Jason R. Rich - Start Your Own Photography Business

START YOUR OWN

PHOTOGRAPHY
BUSINESS

Additional titles in Entrepreneurs Startup Series

Start Your Own

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START YOUR OWN

PHOTOGRAPHY
BUSINESS

Third Edition

YOUR STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO SUCCESS

The Staff of Entrepreneur Media, Inc. & Jason R. Rich

Entrepreneur Press

Publisher: Entrepreneur Press

Cover Design: Andrew Welyczko

Production and Composition: Eliot House Productions

2019 by Entrepreneur Media, Inc.

All rights reserved.

Reproduction or translation of any part of this work beyond that permitted by Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act without permission of the copyright owner is unlawful. Requests for permission or further information should be addressed Entrepreneur Media Inc. Attn: Legal Department, 18061 Fitch, Irvine, CA 92614.

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

Entrepreneur Press is a registered trademark of Entrepreneur Media, Inc.

ebook ISBN: 978-1-61308-413-7

I n some respects, transforming your passion as an amateur photographer into a lucrative career as a professional photographer has never been easier. High-end digital cameras are more powerful than ever, plus there are endless marketing and advertising possibilities available on the internet that make it easier to showcase your work and potentially attract paying customers or clients.

The moment you decide to take that leap from amateur or semiprofessional photographer to professional photographer, however, youll immediately be taking on a wide range of additional responsibilities that go well beyond tapping your creative talents so you can consistently take eye-catching and emotion-provoking photos.

For many, becoming a professional photographer means operating a legal business entity as an entrepreneur and small-business owner. This requires you to handle many business-related tasks, such as sales, bookkeeping/accounting, advertising, marketing, and customer relations.

For example, youll need to set up and maintain an office, gallery, and/or photo studio, and make sure you have the proper insurance based on the type of work youre doing. As a photographer, youll also need to take, edit, print, organize, and sell your photographs, and manage that complete work flow, while maintaining your photography equipment and related gear.

Plus, in todays world, its essential for photographers to create and maintain a professional-looking web presence with a website and online portfolio to showcase their work. Youll likely find it necessary to become professionally active on social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and LinkedIn, for example), to find and interact with potential clients, and for marketing and showcasing your work online.

It will also be necessary to ramp up your level of technical expertise. Todays professionallevel digital cameras and accessories are complex, and youll need to become a pro when it comes to understanding and using your equipment. In addition, once images are shot, they need to be transferred to a computer to be managed, edited, organized, printed, shared, and archived, for example. Some of these tasks typically require the utilization of a secure cloud-based service. In other words, todays professional photography world is one that operates and thrives online.

The goal of this book is to help you identify and successfully handle the many tasks youll be responsible for as a professional photographer. Youll discover that its essential to establish your business with a strong foundation and with a well-defined set of goals. Its then your responsibility to operate your business in a smooth, efficient, sensible, and ethical way.

From this book, youll discover there are many potential paths to follow once you choose to work as a professional photographer. In some cases, youll be working for someone else. However, in many cases, youll need to set up and maintain your own business, be your own boss, and establish your own work ethic. Youll be the one deciding when and where you work, what types of photographs youll be taking, and who youll be taking on as customers or clients. Youll also need to develop and fine tune your own photographic and artistic style to help your work stand out.

Moving forward, youll need to make a lot of decisions and juggle many responsibilities (often simultaneously). Making the right decisions will likely lead to success and profits. Making the wrong decisions can easily lead to financial losses, legal liabilities, and the need to spend a lot of time and money correcting problems that arise but that could have easily been avoided.