The day I was able to start my path to becoming the photographer I am today, was the best day of my life.  I had been dreaming of this day since I was a child, but finances had always been a road block to my dream.  I started out with my father-in-laws Olympus Evolt E-3 and a kit lens.  I started joining various forums, CafeMom’s Photo Moms, being the leading group and where I  give a great deal of credit for most of my basic learning in the beginning.  Not only did I receive a lot of great advice from some lovely ladies, but I also learned all the no-no’s from those making big mistakes.

The best way to learn in life is by listing to those that have experience and in some ways, making the mistakes yourself.  I hope the following information will be a good stepping stone in your journey of becoming a successful photographer and business owner.  I am going to make this into a two-part series; becoming a photographer and becoming a birth photographer.  Lets begin!

Learn Your Equipment

Learn manual on your camera, even if it’s a point and shoot.  You will be throwing money down the drain if you shoot a consumer grade or professional camera in auto.  A great beginner book in learning the exposure triangle  is Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. He also has some great videos on YouTube.  Learn the right way to do things and then allow your artistic side to shine thorough.

But when can I start taking clients?!  Whoa, hold your horses, it’s going to be a while.  I know it’s a super exciting and new adventure, but practice on your kids, your dog, random objects around your house, indoor and outdoor, shade and full sun, stationary and moving objects (kids move).  Take a subject and try to accomplish 10 different (flattering) images without them moving from their spot.   Rope in friends and family for FREE, non-professional sessions.  Make it very clear you are not a professional, but aspiring towards a goal.  Once you have become consistent in lighting, posing (studio type, casual, or both), able to achieve different (attractive) angles, you then you start portfolio building.  You wouldn’t open a bakery without knowing how to bake, right?  This is no different.

How long do you spend becoming consistent?  That depends.  Some are able to accomplish this within a few short months yet I’ve seen others years later that still have not mastered this.  Remember, slow and steady wins the race.

Becoming a Business

If you plan to open business (eventually), you have a lot  of leg work ahead of you.  Becoming a photographer is not strictly about taking some great images and slapping them onto social media and a CD/DVD, you also need to be business savvy.  I would say actual shooting and processing time has only been about 15% of my entire business.  There is a TON of behind-the-scenes stuff going on.  If you are able to, take a business class at your local community college.  Too many people have zero business sense (I’ve worked for a few), but even those of us that have a basic scope of knowledge, would still benefit greatly from a class like this. Here is a basic rundown of the various things I’ve had to learn over the years by self teaching.

• Contracts, different ones for the different areas of photography I shoot.
• Model releases and who needs to sign them
• Copyright and Usage license laws
• Marketing
• Advertising
• Bookkeeping
• Taxes: city, state, income, federal
• Licensing
• Home zoning laws (if you do not have a studio, which most do not starting out)
• Business plans
• Cost of doing business
• Computer software
• Website: html and CSS coding, WordPress and Blogger navigating
• Graphic design
• Customer service, there’s no manager to pass the high-maintenance ones onto, you’re it!

These are just the few topics I could think of off the top of my head.  If you are not interested in becoming well versed in these areas, hire a true professional.  Write a business plan and do not work backwards, you will only be creating more work for yourself.

Time to Start Portfolio Building

Okay, so you’ve become consistent in your images, you’ve created or purchased your contract/model release and have had them looked over by an experienced lawyer, now is when you start attracting clientele for portfolio purposes.  Most will typically have a low cost or free sitting fee but charge at cost pricing for prints and discs.  Post your images to photography forums, get true honest critique, fix your problem areas and improve.

While portfolio building, work on building your website and Facebook page to display your work, both can be built prior to launching to the public.  Also start to get all the legal mumbo-jumbo in place.  Business licenses, EIN, zoning if necessary (just because you own a home, does not mean you can build a studio in a spare room), insurance, etc.

Common Mistakes

There are some common mistakes I see over and over again.

• Not getting contracts or model releases signed
• Using other photographers images for advertising/marketing or “just because”- NEVER okay
• Pricing themselves below the market average – competing is okay, ridiculously cheap is not
• Not doing a business plan or cost of doing business – this is extremely important!
• Not filing taxes – I recently saw the chance of being audited with a low income in around 1%, but why chance it?  If you are going to be in business, BE IN BUSINESS!
• Shoot and burn – this is where people conduct sessions, go home, do minimal processing on their images and have a quick return to the client regardless of the quality.

Respect

Respect those that have been in the industry.  Learn from their mistakes.  If they are willing to help, take it, be grateful and pay it forward.  There are so many of us willing to help, but have been burned too many times or been fought with along the way making us apprehensive and bitter at times.   Do your own work, do not copy others.  Find a mentor.  Be accepting and show you are willing to learn.

You will come across rude people in the photography community from time to time, but that’s life.  For the most part, you will find nice, but honest people wanting to help you.  I know I have cried a few times from constructive criticism, but not from rude responses, but from my own feelings being hurt thinking I had an amazing image when I in fact did have to improve!

Ultimately, we get into the photography business to do what we love, so don’t spend your time working backwards like so many do.