How to become a photographer

[Absha]

Morning!

For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to be a photographer but for one reason or another it’s never happened.

Now’s the time for me to take that leap and do something for myself.

Are any other mums on here professional photographers?
Where do I start?
I’m very much a learn as I go person - I’ve attended a few local photography classes but I don’t have my own camera yet.

Can any one suggest a decent starter camera and editing software?
Also any other equipment recommendations?

I’ll be photographing people, families and babies outside as I don’t have a studio.

Any help pointing me in the right direction to start my dream career would be amazing x

How come you don’t have a camera? Surely someone who has always wanted to be a photographer has spent years taking photos as a hobby because they love doing it?

You’ll need to spend a lot of time taking photos of things and events to get a portfolio together, and offering your services for free at school and community fairs, sports events etc to network and build your reputation.

What appeals given you’re not a hobbyist photographer?

I have an old Canon EOS 300D which I used a long time ago. It’s so dated now that I don’t use it as it doesn’t produce the picture quality I’m trying to achieve.

I’ve previously used my ex father in laws Nikon D3500 but obviously don’t use that anymore.

When I say I don’t have my own camera I mean that is usable to produce pictures at a quality decent enough to sell.

I came on here trying to get advice on something I’m passionate and feel strongly about.

I didn’t come on here for negativity so if you’ve not any thing constructive to say please don’t comment on my post.

I think friends and family/ your social media, would be a starting point.

Do friends admire your photos and ask you to take theirs?

I was doing it as a very serious hobby a few years back. Take some photos of DD with her then toddlers pals at meet ups, sent to the parents, and gradually became "in demand". Wedding invites followed, friends wanted engagement photos, pub bands wanted promo photos etc.

My style was candid documentary at weddings, golden hour bokeh portraits of kids in parks etc. Always with permission etc. At weddings I would always make clear I was not a pro, and if they had a pro I always made a point of telling them I was a "spare" and would not get in their way.

Is that similar to yourself ? I never charged.

The camera does not really matter, although you will need full frame. And if pro you need dual memory card slots. It's the lenses that matter. Whatever platform you favour, you will likely need the "holy grail" lens collection to go with it. For Cannon for example, that will be the EF24-70 f2.8L, the EF70-200 f2.8L and a fast prime or 2, or 3, or 4.

Add to that flashes, flash remotes, reflectors

Software is lightroom. Because you are trying to have the camera do the work, not the software. In my opinion anyway. Though every photo needs a tweek and converted from RAW. And with RAW, loads of hard disk space.

I think to be a pro you need to be really outgoing and a bit forceful, strong character, business minded and all that. I aint, so am strictly amateur. Herding cats was never my thing :-)

Nowadays of course phone cameras can do all the bokeh, so not as much call for what only fast lenses used to be able to do. So whereas a skilled hobby photographer might be able to tell the difference between phone photos and pukka pro gear stuff, most consumers can't.

So yup. I reckon start with family, friends, extended social media, and make a name for yourself.

To add to my above post, I forgot to mention what I think is called the swipe test.

Create a collection of your photos and put them on a tablet. Give the tablet to someone and watch them as they swipe. If they dwell often, maybe pinch zoom in etc, then it indicates you have got their attention. I can't remember how long for each swipe and view is good or bad. Comments and questions are good.

Some folk do seem to have a natural ability no matter what gear. The swipe test is a good gauge of that.

Overall though, go for it.

How are your business skills?Marketing, admin, customer service, finance? Is the market round you already saturated? How can you differentiate yourself from others?

If you want have a serious career making decent money as a photographer you need to have considered all of these. Round here we have new photographers popping up all the time. Very few last longer than a couple of years. Those who are well established and have good business acumen last the course.

Do you have a current portfolio of the type of photography you want to specialise in? If not then getting an appropriate camera and building a portfolio is the first stage. Then the hard work of starting a business starts. Are you a canon/nikon or Sony fan? Mirrorless or not?

I’m excited for you OP! Lightroom comes with cloud storage, but an external drive would be useful once you’ve built your clientele. There are courses such as the OU ‘taking better digital images’ that will give you a basic overview of most of what you need to know, and also the free course A Year With My Camera. Enjoy!

I’m a professional, full time photographer op. It’s a crowded market and you will be competing with huge numbers of varying quality. It’s also a vast field. What type of photography do you want to specialise in? Do you want to be employed or self employed (I’ve done both - currently employed by a large firm in their media dept). Taking photos is about 15% of the job. There’s so much more to it - happy to offer advice if you can be more specific

@RedTagAlan Thanks so much for your helpful reply.
I’ve always had compliments and request for me to photograph my friends children.
I’d like to photograph children and animals in natural settings.

Thank you for the info on canon lenses.
Very interesting to hear about the swipe test - I’ll definitely be trying that!

@Florabella My business skills are decent - I’ve previously worked in construction which is very cut throat.
There are photographers around me but mainly wedding photographers, which isn’t something I’d like to initially do.
I’m keen to photograph children, families and animals in outdoor natural settings.

I have a few photo’s to put towards a portfolio but would really like to invest in a good camera.
I’ve looked into mirrorless cameras but I don’t think it’s something I can initially afford. I’m hoping to purchase a good DSLR camera that is simple to use to get started. No preference on brand.

