First Blog Post
I thought I would dedicate this first blog post to describing a little about me and what I am as a photographer and what I’m not.
Am I a professional photographer? We technically, by definition, yes. I have been getting paid to do outdoor portrait photography for some time now and have recently broke into the world of stock photography. Is it my full time job? No. I love photography. It’s my passion, but I also have another passion: marketing. What I’ve figured out is that after all the post processing time, photography is really a hobby that pays for itself while marketing actually pays the bills. Maybe some day it’ll be the other way around, but for now, that’s life.
Is not being a full time photographer a disadvantage? I don’t think so. Full-time photographers are, in essence, business owners. Sure they get paid to do what they love, but they always have to make sure that they maintain profitability. This means that they can’t let their passion take off and run with it. At the end of the day, they have to look at the numbers. By not relying on photography for an income, I’m allowed much more freedom and creativity. This does not mean I’m not professional, can’t handle deadlines, or don’t understand paperwork. Quite the contrary. My career and educational background has more than equipped me in those areas.
Do I know everything there is to know about photography? No. No one ever does. With me, photography is a continual learning experience, and that’s part of the reason I love it so much. The truth of the matter is that there is a huge gap in skill level, even among professional photographers. I am proud of my work and don’t mind letting people pay me to do it, but I will always be aiming higher.
What do I hope to acheive with this blog? I want this blog to be a photo journal, a way to share my talent and experiences with others.
What are my goals for photography? Right now I am focused on improving my skill on the technical side of photography: learning to perfect exposure, color balance, focus, and noise levels all in camera (no computer work). Eventually I would like to have a full understanding of every main form of photography: portrait, stock, corporate, fashion, editorial, music, and photo journalism.
How did you learn photography? I guess photography runs in my family. Ever since I was little, I’ve been around an SLR camera (more or less a professional camera.) When my dad was in high school he had his own dark room where he would develop his own film. It was then that he came accross some old family negatives with amazing composition, which he developed and now hang on his office wall. Needless to say, I was inspired. I “stole” his camera in high school and took a photography class. From that point on, let’s just say Dad didn’t see his camera much. I took it with me to college, and he only got it returned when he bought me a new one. That was when I started being requested to photograph people and submit photos for art shows. I’d laugh when I would be asked for a photo release at the photo lab, but then it occured to me… I could earn money for this! About that time I switched from film to digital, and with the comfort of “instant feedback” from the camera, I began charging for my services. I’ve been doing that for some time. Most recently I’ve added stock photography to the list. With stock photography, nothing less than absolute technical perfection is accepted. So I feel like I’ve enrolled myself back in photography class. But learning to go beyond “good” or “great” images and producing “perfect” images has been the best experience.
Do I ever want to go full-time? I flirt with the idea every now in then. I think if I ever were able to bring my talent to the point that I could charge top dollar for my services, I might. But in all honesty, for all the talent I have in photography, I have just as much, if not more in strategic marketing. Eventually I might split my time more evenly between the two and go from doing marketing 8 to 5 to doing part-time consulting work.
So, that’s me and photography in a nutshell. Comment if you have any more questions!