Tips for Choosing a Career in Photography

This is a guest post from Becky Patterson who writes on the topic of Becoming a Photographer . She can be reached at beckypatterson89[@]gmail[.]com.

The advent of the digital camera has redefined the way we view photography today – any Tom, Dick or Harry with a camera thinks they’re the best because technology has made it so easy to capture images that are clear and beautiful. However, only those with the discerning eye know that it takes much more than an automatic contraption to make a photographer worth mentioning, and it’s these people who strive to find a career in photography. For them, there’s more to shooting pictures than the mere capture alone; they view photography as an art form that requires the greatest creativity combined with a host of other factors which vary according to the kind of photography you choose to go with.

So if you’ve decided to make your passion your profession and hook up with photography for the rest of your life, here are a few tips that will come in handy:

Choose your field of photography because you’re passionate about it and not for the money. While money is a good thing, it’s passion that keeps you going and provides the motivation to stay on the job when there are hindrances and deterrents. However, since there’s no use working for peanuts, try and find something that lets you achieve a balance between money and love.

It’s not easy to find the job of your dreams immediately, so it’s best to settle for the job you do get, and work towards securing the job you’ve always wanted. Very often, you find that you like what you’re doing and settle in to make a career out of it.

While formal education is not really necessary to achieve success in the field of photography, employers are increasingly leaning towards those with at least a bachelor’s degree in fine arts with a major in photography when they’re hiring. So go to college for four years, or choose to study online even as you continue to practice photography and experiment with its various techniques.

There’s nothing more important than practice to a photographer – the more you practice and try out new things, the better you become. So work at honing your skills and keeping up to date with all that’s happening in the world of photography, and you’re going to do just fine.

Create a portfolio of your best work – talk is good, but actions (or in this case, photos) speak much louder than words.  

Each field of photography requires specific skills, so work on developing yours based on the kind of work that you do.

At every stage of your career, remember this:

It’s not easy to become a professional photographer and taste success overnight – most people slog it out for years as an apprentice or intern before they’re able to secure a break and branch out on their own.

The money may not be good at the beginning and at times, you may fail miserably if people don’t acknowledge your work and refuse to pay you the attention or the money you think you deserve. So if you’re hoping for your own gallery exhibition right from the word go, you’re only chasing a pot of gold at the end of a fictitious rainbow that’s just a mirage. 

The hours are long and erratic, especially if you work with nature and have to wait it out for the perfect light or for the animals to break from their routine. Boredom is a huge part of photography that you must be willing to put up with before you enter the profession.

Wildlife photography, photo journalism in war-torn countries, and travel to exotic locations may sound glamorous, but there’s also an element of danger in these assignments. You could hurt badly, and in worst case situations, even killed.

Most photographers choose to freelance at some point or the other during their careers; so when you decide to go down this road, know that the going is going to be tough, and that unless you’re prepared to work hard and prove yourself through your work, you will not be able to reap rich rewards. 

Comments

[Hank]

Excellent article. It does seem that almost everyone with a camera is now self-proclaiming to be a photographer. I totally agree that the physical act of pressing a shutter button does not make someone a photographer.

One point you make that I do not fully agree with, and that is that photography is boring. With the digital age, it's more exciting than ever. Outside or your personal time, what are we wasting snapping 1,000s of pics while we wait for that perfect moment? There are images all around us all of the time, they are just waiting to be captured !

[bill Ives]

Hank - Thanks for your comment. I agree about the improvement wit digital. I am much more likely to be experimental. I take many more images and some end up as paintings. I also photo the stags my paintings and get instant feedback. Bill

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