Well first step is owning your own camera and practicing first…. Please dont just set up your own business and go full throttle, you need to build up your own skills. Not fair on those with established photography businesses. This is why I quit as a wedding photographer, to many people thinking they can do it to without the skill & knowledge and undercutting those who do have the skills & knowledge. Its a extremely overcrowded profession.

@Seagull4a Thank you for such a positive response and info on courses.
I’ll definitely look into them!

A girl at my daughter's yard is doing it as a side hustle. She's very good and makes a lot of money from it. She does horse photo shoots.

Someone else I know does food photography professionally. She's also a phenomenal cook though.

@SergeantWrinkles I’d like to photograph kids, families and animals - outdoors in candid shots.
This is something I’d like to pursue initially self employed.

I know I need to start developing a portfolio and initially won’t dream of charging people for photo’s.
I guess I’m just asking for help to take the first step.

I know there’s a difference between enjoying something as a hobby and making a living out of it but this is really something I want to put my all into.

@XelaM Thanks for that info!
I live in the rural south west of England so plenty of equestrian facilities around me.
My family also keeps horses so I can definitely practice those shots easily!

The cooking may be tricky because I can’t cook 🤣

@ComfortFoodCafe Hi!
I wouldn’t dream of initially charging for photos or pretending to be a professional.
Becoming a photographer is my long term goal.

I want to start developing a portfolio and seeing what my limitations are.
If all else fails at least I’ll be able to take beautiful shots of my own family and friends.

Christmas photo shoots of horse and rider are very popular, so now is a good time to offer your services for free to gain experience and a following. They are normally expensive!

If you're anywhere near North London you can practice on our 3 horses 😂 My daughter will be delighted

Some practical things you can do:

• get DBS checked if you want to specialise in photographing kids.
• build up a portfolio of work using friends and family
• get a trading name, website, Facebook, insta (whatever platform) set up
• i’d look into whether there any local business / marketing courses you can do.
• do your research - what are others offering, how much do they charge for the shoot, prints etc - what packages do they offer.

Personally I would look to transition to paid quite quickly - your time and skills are worth something. Don’t charge your friends and family for the initial portfolio but if and when you get requests for photos then charge. If you don’t it will be harder to later on.

ok. You have to be good. There’s so much awful stuff out there. You need to practice practice practice. You don’t say how much experience you have as a hobbyist other than you don’t currently have a working camera but the key to being professiobal, imo, is being able to deliver consistently high quality results. Lots of people can be good at photography but as I say, it’s a very crowded market, and making a living from it is quite hard these days. Most of the work and time you spend will be marketing, networking, editing and chasing clients for payment/paperwork etc. it can be expensive to start up but maybe look at hiring different cameras to see which one you like best, before you invest in a system. Having a portfolio is only the start. How proficient are you? There is money to be made but you have to know how to get to the people with money to spend! You’ll see shout outs on Facebook for ‘reasonably priced’ photographers for family shoots but what they mean is ‘I want to pay £2.50 because I actually don’t value what you do’. And you’ll see hundreds of aspiring photographers clamouring to be paid a pittance.

learn how to use lighting. Joel grimes does some interesting courses. Remember that even if you aren’t charging, at the very least, have public liability insurance, make sure you understand about permissions and legal obligations surrounding copyright, model releases and where you can and can’t photograph. Purpleport is a good site for connecting with models who often do TFP collaborations to build your portfolio. Try offering to second shoot for a wedding photographer once you know what you’re doing (if you don’t already) Only ever shoot manual. Get to know your camera inside out so you can change settings instantaneously. There’s a lot to learn. I’ve been pro for 15 years. I still cock up, but my experience means I know how to fix things. And I’m still learning. Join a local photography group and get stuck in. Practice practice practice! It took me two years before I felt comfortable charging. Good luck

Honestly I am a photographer (totally different niche though) and the market is crazy flooded with people taking cutesy pictures of toddlers kicking through autumn leaves.

You’ll have to build up a significant bank of work on Instagram. And practice, a LOT. Taking really clear shots of little chaos people is harder than you might think.

I prefer a Canon over anything else, you can get a second hand body for maybe £3-500 and then lenses are more on top.

Good luck to you; I don’t think for many it’s a viable full time moneymaker. The few I know who did it when this type of photography was all the rage have now become…online course deliverers do photographers, as that seems to be a way to make it into a bit of a side hustle.

In the nicest way, this is why photographers apart from the very top tier can’t make any money. People come along offering their services for free and it pulls the industry down in terms of what we can charge. It’s not really fair.

My friend is a photographer and when she was learning/studying she would read the photography magazines for free on our local library app to learn about techniques and tips etc.

People on this thread are so negative. The girl I mentioned who started photographing horses as a hobby has 45 horsey photo shoots lined up in the next few days. It's a great side hustle.

Also, the food photographer I know makes a good living.

I’m a full time professional and have been for 15 years. Being practical and realistic is not negative!

It’s not negative to say that it’s a hard slog, and that you need to practice with pro gear, charge appropriately, and be aware that for many people it’s a side hustle, not something that pays the mortgage.

I mean it’s great fun and I love it, but I also have a full time job 🤷‍♀️