Advice for career change

[TimmayTimmay]

Wondering if anyone has been in my shoes or could at the very least offer up some pointers. I work a full time job that I’m not all that happy with want to devise a sort of exit strategy so that someday maybe I can start doing something I actually enjoy: photography. I’ve been shooting some events pro bono and done some trade-for-prints shoots and will continue to do so in hopes of just making contacts. So I guess the question is, what else can I do with my little free time to continue gaining experience that could also one day lead to an actual gig?

[ebi]

well, i left one fulltime job for another but was more geared to being on set with working photographers. I did that for a few months and then was fired for who knows why. That forced me into a freelance career as an assistant which slowly evolved into a shooting career that has been in the works for the last 8-9 years. It’s a process but it has been working really well. I think a lot depends on where you live.

I think it would be good to see some work that you do, in order to better assess what kind of photography you do, if its of any quality and see where you sit, professionally.

If your work is not great, you’ll need to hone your craft a bit more and then we can talk about the next steps.

[stef]

Be aware that photography is one of the worst fields to enter at this point. It’s not so much an exit strategy if you have a job now, but a “try not to starve” strategy for most people. Not only do you have to make solid images, but you have to have a very good business sense. The best photographer in the world will starve if he can’t sell.

 

[ebi]

Annie Leibovitz, probably one of the greatest known photographers in the world, went bankrupt, if that says anything about how brutally hard it is to make a living in this industry.

[emf]

That’s very scary, how does that even happen? She had a big retrospective here not long ago – it was really popular.

[cameraclicker]

How does that even happen?  Expenses are greater than income.

[ebi]

The entire jewish race must be appalled by her. She’s known for having unbelievably expensive shoots so much so that she probably didn’t get booked for very many jobs – not that she needed to work that much, considering her unbelievable deal with Vanity Fair. I know that she would often pull rank on some of the photographers in her agency and steal jobs from them. from what i’ve heard that is how she got the GAP RED campaign. I imagine that she lived well beyond her means and also had a lot of bad real estate investments – it all adds up to Mo’ Money Mo’ Problems.

[TimmayTimmay]

ebi – here’s my flickr page if you’re at all interested. For the record I’m not saying my work is “pro level” but I do want to pursue a better way to gain pro experience besides just whenever I get the chance. http://www.flickr.com/photos/durak28/sets

I think Stef makes a great point. That goes for pretty much any field of artistry but probably more so for photography. But everyone has to weigh the instability of a paycheck vs the ability to feed your soul. Money ain’t a problem unless you don’t have any.

[nesgran]

Your shots look really good with a nice level of creativity which puts you head and shoulders above many of the photographers who come in here showing of their work they have gotten paid for. With the portfolio I can’t see you really struggling to get a job as an assistant to a good photographer if they get along with you. It might not be amazing financially, but it should at least pay the bills while you get experience and more importantly contacts.

[gordonl09s]

Timmay,

You need to stop doing pro bono work and start charging people a great deal amount more than what you probably think you’re worth. The shots you have there are very good. I think you need to work on solidifying the business end of your business, come up with a good marketing strategy and do everything you can to get your work seen by people. Try hitting up local business and stand firm on your prices.

[TimmayTimmay]

Werd. Thanks guys. Well if you’re ever shooting in Los Angeles and need an assist, hit me up.

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