How I quit my Day Job To Be a Professional Commercial Photographer
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 21 авг 2024
- For as long as I owned a camera I wanted to be a professional photographer. Originally documentary photography, then music photography, followed by portrait photography, before finally finding my niche as a graphic food photographer.
Here is my advice to those who are looking to quit their day job to become a professional photographerMy NEW WEBSITE is ready ! www.tinhouse-s...
If you want to join our community, I have a facebook group
/ 1893064874281393
as well as an instagram page group as well as an instagram page / scottchoucino
In my bag I have;
PGYTECH OneMo travel/photography backpack：bit.ly/31e4cCY
Canon 5ds amzn.to/2MZ82bw
Canon 5dsr amzn.to/2MTfN2C
Canon 90mm TS-E lens amzn.to/2YBUPxh
Canon 45mm TS-E Lens amzn.to/33iZwel
Carl Zeiss 100mm Makro Plannar Milvus f/2 www.wexphotovi....
Sigma Art 50mm f/1.4 amzn.to/2N0yi6D
Sigma Art 35mm f/1.4 amzn.to/2M99No6
My new website for portfolio reviews, pricing advice, 1-2-1 mentoring and some free articles on things you wanted to know is now live www.tinhouse-studio.com
great vid. You have a couple of comments you might want to delete below, the ones with the times stamps. They are spammy and might harm the views.
JJ The Spud thanks, I wasn’t sure what to do about those. These seem to come in waves
@@TinHouseStudioUK yea I help moderate on a gaming channel of a friend of mine, hence the name, and we get a lot of stuff like this regularly. Sometimes RUclips catches it and puts them into held for review.
Thanks for the advice. I’ve started as a full time photographer since 2011 after I quit my job as a web designer. My first camera was Canon AE 1, then I bought Nikon D70, D90 and now D700 as my workhorse. Being a traveller and full time photographer isn’t easy anyway, but passion makes me stronger to pursue my dream.
Hugely helpful. I particularly like the idea of including an agent or manager in the workflow. Fellow minimalist.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Super encouraging. Having that free time and flexibility to spend time with family can be more valuable than an expensive lifestyle with no freedom of how you spend your time or schedule. Thanks for sharing.
I'd just like to say I find your insights and advice incredibly valuable. I really appreciate them. Thank you.
LowfatPwnage thanks for the kind words
Notable that the most erudite, informative and challenging RUclips photography sites are Scott's and Sean Tucker's. No clickbait, no yelling, no wind tunnel test, no fake controversy around camera brands, no sleazy NSWF content etc. Also notable that between them they have less than half the subscribers of the "influencers" whose sites are all about clickbait, yelling and hollering, wind tunnel tests, fake controversy and sleazy content...
Love your honesty and transparency as always Scott
Thanks Jennifer
I love your honesty and authenticity. Thank you for the great advice!
Thanks for the kind words Stefanie
Rode my bike to work for 20 years. Just learned to drive. Own 15 black t-shirts and ragged jeans. And so on... /// From a product photographer. :)
Really impressive story :) thanks for educating.
Last year 29 I got drunk, applied for a photography degree through clearing and quit my job haha!
Love your channel and your honesty - hope you're keeping well during these crazy times :)
I so agree with - what I've long dubbed the "KYOL" method of entrepreneuring: Keep. Your. Overhead. Low. Though I didn't op out of the 9-5 steady posh salary to become a photographer (but instead, to start my own - yes, very "niche" - tour biz to Belize and Costa Rica - back when few had even HEARD of Belize), I've long advocated first and foremost - reduce your overhead.
It seems a lot of folks who pine to follow their bliss and start their own biz (photog or otherwise, it's all the same) don't realize that there's always TRADE-OFFS that must be made. Unless you happen to have your own family trust-fund, the early years will most certainly be a struggle. And lol - yes, those myriad (seemingly nickel 'n dime) "subscriptions" do indeed add up annually - as do the daily lattes, the Friday Happy Hours, and always having the latest model smartphone, camera kit, et al. In short, it's a rare few that can have both/it all. Following your dreams will (no. doubt. about. it.) take some sacrificing, at least in the beginning. Question is - what/how much are you willing to trade-off to make your dream of having your own successful photog biz come true?
Yeah its all about choices. I did have a few very hard years when I changed over, but now I have a very enjoyable life. Worth the struggle.
Bravo Scott! What a great piece of guidance for any artist.
This is a great video. I recently lost my job, and so hoping to make my photography my main income. The studio at the moment is the garage, which means getting around the lawn mower and other bits. I would love to know how you wrote your contracts in the beginning, that is one of the things I am struggling with at the moment. As well as trying not to kill myself by tripping over something in the garage.
Sorry to hear you lost your job. I actually didnt use anythign more legally binding than an email exchange. I still often work this way on small jobs.
I like Your video.
