Switching career fields to photographer

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Hey everyone I've been thinking about where I want to go since I'm not really able to be a mechanic anymore it's something I've always enjoyed doing was taking pictures I'm generally just looking for more information about being a Photographer if any of you have any knowledge or device on it that would be great thank you guys
 
Pics for newspapers, or just whatever gig you come across?

Gonna need gear. Friend is into photography, does it on the side. Looks expensive. I think he has a policy to not delete photos either--or at least keep for a pretty long period of time--so storage space has got to be something he deals with.

I borrowed an $800 tripod to video a play. I got the impression that it was nice, but not big league. And that was just the tripod. Not including strobes, backdrop, camera, batteries, etc.
 
Well, you need to a great photographer and have lots of artistic skills.

My niece is a professional photographer. She uses about a $6000 camera to take pictures of the horse crossing the finish line at one of 3 NY race tracks. But she works 6 days a week and moves from racetrack to racetrack as the racing moves.

You should take some college courses in the field.
 
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dont drop the lenses. I dropped my dad's macro lens on the concrete and he was none too pleased as it broke. I think it was expensive.
 
Most "photographers" are nothing more than "picture takers" anymore.
Used to be training. Lighting, framing, artistic value, all distilling down to capturing a 1/60 of a second spot in time perfectly, or as close to it, on film. Developing, color matching, creative expression in printing the negative.
Now it's blipping off 100 frames digitally, looking through the captured image, maybe some tweaking with photoshop.
The smart phone and digital camera ruined photography, and there really is no money in it.
Good luck.
 
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Good Luck. I looked at it as Photography has been near a lifelong hobby of mine and many tell me I take great pics. You will start out at minimum or less than minimum wage, have people try to copy your work, and enjoy long hours. And if you do weddings, senior pics, etc you'll get to deal with irate brides, grooms, and parents.

You'll need lots of training, an AWESOME portfolio, and thick skin.
 
It will be hard to start. To do a good job with photos in many conditions, its not just the $3000-ish high MP body, but the $1-2k each lenses that you'll need. So you'll need to figure $10k in gear investment (possibly over time, but if you want to make money, you need to do events like weddings and need a decent amount of stuff).

Dont underestimate the performance of good used stuff, but the glass holds its value if its quality stuff. I wouldn't plan to buy a used body, given the amount of electronics in there.

And then its all contingent upon your artistic skill, your understanding of the physics of light, illumination, and the optics in your kit... And then your ability to post-process well.

Id say you would need at least a few years doing photography as a serious hobby to get your skills and an initial portfolio going. You might try to incorporate upfront to show a loss on your work as you acquire equipment, but that's a tax question not suited for BITOG.
 
As an amateur photographer for many years - my advise is to rethink it. Besides gear, you need extensive knowledge, need to know how to run your business and probably most important be artistically inclined. EVERYONE owns a camera, cellphones are probably the number 1 camera choice and I can't tell you how many "photographers" with less than a years experience and a beginner's set up have a watermark on their photos and going pro.

If you do have the money, talent, skill and knowledge along with the ability to run a business - go for it. People photography is where the money is - period! A lot of hours are put in to post process an image. The few pros that I follow all have side gigs of teaching people or running seminars. There are probably a few Pros out there that all they do is photography but I think they are very few.

When I was in my 20's I was thinking about going Pro but I didn't want to take Weddings and give up my weekends. I was inspired by Ansel Adams and landscape photographers do go hungry as it is not as money making as weddings.

If you do decide to go for it - good luck in the endeavor!
 
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I hate to discourage you, but it's a highly competitive field, as everyone with a DSLR thinks they can do it. Formal training will help.

In the reality field, I know people with Bachelor degrees in forensic photography and medical imaging that compete for very few positions. One ended up a webmaster (because: artistic sense, and ability to deal with digital images).

For portraits and weddings, you need to have PhotoShop and mad PhotoShop skillz. Shoot a wedding poorly, you can end up in legal hot water.
 
You'll absolutely want to become an advanced user of Adobe Photoshop and, ideally, the entire Adobe "Creative" suite. Photoshop can transform pictures into a work of art that is only limited by your imagination. The basic ability to be able to color correct, tonal correct, etc., photos (especially photos of people or landscaping) will be a tremendous advantage to you!

Ed
 
Originally Posted By: Miller88
It's something that takes a while to develop and get your name out there - and everyone and their brother is now a protographer.


Yup, not much different than the life of any other artist.

