kit?<br>

also what can I charge? I am not sure about that, I have done some tech/photoshop work for people and have always said pay me what you think its worth but I am not sure if that applies here at al, thanks, </p>

<p>If people are requesting your services, then it sounds like you are qualified, at least to some degree. I don't think you should turn down the chance, at least for added experience. If you aren't sure what to charge, find out what photographers in your area charge and base your pricing accordingly. Not having seen your work, and sense you said you aren't sure of yourself, you could always do a few sessions at cost or for a minimal fee, and go from there. </p>

<p>As to what gear you need, I don't recommend buying anything unless you know why you are buying it. What do you feel you need to enhance your photography? Can you use your flash off-camera? Would you benefit from more lights? These are questions you have to answer for yourself. </p>

<p>Charge what you feel you are worth, don't short-change yourself.</p>

<p>I live in fairfield, CT and the only photographer I know in the area and that people I know have used is Ben Larabee so I dont have anything REAL to base it off of, is there anywhere where photographers in an area can be found online? because I am not really sure how to locate anyone <em>real </em>to compare myself to....</p>

<p>I definitely think lighting is what I need now that you mention it, thanks, </p>

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<p>is it possible for me to do work as a photographer charging for my services or would it be degrading to professional photographers who have committed much more time to this and do it as their main source of income.</p>

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<p>of course not charging them I have done some tech/photoshop work for people and have always said pay me what you think its worth</p>

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<p>What the market is willing to pay you - Your willingness to accept it = The answer to your question. </p>

<p>Do they hand out grades at your school based on how long someone has been a student or how many times they took the math class or is it based on performance? Will you flunk out of a class so the other people who spend more time studying aren't degraded by you? If you wish to work for free, that's your choice but if the reason is because of other photographers, you should consider whether you are degrading yourself instead.</p>

<p>I believe that you can charge for your services, but talk to someone nearby who can help you understand the requirements for you to meet to establish yourself. Every state has its own regulations for licensing and taxing what you do. The IRS would probably be happy to consider your photography as a hobby rather than a business for the time being. The link below may help you find someone in Connecticut who understands how to get started there.</p>

<p>Redirect your question to <a href="http://www.hartfordscore.org/">http://www.hartfordscore.org/</a> This is the web site for the Hartford branch of SCORE. I copied the following description from their web site for you.</p>

 

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<p>The <strong>National SCORE® Association</strong>, headquartered in Washington, D.C., is a nonprofit association dedicated to entrepreneurial education and the formation, growth and success of small businesses nationwide. Our public service mission is to provide face-to-face and email business counseling to help small businesses evaluate plans, stabilize, grow, innovate and succeed.</p>

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<p>You do indeed have capable gear for your age. If you have covered events as games and feel you have the understanding to cover indoor/outdoor family events, take on one and ask for a minimal payment, lets say around 100 dollars as your payment and extra for prints or cds. You need to tell the organiser that this is your first such event and would they be happy to employ you for such a nominal amount. This allows for a little more movement even the interested party still wants to go ahead.<br>

Get all the experience from this first assignments. You seem to be a level headed young man judging by your post and achievements so far. Age should not be a barrier. If possible, talk to your parent and guardian and see if they are willing to take the responsibility of some sort of indemnity insurance when you are covering professional gigs at a later stage. Get as much experience you can, see if you still enjoy it and one more thing, stay at school, go to college and try to widen your carrer choice as much as you can.</p>

<p>I would totally jump into the business. You want to make money, maybe to buy some more equipment or just to get what you want otherwise. There's this guy wh started being a LA papparazi at 16 (and i really hate papparazi, and all the celebs i know as well), but it's a business.<br>

Other people your age work at restaurants or other low qualification jobs and get paid accordingly. If you have the knowledge and the expensive equipment, kick some numbers around, like shoot for 2 hrs, get to and from location (even if parents drive you), the costs involved, and the replacement cost for all the equipment involved divided by the shoots you anticipate. Add an hour of post production per shoot hour and give yourself a hourly rate.<br>

Lets say you $5000 in equipment, shoot 25 shots in 2 years, the equipment cost per shoot is $200, now the cost involved, phone, gas, car, batteries is, lets say $50 and you shoot for 2 hrs and want to make $25 an hour, that's a total of 4hrs worked =$100, for the grand total of $350. Now if your clients can agree to that, limit their expectations a bit, and exceed it every time.<br>

