If you asked me for one piece of advice about how to succeed as a photographer I would say without doubt, specialise. If you asked me for one piece of advice about how to survive as a photographer I would say generalise - most of us don't really have a choice.
A quick look at any of the online forums and you will always find the advice about finding what it is that you love and sticking to it. I often look at the outside lives of others and wish. Wish, I was a sports photographer - travelling the world covering major events, I am sure I would have loved a trip to Rio. Wish I was a destination wedding photographer - being paid to travel and cover beautiful weddings in dream locations. Wish, I was a news photo journalist jetting in and out of news stories all over the world.
The majority of my work is wedding photography but I also freelance for the local newspaper groups, do some PR photography and of course commercial photography work where I have a number of regular clients. I also like to do fashion photography but at best this could be described as a hobby and I also have a business partner who 'specialises' in studio based newborn photography. A complicated picture but one that will be very familiar to many other hard working, surviving photographers.
I have blogged in the past about what a press day looks like and I guess it is pretty obvious what a wedding day look likes so rather than look at a day I thought I would look at a week - last week.
- I photographed a wedding at the fantastic Port Lympne wildlife park
- Did a press day photographing local events in the Ashford area
- Exhibited at East Quay Venue wedding fair - meeting loads of lovely people at varying stages of planning their weddings. I even booked a few weddings too so many thanks to those couples who chose me.
- Produced a photobook
- Edited a wedding
- Did a little fashion shoot in Margate for Madam Popoff
- Photographed some meeting and lecture rooms for a corporate client.
When you take a moment to look sometimes your own grass is pretty green. A busy, varied, interesting week meeting lots of great people, there is a lot to be said for photographic generalisation! The downside and there is always one, is the amount of editing and admin that this volume of work produces.
