Let me start this by saying that I have had an interest in photography for about 40 years. Until the last 8 years it has been a hobby, then my hobby turned into a business, although a part time business. I am fortunate to have a very well paying job in engineering and that is where the money comes from to buy the photo gear. At one time I thought that it would be cool to make a living doing what I love, photography. Well, after years of highs and lows I'm glad that I have a degree in engineering. I haven't made enough money in photography to cover my equipment cost. Hold the comments about bad business decisions, that's not the point of this post. My photography business problems stem from the fact that every Mom and Dad can buy a Rebel with a kit lens that works well enough for them. There's a descent similarity here between mp3 music compared to super audio CD (SACD) music. How many of you have a SACD player? And you don't because your mp3 music sounds good enough to you, but your photos are way better than Mom and Dad's?
I've run into a situation where a guy with a 1D Mark 3 shows up to most of the local high school events and gives his work away on his Smugmug web site. Why would someone pay $5 for my photo when they can get a mp3 version of it for free?
My message is to young folks who are thinking about photography as a career. Don't choose a career in a field that any Joe Blow can compete with you, at least in the eyes of the customer. How many people do you know that dabble in electrical engineering or accounting? I don't have any competition from people that hang out at Radio Shack. There will always be a place for the real artist but I would guess that the number of photographers that make over $100k is much less than the number of players in the NFL. You'd be better served by taking private place kicking lessons.
I'm prepared to get the crap kicked out of me from the pros but you have to admit that the way the industry is going, the good paying jobs in photography are vanishing. The technology is being dumbed down to the point that anyone can take a descent photo. Encourage your kids to get a degree in engineering so that they can design the latest gear for Mom and Dad on the soccer field.
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
you cant ever sell a low brow client better pix, sell to better clients. you cant win them all as they say. i opened my studio 3.5 years ago in a small town. i put out that i am quality at a fair moderate price 20% off from the most expensive studio in town but not willing to give anything away especially copyright. now i have a pretty good roster of good clients who respect photography, though times are slow these days. most marked, we have signed 4 weddings this year, while i have only had 3 weddings in the other 3 years, all the weddings this year have been really cool relaxed and smart clients.... be patient.
Bill, that's one of the most intelligent posts that I've read in a long time .... and you thought you'd get the crap kicked out of you
The only thing you missed is the biggest problem many of us face: once you get a customer they used to buy a whole package of photos of their kids, now many are just buying one and making copies at Walmart.
Yup, I should have been an engineer.
Each year I have one or two high school students tell me they want to go to college for photography. I tell them the real truth that they don't want to hear - how are you going to make enough money to support a family????
Your comparison with pro football is not far off. It's few and far between that a local football star makes it to the NFL. The number of good pro photographers that make a decent living for most of their working life solely from photography are just as rare.
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Hi Bill, I am just north of Dayton and can't agree more, especially in the sports photography which is what I did, primarily swimming. Parents want pictures to document an event and not a masterpiece and it got to the point that each team had multiple "photographers" each giving free pictures while mine are better the parents don't care about the quality especially for these. Even at events I covered with restricted access the teams started having "coaches" photograph the kids.
I still believe there is money to be made but in sports it would take very large events with lots of equipment and staff which I was not willing to take that large of gamble. On the portrait end there are too many Targets, Wall Marts etc that most people think are good enough which doesn't leave much for the rest of us. Weddings will probably have a little more life but who knows how long.
So now I am back to only doing a little photography for fun.
White Balance so easy, even our 5 year old can do it.- Melissa Strickland
Snapshot photographers are a dime a dozen. If you love photography as an art form your images will reflect your vision. I have never been a businessman and never depended on my photography as a main source of income. For me to do so would compromise the reason I love photography. I retired from my first career a few years ago and went back to college graduating with a degree in Visual Communication - Graphic Arts - Printing.
I expanded my photographic knowledge to include desktop publishing, graphic art and printing. This increases my marketability and product line. I now sell finished framed and matted prints, primarily by word of mouth or the occasional art event. As a graphic designer I utilize my large stock of images acquired over 34 years as a part time photographer. As I embark on my second career, I realize that at 53 years of age I am not willing to compete in the open market and am satisfied in just supplementing my pension.
My point is that in today's market you need to increase your skill set and offer a product that is both unique and desirable to a clientele that it willing to pay for quality.
You can make a living as a photographer, but you have to be a) producing images that Uncle Fred and his Canon Rebel (or Nikon D3x) can't, and b) working in a market where people are willing to pay for those images. While it's been a hard few years, I still make a comfortable living completely from photography.
BTW - I know lots of photographers who make $100k or (way) more a year.
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