How do you become a professional photographer?

Question

I am amazing at taking photographs.
I have been doing this since i was about nine years old, Every one tells me i should sell my photographs. But I do not know how to or where to begin. Does any one know how I should start out my life long dream? Whom i should send a portfolie to, any ideas or tips Please. It would be most useful.

-Thank you.

Answer 1

I am an Animator with a few Photographer friends. Web sights are a great way to get your portfolio out there. Web sights show updated work, also should show your best work and later with some experience sell your work.

Employers are looking for talent! Improve your skills by taking a few classes or reading as many books as you can get. Photos that show line, shape, form, contrast and color.

The Get some business cards, a portfolio and then network. Start small at a local newspaper then work your way up. Never stop taking pictures!!!

P.S. The art world is a very small family at the top so don't burn Bridges. Just ask Don Bluth. Good luck and remember the choice to go for what you dream is half of the battle. Don't get discouraged.

Answer 2

I think you are being too modest. Tell us how good you really are.

Since we attend school to learn math and history and science its only reasonable to attend school to learn photography.

So begin your "life long dream" by enrolling in photography classes. If one of the "name" schools is beyond your reach then a two year degree from a community college should be your goal. If your local community college doesn't offer one then you may have to relocate. A better choice would be a 4 year degree from a university in your state.

While you're in school, work as an assistant (gofer) for a professional photographer. Since you have 2 eyes and 2 ears and 1 mouth you should watch and listen and only ask questions when your mentor isn't working or if you really don't understand the instructions you were given. Get as involved as possible in the actual business of photography. Its more than just taking photos and collecting the money. The actual photography is probably 30% of running a sucessful photography business. The rest is getting assignments, planning the shoot, taking care of paperwork, paying the bills, etc.

Plan on taking some business courses. Learn what is required by your state as far as licensing, taxes, business deductions, etc. Ditto for the federales in Washington. Learn the difference between an "S" Corporation and an LLC.

As a business you'll need insurance in case you blow a wedding or have your equipment stolen or broken or are involved in an accident on your way to an assignment or get injured during an assignment.

By now you're probably getting the idea that being a professional photographer is more complicated than you thought.

According to the Small Business Administration, 1/2 of all businesses fail in the first year. Of the ones that survive for a year, 1/2 of them fail in the second year.

I'm not trying to be a "Gloomy Gus" or a "Prophet of Doom" here. My intent is to give you some grounding in the realities of business.

Good luck.

Answer 3

First decide what type of photography you want to do mostly. Sports, portraits, weddings, commercial, pets, etc etc.

Once you've decided where you want to concentrate your efforts, then look to do some work in that area. If it's something like weddings or commercial, look to apprentice with someone. Check out Craigslist http://craigslist.org for your area. If you want to specialize in fashion or portraits, there are always people on Craigslist looking for TFP or TFCD work, meaning you shoot them for free and you get to build up your portfolio.

If you want to just jump into it, check out jobs (and gigs) on Craigslist. There are "ALWAYS" people looking for (freelance) photographers for all types of work. Some won't pay well at first, but you'll get some networking. If you do it right, for every job you work, you should at least find one more job from that one.

You should have an online and/or a physical portfolio to show people your work. Print up business cards. Create a website. Tell "everyone" you know that you are a "Professional Photographer" (but don't push yourself on them). You'd be amazed how well word of mouth works. Display your work anywhere and everwhere you can.

If you are talking about "Stock" Photography - Check out Getty Images (http://www.gettyimages.com/Editorial/Editorial.aspx) and avoid micro-stock sites (they literally pay pennies for every photo).

Join your local photography club. I used to belong to one where they already had an "in" into several venues for selling artwork and photographs. The good ones are VERY hard to get into, but if you are part of the club, you can often rent a wall or panel from the club. It's MUCH cheaper this way and you get a head start into the better venues.

Answer 4

Showcase your images on the web. If you do not have your own website consider a free alternative such as flickr or photo.net. From there you may consider promoting your work at a free online resource like craigslist.

Answer 5

i went to photography school it helped alot.

if you understand my question below this then you might not need school, if its greek to you your not ready to become freelance

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