Profesional Photography

[Fiberoptik]

I have been an amateur photographer for quite some time now. I mainly enjoy doing nature and portrait shots. I was wondering if anyone had any tips on how to break into the profesional field. I've never had any formal training other than through the various photo clubs I belong to. Anyone have nay suggestions.

[G3]

It depends. Which field? Wedding Photography or portrait photography? Wildlife photography or outdoor photography? Product photography? Sports photography?

[Fiberoptik]

G3

I would love to work in any of thie fields you mentioned but I find that I most enjoy scenic and wildlife photography. I have a small background in visual arts and I enjoy doing "artsy" type projects. Next to my camera, Photoshop is my best friend!

[IndyJeff]

The wildlife and nature field is a very competitive field and consequently a hard one to break into. Your best bet would be to put together a good selection and try to find someplace to display it, i.e. a gallery, a frame store, a shopping mall etc.
Try contacting National Geographic and submitting examples of your work. Without name recognition I imagine you will get a thanks but no thanks letter from them.
Sports Illustrated has a strict rule on submissions, they don't accept insolicited submissions. If you haven't discussed it with a photo editor, they won't even look at it. I imagine NG is the same way, maybe even worse.

[G3]

Yeah, to me Wildlife photography is the pinnacle. It is the most fun, for sure. It is also probably one of the most competitive fields and most difficult fields in which to gain recognition.

For any professional photographer, having your name widely known and recognized is key to selling your pictures. If you are a portrait or wedding photographer, being known in your geographic area is important. Once you shoot a few jobs and impress a few clients, then your name will be spread by word of mouth and you'll start to get referrals that way. Plus there's always advertising through the Yellow Pages, web sites, print ads, etc. Then people like wedding florists and others in the wedding field will start to refer their clients to you.

For the Wildlife Photographer or outdoor scenic photographer, life is a little different. You have to make the photos first, then submit them to publications such as magazines, and to stock photo houses. There are a zillion Wildlife Photographers and Outdoor Scenic Photographers out there shooting bajillions of photos and submitting them. Photography editors are difficult to impress. That does not mean that you can't get published. It just means that you have to first make sure that your photos are different from everyone else's and you have to be patient and willing to put up with rejection. Lots of rejection.

Another approach for Wildlife and Scenic Photographers is to rent booths and set up to sell matted or framed prints at Arts and Crafts shows. These things can be profitable and a lot of fun. There are some tricks to it, though. First, you obviously have to make your prints attractive enough that people will want to buy them. Pricing is important. It's funny what people are willing to pay sometimes. You don't want to price yourself out of the market, but you don't want to necessarily be the cheapest at the show, either. You work is worth what people are willing to pay for it, but it's worth no more than you are willing to sell it for. What I mean is you sort of have a hand in setting the value of your work at these things. If your work will realistically bring $100.00 for a matted print, but you have it marked at $20.00, then it's only worth $20.00 and it's going to set the pace for the rest of your work. You have to believe in your work at price it according to what you think it's worth, but be realistic. If it will realistically bring $100.00, then it should be priced at $100.00, if you price it at $200.00 it won't sell and people won't take you seriously. Go to a show or two first and see how other people's work compares to yours and how they have it priced.

By the way, it is best to have your prints for sale made by a professional lab and not just print them out on your home printer. The difference in quality is noticeable. That is, of course, unless you have one of the high-end professional printers in your house....but they are expensive.

I hope there was something in all that rambling that helps....

[tarves57]

G3,

Would you know if the Canon i990 could be considered as a professional printer? I'm dithering between buying a new printer or having my prints done at a lab.

Thanks

Susan

[G3]

It's a consumer printer. You can make some pretty impressive prints with the i990, i9900, i960 or just about any of those printers, but it's not easy to get real professional quality prints out of them. The printer and monitor have to be very well calibrated. You can get prints out of them that are good enough to sell, I'm sure...if you want to spend the time and money to do it. A good custom print from a pro lab is probably still going to have an edge.

[tarves57]

Thanks G3!

Susan