can u make a living?

[chartbin]

Really make a living!?
Please give the hard truth.

[Persian-Rice]

Are there a million photographers in the world? I'm pretty sure they don't eat crackers and live in a shoebox hahahaha.

Ya man, you can make a living, if you work hard and pay your dues, you can make a very good living as a matter of fact.

[chartbin]

P-R
That's seems to be the problem. There are millions out there. Everyone is so good, imho. What are the dues in this line of work? I only hear inspiring stories in mags and stuff but surely... I am thinking.............. well I need someone to wake me up!

[Conk]

I think P-R has given the best possible answer to that question but I'll try and take it a little farther. Like he said, if you work hard and pay your dues.
I think many, many people first starting out with photography ask themselves the same question. Do you feel that you have learned enough to to actually make a buck shooting photos? Do you have an eye for it? I believe that if you come to the point where you can say yes to these questions then maybe you can make a go of it. It is like any other profession that a person might want to take on as self employment. You must do the footwork, plain and simple. You will only get out of it what you put into it. You make a decision and you take a chance. Nothing is guaranteed.
You might find an "in" meaning, somebody see's your photos and raves about them and wishes to purchase them. Or ask you to work for them. Waiting for this to happen though is probably like waiting to win the lottery, so back to doing the footwork.
Is there any type of photography that interests you? Do you have money? Being a photographer is almost like a real-estate salesman. You show and show until someone says "hey, I like that one. How much"? You may have to eat Kraft Dinner and Wieners until you actually make a sale.
If you don't have a lot of money but you are working full time at a different occupation, then you might want to test the waters and see what you can do first.
Like I said earlier, it is like any other self employed endeavor. There are certain risks and nothing is guaranteed.

Then again this may all be a pure bunch of bull tweety, and that's why I'm a boat builder full time. :? :roll:

[robertwgross]

Two points of business that can be applied to photography.

(1) Harvest the low-hanging fruit whenever possible.

(2) It's easier to take the second quarter from somebody than it is to take the first quarter. (That means once you make a sale to somebody, then continue to offer more items to the same person.)

---Bob Gross---

[Persian-Rice]

Thanks for the support conk,

What i mean is, you are going to have to work for free, you are going to take on some jobs that you might not like. You might have to cut into your sleep time for a few weeks to get work done, you might need to live in umm, below par conditions for a while, you might have to take a second or even third job.

I have never been a natural at anything really, but it seems though I dont give up at one thing untill I am the damn best at it. I dont expect to graduate and make 60K/year like oh an accountant might.

Maybe this can be a quotable little paragraph at some time.

Being a photographer is being self-employed and running a small business. Some years it might be slow, some years it might be great. The goal is to develop your product over time. Building a reputation is not an overnight thing, you can't wish for it, you can't buy it. It comes by producing a quality product and guiding it along the right path towards the right market. No one can say whether you will crash and burn, no one can say you will be the next star. If you fall, you have to get back up and get on the ride. In essence, it's a risk, you can be better then Ansel and never get noticed, or you can fluke a shot and become the next LaChapelle.

Cheers.

[Conk]

Maybe this can be a quotable little paragraph at some time.

Being a photographer is being self-employed and running a small business. Some years it might be slow, some years it might be great. The goal is to develop your product over time. Building a reputation is not an overnight thing, you can't wish for it, you can't buy it. It comes by producing a quality product and guiding it along the right path towards the right market. No one can say whether you will crash and burn, no one can say you will be the next star. If you fall, you have to get back up and get on the ride. In essence, it's a risk, you can be better then Ansel and never get noticed, or you can fluke a shot and become the next LaChapelle.

Cheers.

Applauds and cheers!

[timmyquest]

I'm not entirely sure what i want to do with my life, i think i want to teach...i'm not sure. One thing i do know is that i'd like to make money doing photography, and that is the nice thing about it...you dont have to rely strictly on photography for your only source of income.

Maybe i'm being nieve...who knows

[Jesper]

Really make a living!?
Please give the hard truth.

Yes, absolutely.
But not with photography...... :roll: :?

[sdommin]

An interesting thread.

Here are some more things to think about:

I like ice cream, but if I had ice cream for every meal, every day, I don't think I'd like it anymore. And if I was forced to eat ice cream all the time, I know I wouldn't like it anymore. It wouldn't be special, it wouldn't be a treat. It would be just another food.

[Persian-Rice]

An interesting thread.

Here are some more things to think about:

I like ice cream, but if I had ice cream for every meal, every day, I don't think I'd like it anymore. And if I was forced to eat ice cream all the time, I know I wouldn't like it anymore. It wouldn't be special, it wouldn't be a treat. It would be just another food.

I really took this into consideration before deciding on the path I want to take. I think if you set some goals, it will really help to fuel the passion. I also think you need to keep your mind open to all sorts of photography.

Ice cream everyday might get boring, but there are millions of different flavours. If you can learn to enjoy all the flavors, you will never run out of things to do and try. It really depends on ones personality. Photography is art, no matter what genre you want to be involved in.

Chartbin, if you are posting this in mind of pursuing a career or changing one, think very hard about it. The last thing I would want to see is someone make the wrong choice. I come from a very long bloodline of artists, some very successful and quite famous, some not quite. I know all about the hardships artist go through, just by looking at my family. Its not easy and it doesn't always make huge money. If you think you can wake up every morning looking forward to another day of life as a photographer, for many years to come, no matter if you will be rich or not, then it might be for you.

[shelbix2020]

I ate ice cream for 39 days straight ... I loves the ice cream

I want some ice cream ... and tacos

I make a living, its possible. I made my bed too.

Really make a living!?
Please give the hard truth.

[Persian-Rice]

I ate ice cream for 39 days straight ... I loves the ice cream

I want some ice cream ... and tacos

I make a living, its possible. I made my bed too.

Really make a living!?
Please give the hard truth.

??
Someone still has a buzz from last night haha.

[shelbix2020]

:oops: who me??

its not really a buzz ... more of a "what teh hell did I do last night" pain.

but ya know Im still hungry :cry:

[blinking8s]

i see a ton of "pro photographers" that suck and live fine off it...i honestly think once I know how to work a camera properly and have a small yet effective power house of lenses...im going to have to beat down the pro world one bad photographer at a time...lol

but there are a lot of good ones, I plan on learning off of them :)

i start basic photo class tomorrow morning, wait...this morning...damn, i need some sleep...