5 Simple Tips to New Photographers

5 Simple Tips to New Photographers

1. Prepare to run a business. Most people that are good at photography aren't good business people. Take some business courses or join the Professional Photographer Association for support and education.
2. Gear
Don't buy too much camera t first. Buy the cheapest thing you can while you learn. I was shooting great images back in 2003 with a 6mp D70. There is actually a guy in NYC selling 11x14's for thousands of dollars shot with a D70. Want to know more: Read this:http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/notcamera.htm . When you do build up your skills and go pro. Buy two aluminium weather sealed bodies. Like the Nikon D700 or Nikon D300. Weather sealed aluminum bodies will hold up to the rigors of shooting in all types of weather and situations. You don't want your camera to break when its banged, dropped or rained on during a shoot.
More on gear. Always , always always show up to a shoot with no less than two cameras, two lens, and two flashes. Even good cameras break. You don't want to be embarrassed, loose a customer or possibly get sued if your gear fails. I've had a cameras, lens and a flash go bad while shooting. No sweat I had an extra.
Buy only cheap lights at first. I have an Adorama 150 watt strobe that cost $60. It's light, compact and great for in home shoots. I still use it today. Buy one of these with an umbrella to start out. Or a couple of JTL-160's. I bought two of these when I started and used them for 5 yrs until they broke. Now I have an expensive set of Interift's I carry to wedding's. But to start I bought cheap. And later you can use those cheap lights for kicker or hair lights.
4. Work for free: Do your first shoots for free. First of all everybody kinda sucks a first. I did. So shot hundreds of pics of your friends and family for free practice. Shoot atleast 2 weddings for free before you ask for money. And if you're still not up to par shoot more for free. Enjoy learning the art of photography. Read , look at other photographers work, work for a pro for free and don't go pro unless you're good. Not when you're mom tells you you're good but when complete strangers think you're good. If you jump in too soon you'll get a bad name. And then you'll go out of business. Your technical skills with the camera and lighting have to become second nature. A so called "Eye for Photography" will do you no good if you can't capture technically what your artistic eye sees. Once your technics are up to par then you can focus on important things like composure and framing. In other words putting your "Eye for photography" to work.
5. Loving photography is important but not enough. Lots of people love photography. I'm told everyday by people they'd love to do photography for a living. But what they don't see is all the time after the shoot. For every hour of shooting plan on, one hour of image editing, one hour of uploading or placing the order and one hour of working with the Customer. Likewise consider the cost. If you make $100 you'll keep about $30 of that. You have to pay for processing, 25% for Uncle Sam, 10% for local taxes, marketing, equipment maintenance, and on and on and on. Let me temper hat with this. Only shoot what you love. Don't just shoot what pays. For instance, team sports photography pays good but bore me to death. Why because if I don't like it I will suck at it and get a bad name. I don't do assembly line photography. I'm not wired that way. Again shoot waht you love and you'll excell.

Well hope this helps photography dudes and dudets.