And start building an online portfolio with your best shots, you don't have to actively market it, but if someone asks, you can send them the link or even print a couple of business cards...<br>

The one thing i would add is a backup Nikon body, something always will go wrong and it's only professional to have a good backup.<br>

As for established photographers, we all started somewhere, you're young and can be cheap, nimble, fresh and probably won't book a wedding for $5k right away, but who knows. And as you grow into this you can expand your knowledge and arsenal with the money earned. I couldn't think of a better way to learn the basics of business in general as you encounter all aspects of a company and will learn about money management, which seems lost on some artists. </p>

<p>Nothing wrong with your gear, Brian. In fact it's similar to some of mine. Nothing wrong with being 17 either. If your work is good and you can create demand then go out there and make the most of it.....</p>

<p>Hey Brian,<br>

I'm a little late to jump into this question, but maybe I can help. I was in your position once upon a time, and I can appreciate your interested in doing right by the client and doing right by the photo industry.<br>

Although the novelty of learning the skills of photography may make the business feel like uncharted terrain for you, photography for families is a well worn path where certain conventions are expected. You can bring creativity to these conventions, certainly, but your potential customers have been informed by the pictures on the walls of their friends' houses. Everybody wants something different, they say. Some do. But many families want to appear to belong to their peer group more than having your abstract notions of their portraiture. At this point, they want the service, not your style. You haven't been around long enough to create a demand for a signature look. When families ask a precocious photographer for services, it's often not because of your brilliance, but because they think you might be cheaper than a lot of established photographers. You're in the ballpark for their needs, so they're hoping for a discount. Of course, they also like the idea of a personal relationship with a photographer. That's very important too.<br>

I would recommend studying the stylistic trends in portraiture in your area. Portfolios are often left around banquet halls for perusal, and websites of course are a resource. I would recommend imitating styles rather than innovating to start. You'll make a natural progression from imitation to your own look. Don't worry about it too much. The important thing though is that personal portrait photography is product-driven. Most people don't want just any picture; they want a specific kind of picture. Most people, not all. Learning the conventions of the product is very important. Standard product portraiture is a huge industry segment, and you're more likely to get requests for it than not. The styles are somewhat regional, so keep that in mind. If you're looking at a photographer's website in Santa Cruz, that may be too far out for Fairfield.<br>

Finally, about the gear. Gear doesn't really matter as long as the idea in front of the camera is working. Once you can consistently execute good ideas in front of the camera, then the gear can become an added value feature. Larger formats tend to be a little more forgiving of portraiture. Most Nikon 35mm digitals can be extremely rough on a subjects skin faults. Nikons emphasize strong blacks which deepen wrinkles in skin and dark circles under eyes. Of course, that can be changed in photoshop, but it's hard to show a client a picture straight off the back of the camera. If you light the scene to death, you can get away with this, but most small jobs won't have the time frame for this kind of lighting. Canon's tend to shoot with a little bit lighter black point, and skin tones come out a little paler. Although the red/yellow tone of a Nikon can add a very healthy look, sometimes the more pastel-y Canon palette is easier to show a client straight off the back of the camera. The Nikon in-camera controls help very little with this problem.<br>

One of the best things you can do is go to a PPA seminar about posing. They'll have some old codger up on stage showing how to pose a bride or something, and it will look very stiff and uninteresting. But what these guys are teaching are conventional poses that show the thinnest cross section of the human form in order to make the subjects look more attractive. These poses have been around since the Renaissance for a reason, and it's important to know that they are effective in many cases.<br>

Also, if you want to make more money rather than less, try to identify the families which tend to have huge portraits of themselves in their homes. If a family comes to you wanting some 8x10's, good for them. But the photographers with viable family portraiture businesses are selling portraits at fine furniture prices. They're selling home decor, not scrapbook memories. Keep that in mind. So the prices in this case, with framed and exotic print preservation treatments, sell for Ethan Allen prices. Know what the stuff in your target market's house costs, and you'll know basically how much you should be charging.<br>

Final point, beware of using those superwide lenses you have. They're great for highly stylized pictures, but those lenses will start bending hands and feet in unflattering directions. You'll be working so fast, that you won't notice. Finally, with groups, use more depth of field than you think is necessary. Groups often arrange themselves in an arc, though the camera's zone of focus is flat. Some of those folks will end up soft if you're not careful.<br>

There's tons more, but that's enough for now.<br>

Best regards.</p>