Now I am on this patch. I started to earn for my life with photography.
Now I concerned on photography interiors, business portraits and products. I was consider to skip product photography and focus on interiors and portraits. By till this time I do not do it...
I have at last to way to go.
1. Focus on people portraits and interiors (and maybe in future focus more on interiors). Take away products from website.
2. Continue with those three types of photography and with having more and more income start to focus more on interiors.
Good practice is to do some work that normally You not do for have some income, but not put it on portfolio.
yeah certainly. I always do work off brand, but keep it silent.
Another great vid, Scott. Your candid and honest approach will prove very valuable to a lot of people. I hope you're doing well out there, keep up the good work 👌
Thanks mate. Yeah we are ticking on by, how is your tribe doing?
@@TinHouseStudioUK Not too shabby thanks mate, enjoying this autumnal weekend with your fine lady's brownies. You guys are too talented.
Love your honesty and humility. Like and subscribed. :)
Great video Scott, as always. Thank you for always creating great content. Hope you have a great day at the studio. ;)
Lucas Furieri thanks Lucas. Hope you have a good day too
Morning Scott. Thanks for sharing. Spot on. Have a productive day. :)
Thanks for watching Jac. Hope you have a good day too.
I started out with a used Nikon L35Af when I was around 10 years old. Two years later I shot my first wedding... OK, I wasn't the actual wedding photographer but I probably went through more rolls of 35mm than the paid photographer did. Besides the album my cousin paid for, she also put together a second album of photos guests took at the wedding and 3/4 of those photos were mine.
Fast forward to high school(secondary school to those of you across the pond) and I was handed down a Pentax K1000 along with some lenses by my father. Three of those four years my photos ended up in the yearbook. From football games to prom I shot it all. I also rode my bicycle to local car shows before I had my drivers license, photographing classic hot rods and selling prints to the owners(being a teenager and regularly reading magazines with scantily clad women strewn across hoods may have had some influence in regard to that hobby). To pay for film and printing I bused tables at a reception hall, suffering through one formulaic wedding after another(no I will never photograph a wedding).
After high school I got a part time job at a local chain 'portrait studio' on top of working full time as a diesel mechanic. MY GOD did that portrait studio turn me off from photography. The only thing that kept me interested was after I was legal to drink and got gigs photographing 'nightlife' for some local clubs MySpace pages(yes I'm old). Sadly all the money I made doing that got dropped right back into the till, but it was fun. By my early 30's it was time to quit rather than appear a creeper taking photos of young women in bars.
In the following years I would occasionally photograph friends cars and motorcycle, something I truly enjoyed, but my day job and life in general took control. As time went by my cameras basically just sat on a shelf until tragedy struck. In 2012 Hurricane Sandy dumped 5 feet of water into my apartment, destroying EVERYTHING I owned. All my camera gear, old negatives, prints, hard drives with years of digital photos...GONE.
A few years later a coworker was selling his Fuji X100. The manual dials and general operation reminded me of my K1000 while the size and rangefinder-esque design was reminiscent of that old Nikon. It resparked my interest. Shortly after buying the X100 a friend passed her real estate exam and had business cards printed with a 'headshot' from a local portrait studio on them. I congratulating her on the new job but also pointed out her 'headshot' kinda sucked. Sorry, it just did. After her challenging whether I could do better, call it hubris or whatever you like, I of course said 'absolutely'.
I sold the X100 for a WELL worn Rebel and kit lens, rigged up some hot lights and proved my point. That one headshot was the start of my business. I've since moved to Fuji X-t2's/XF prime lenses rather than the Rebel/kit lens and adopted speedlights vs the cobbled together hot lights I DIY'ed. I quit my 50+ hour per week day job about 9 months later and now spend an average 3 days per week doing on location corporate headshots for lawyers/realtors/doctors/dentist/etc in the New York City Metro area.
Were I born 15 years later, due to the modern high demand of images for social media and online marketing by my current client base, I could likely have gone straight into what I am doing now. I could have skipped the some near two decades of breaking my back. However, I probably also wouldn't have the work ethic or business acumen that makes what I do now possible.
Sorry for the LONNNNNNGGGG comment. I just kind of like telling the story in case someone younger(or even older) is thinking about going full time in the industry. It's not easy. It IS work. If you REALLY want to do it though, and are willing to put in the effort, it is SOOOOOOO worth it.
Not at all. I think its totally right. I put in a LOT of work, but there are great opportunities there for those willing to do so.
I reckon kids get far better, warmer reactions to the camera, than when an adult is behind the lens.
Thank you
Good advice
Very interesting video! It's always good to see other people history of their career path.😁
Krystian Krzewinski thanks 😊
This was a very good video, and I for one appreciate it.
Violinist!??? Wow!
Thanks for this. This pandemic has really killed my main business. I thought this year was going to be the year that I’d get to pursue photo/video and then the pandemic hit. It’s been hard.