I used to be in acting. Moved to a part of Canada where they do the most shooting for movies and TV. After three years, countless acting classes and almost depleted savings, I finally moved on. Made a few friends who I've lost contact with since they too decided to leave the field. Even with the best agents and an IMDB page filled with credits for small parts in TV and commercials, you'll likely never be able to pay your bills with it. If you do, consider yourself VERY lucky.

Overall I'm glad I took the plunge to follow my dream. Sure it was frustrating and saddening, but at least I gained a perspective that I couldn't have when I was working 9-5. Now I actually appreciate the office life and understand my role in the bigger picture. As a result I feel happier in general...and as an added bonus, many of my grey hairs from stress while acting, have turned back to black now that I'm not worried about money anymore.

True story
 
If you're going to learn how to manipulate images,you'll need "Watchout" training. It's a program where elements of a picture are "removable" so they can be added/overlaid to another picture.
 
I'd think going to work as a photographer for a magzine or newspaper would be your best bet to be able to make a good living at it.
 
Lots of picture takers, not many photographers. If you aren't artistic, and you know if you are or aren't, then you'll be a picture taker. The equipment doesn't matter if you don't have it in you. I was a photographer up until digital started to take off and got out. Sadly I see lots of people selling absolute garbage today and the bad part is the public doesn't really know what they're buying. It looks easy right? Expensive gear doesn't make you a photographer. Artistic ability, classes, lots of practice.
 
The problem is that now any house wife with a digital camera and the right software is a "photographer". You need to find a niche. I know a lady that does up-close under water photography and she is becoming quite well known in that circle.

She started out after all her kids grow up and left the house.

Good luck.
 
I'd think it would be hard making a decent living as a photographer, lots of people doing it, you've just got to prove why you're better than them, can be hard to do with a market that might be flooded with photographers. Would probably be hard to get a job for a magazine company without extensive background already.

If you want a career change maybe look into insurance. A family member sells health insurance to old people, started about 5 years ago and is doing really well. No college degree, just insurance licenses. He used to be a truck driver. His wife sold their realty business that they've had for years and is doing the insurance as well. Even car insurance, business insurance, life insurance, etc.

My dad tried switching from auto repair to insurance about 5 years ago and it was tough for him, he doesn't have the business world mindset. You being young I think would be much easier.
 
Everyone and their cat is a photographer (or picture taker as you put it) now. Everyone. The art is lost in a sea of trite selfie-takers and pose-illusionists. There are no shortage of people doing it for the wrong reasons and because of that, it may be hard to stand out, especially if you want to rest your livelihood on it.

Every 'guy' with a DSLR is this massive model photog- and every 'model' is a histrionic, fame-hungry desperada with big dreams of fame and followers. It's really kind of a parasitic symbiotic cluster mess. There is no shortage of cliche artists saturating the photograpy field, I'll tell you that. To stand out on artistic merit may prove quite difficult.
 
I'm a photographer and at times wish I was a mechanic. Almost everything that been said is correct. The artistic eye isn't as important as everyone says, but it is needed. You need to be able to get along with people, realize that everyone wants it for free and sometimes can take a photo as good as you with the phone. Professionally, you always have to get the shot, not just the those in nice sunlight. And follow through is what makes a pro from an amateur. Since your starting out, like Snap-On tools, you need quality tools and software. That you can purchase. You need experience, that you have to create on your own. Practice, don't do anything for free or exposure, unless it is a legit charity. You can make money with weddings and you will earn. Brides (and people in general) are really a pain when spending their own money. Think of your mechanic business. A client acts differently if they are spending there own money versus spending the money of a business. Nobody buys 'art photography'; everyone thinks they can do themselves. Portraits, of real estates agents, and car sales and such will make you some money, but you need to show quality work and do it on location. Real estate interiors might get you someplace. I'm going to say this carefully, as you were a mechanic, do you dress well (clothing style, appearance) after work? If you are doing a wedding, even though it is the camera that counts, you need to dress to fit in the situation. After camera and software, you'll need computer equipment. As a profession, photography has a small middle income class. There are some making it real well, a few, like myself, in the middle, and a lot doing other jobs to support themselves. Too many times the bag on my shoulder was worth 2-3x time that car I was driving. If you can ask to assist me and learn, even if it was for free, I still need to see a portfolio to see that have have the talent for me to give you my time. I really wish you good luck. Every profession looks better from the outside. If you want to change, learn video and not still, but that is also a crowded field.
BTW, two children, neither had the desire to go into the field. Not that I would have let them. Yu also said you can't be a mechanic. Is it a physical issue? Hauling a bag with computer and proper equipemnt is around 28 lbs. All day long.
 
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