The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.
Becoming a Professional Photographer
With the influx of high-quality digital cameras, clicking good pictures and becoming a photographer has become pretty simple and easy. Think, you have been clicking great pictures and been getting those sweet compliments on how wonderful your pictures are and how good are your photography skills. Taking all those complimentary gestures and praises seriously, you thought of becoming a professional photographer.
Wait! Before you head into making photography as a full-time profession, consider the following points before finalizing on your decision. If you at least know what lies ahead and what circumstances you may face on the way, you can decide better.
1. Do you think you click mostly ‘perfect pictures’? – This is impossible at the first place, no one clicks all pictures perfectly. Having said that, great photographers generally tend to click a picture perfectly in the first shot itself. If you know (not just think!) you do click great quality pictures, it would be great idea to venture in as a ‘professional photographer’.
If you think your skills as a photographer has not yet reached that ‘perfect zone’, give up the decision to plunge into it as a full time livelihood. In the meantime, you can hone your photography skills with projects that comes along as a freelancer photographer.
2. Are you an experienced photographer? – Experience does count and matter a lot, whether it is photography or some other profession. With experience you know how light, lenses, focus and angles can work miracles in making a picture look perfect! Expert photographers are generally experienced photographers who have learnt the dos and don’ts of photography. They are the ones who also get the higher paycheck.
Before giving up your day job for the love of photography, understand and measure how good is your photography skills. Already a number of pros are out there looking for projects, your chance of succeeding without exceptional skills or experience could be just hard!
3. Love ‘Photography’ beyond measure – Now if ‘photography’ is like the love of your life, reconsider your decision to make your passion into profession. Often, we have seen once a passion or hobby becomes a profession, it takes the connotation of ‘work’ which often takes a sense of not-so-pleasant feeling.
Clicking just for fun and clicking for a paycheck does have a difference, the former can be more casual & relaxed and the later can look like drudgery at times. Once you make your hobby as profession, chances are you will hardly enjoy your hobby anymore.
4. Do you have good ‘Interpersonal skills’? – This is as important as having great photography skills. When you take a photography project, you need to get along with the clients and understand what their expectations out of your work are. Oftentimes, we have seen people who are better at dealing with people, gets better and higher number of projects. Why? Because, we always tend to look for hiring someone who can get along with us well, so that we can communicate clearly and get the better results.
Having good communication skill is also super important, as communication can help understand client’s expectations and deliver proper results. If you are someone who doesn’t like talking to everyone and just love clicking pictures, I would suggest you to reconsider your decision to become a professional photographer.
5. Being a pro photographer is not always fun – Photography is not always fun. It is work and requires a lot of efforts from your end. Things get even trickier when you are on your own as a professional photographer. Every client would be different, some good and some bad, you should have the ability to handle stress and pressure that comes with the photography profession.
Choosing a career is always challenging, as it will change your entire life. If you are sure of your abilities and skills as a photographer or you are ready to at least give it a try, then why not go ahead and live your dreams. Sometimes, you click with the right things in life while experimenting, give yourself that ‘One’ chance when you are sure and see how the career as a professional photographer unfolds for you.
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