Great advice.
Thanks
Thanks for the info!
Any time!
I becoming obsessed with your videos! Ha
Great quality content. Really enjoy it.
Any tips on where to find an agent in Ireland?
Thanks. I would probably look to London or Paris as the nearest places with photo agents.
Yes, I was thinking that. Often thought of moving to London, but I think I'm too country for real city living haha thank you for your advice, don't ever be stuck in Ireland if you are ever here and need anything ☺ you know where to find me in social media land lol
great video! its similar to my story i got fired cuz i hated to be an employer and all i have left is my camera and my brain :D
Always looking forard to your videos Tim., and as always feel like I have walked away with a wealth of knowledge! I do have one questions although a bit personal and understand if you do not want to answer it. But after doing this for 10 years, would you say you are in a good/comphortable financially? Always wonder how people are doing after 10 years in buisness?
depends what you mean by comfortable. I don’t worry about money, I have enough to live the life I want. I could make more but it would mean doing jobs that I don’t want to, and I’d rather not have that money. I also don’t buy a lot. Most elaborate outgoing is probably £200 a month on coffee.
@@TinHouseStudioUK It is a hard question to quantify haha. I suppose you answered my question in that you are in a position that you live your life the way you want. Thanks Tim.
Good, honest advice but in this video there are just too many ads.
Are they at the start or in the middle at random? Trying to get my head around this now so they only play at the end of the video. The money is so little that it’s not worth having them, but without them RUclips drops your ranking
@@TinHouseStudioUK throughout.. Two at a time.. And way too frequently played (for me at least)
@@JoeGarde would you mind trying again now? I think I have sorted it.
@@TinHouseStudioUK I'm testing in firefox without being logged in to youtube - one ad and it runs well. When I try from within the gmail/youtube login the video stops mid ad at the start. So, not sure what you've done ;) Anyway.. I'm sure there's a tradeoff between targetted advertising and what/who they're prepared to target and you the channel owner. I think you're just there - certainly one or two ads is acceptable or assist with a sponsor perhaps. Beard Oil perhaps ;) Anyway, thank you!
How to reach out for a good manager or agent ?
I am going to put a video together on this soon. Just waiting for. afew things to happen.
@@TinHouseStudioUK Shall await for that video. Thank you for your response
Can we quit 2020?
Richard Bradbury I wish haha
I am late 😭
You are getting lazy now! Thats twice in a row.
@@TinHouseStudioUK Hey, please make a video on how to get rid of lazyness so I could attend it, and all other precious videos of yours...!
And get RUclips money....
Horlick High School Instrumental Music 1 sadly that’s about 1-2% of my income and some months 0 haha
You know...I keep watching your videos but they seem to be less and less informative as time goes on. There's always the promise or inference that some great secret shall be revealed but no such secret ever shows up. It's just a fluffy 5 minutes of hipster beard and finger tenting and not much is ever said. If you do happen to touch on something even remotely interesting you gloss over with no detail added. I'm not trying to be hurtful or mean here but maybe you will take this as cheeky constructive criticism. Then again, maybe it's me?
Hey Robbie,
Not at all, I appreciate the feedback. Which bits do you feel I have glossed over in recent videos? I might be either editing them out to keep videos short or making assumptions.
@@TinHouseStudioUK I think the best assumption to make is that you should never assume that the audience knows anything. The bulk of YT viewers are beginners or hobby photographers when it comes to photography channels. For the audience for which I think you intend the content for, as many very specific details as possible makes more sense. I think you are falling somewhere between those two extremes. Keep in mind that these are only my opinions. If I use my self as an example I have been shooting for a very long time. I now think about turning my skill in this area into a business. I have run my own businesses before but I look for photography business specific information to help educate myself. The things that would be of interest get touched upon but never explored. One example related to this video as it's fresh in mind would be where you mention, I got an agent. How? How do you find an agent? How do you vet an agent? How much will work and fees increase because of an agent? How do agent earn their fees? What are reasonable fees for an agent to take? If I claim the full income from a job that an agent gets can I claim all their fees against my income tax? Is it better to have an exclusive agreement with an agent? If I book a job on my own are they still entitled to their fee? There's a bunch more questions but you get the idea. and that's just one thing you mentioned in passing.
@@teleking58 Ah yes I see what you are saying. I do actually have a video somewhere on agents in that specific example.
I think the problem with youtube videos is that for me to cover all of this it would be too long for the platform. It would probably take me 4+ hours to offload on agents alone.
I do have some very vague plans to create such content for my website as downloadable purchases in the future, but work doesn't allow for that right now.
@@TinHouseStudioUK Ever think about starting a twitch channel?
@@teleking58 No I haven't. Although I dont think I have any more free time to do anymore social media. Between this and instagram my evenings are now crammed haha