10+1 tips to get a job as a photographer
Getting a job as a photographer is the dream of every amateur photographer. Because the vast majority of photographers who are now true professionals started this adventure for the fun of it or simply because they had always seen it at home.
But we all know that once you get the photography bug, you’ll never be able to stop being linked to it. That’s why, if you are passionate about this profession and you are thinking about making some kind of plan to get a job as a photographer in the short term, in this article we are going to give you not 1 or 2 but 10+1 tips to find a job as a photographer as soon as possible.
“Do you want to get a profitable job as a photographer? Discover here 10+1 recommendations to achieve it”.
Contenido
- What does it take nowadays to find a job as a photographer?
- 1# Specific training to turn amateurs into professional photographers
- 2# Find the specialisation that suits you best
- 3# Brand your own style of photography
- 4# Take a look at the photographers you admire
- 5# Your professional photographic equipment
- 6# Create a good portfolio
- 7# Open the doors to your photography studio
- 8# Create a photography website with photo sales
- 9# Use social media to give yourself more exposure
- 10# Be aware of the requirements of job offers
- 10+1 # Use job boards to find work as a photographer
- How to get a job as a photographer
- Learn how to find work as a photographer
- Arcadina goes with you
What does it take nowadays to find a job as a photographer?
When looking for a job as a photographer in these times, it is important that you plan ahead and establish a series of medium/long-term goals that will make the process of looking for a job as a photographer much more fruitful and effective for you.
These are some of the points you can consider when planning how to go from being an amateur photographer to a top professional:
- Find the most appropriate training for you.
- Try several disciplines and specialise in the one that best suits your personality.
- Create your own style of photography.
- Follow and study the top photographers you have as references.
- Get yourself some professional photographic equipment.
- Create and select a quality portfolio.
- Consider opening your own photography studio for your sessions.
- Create a professional photography website.
- Promote yourself through social networks.
- Do your research and prepare yourself before a job interview.
- Search for jobs for photographers on job boards.
Let us now look at all these recommendations in a little more detail to make your search for a job as a photographer much more fruitful.
1# Specific training to turn amateurs into professional photographers
First of all, and long before you start looking for a job as a photographer, it is important to train yourself in order to be able to take quality photographs and at some point in your professional career to create your own style and personal brand.
In this profession, constant training throughout one’s career will be essential to keep up to date with business marketing techniques and strategies.
Here are a couple of very interesting articles related to training for photographers.
>> The importance of further training for a photographer
2# Find the specialisation that suits you best
Once you have had some basic training in photography and before you go on to further training, you can try out different disciplines and see where you fit best.
When choosing a specialisation, take into account not only the discipline itself, but also the way of working in each of them. To give you an example, it is not the same to always work in your studio taking portraits as it is to constantly travel to take landscape or sports photographs.
Here are some articles by specialised photographers that may inspire you.
Boudoir.
>> 6 glamorous boudoir photography websites
Family photography sessions.
>> How to do professional family photography?
Fashion.
>> Fashion photographer: 5+1 fashion photography websites that will surprise you
First communion.
>> The best first communion photographers’ websites
Sports photographer.
>> Are you a sports photographer? 10 tips for sports photography
Nature.
>> Do you like nature photography? 5 nature photographers’ websites to inspire you
Wedding photographer.
>> 20 wedding photographer websites with unique portfolios
Photo sessions for newborns.
>> Newborn photography: top 10 newborn websites
3# Brand your own style of photography
In many disciplines, such as wedding photography, the style with which you define your portfolio will be decisive to start creating what will later become your personal brand. Because depending on the style you choose, your photographic reports will fit a very specific ideal client prototype.
That’s why it’s important that before you even start looking for a job as a photographer, you have a clear idea of what you want your style to look like, or at least where you want to go over time.
>> Branding for photographers: learn to create your own personal brand
4# Take a look at the photographers you admire
When training and taking your first steps as a photographer, it is also important that you learn from the great photographers of history and from all those colleagues who have already reached where you want to be in a few years’ time.
As a recommendation, we encourage you to discover great photographers not only within your own discipline, but to follow photographers of a certain quality in any kind of speciality.
There are many leading photographers, we want to share with you the interviews to our ambassadors, all of them professionals in their fields.
>> Meet Joan Vendrell, the new ambassador of Arcadina
>> Maru Serra is new ambassador for Arcadina
>> Meet Arcadina’s new ambassadors, the photographers of Emovere Studios
>> Arcadina has a new ambassador, photographer Carlos Felipe Ortiz
5# Your professional photographic equipment
When you decide to take the plunge and turn your great passion into your profession, it is important that you invest in good equipment with which you can carry out photo shoots in all types of locations (outdoors, in the studio or in any other interior) and with sufficient guarantees and support so that the reportage has the expected results.
These are some of the essentials you will need to have in order to be able to offer a job as a professional photographer:
- SLR cameras.
- Flashes and other lighting equipment.
- Objectives adapted to your specialisation.
- Computer for uploading and editing photographs.
- Photo editing software.
- Photography website.
- Etc.
6# Create a good portfolio
Having a quality portfolio with a selection of your best photographs taken so far is essential to be able to look for work as a photographer, whether you are an individual (freelance) or if you decide to work for a large agency or marketing company.
Although in the following article we will tell you how you can create a proper portfolio, we recommend you not to make it too extensive. Select your best photographs and show only the images that are true to the style you have decided to acquire.
>> How to create a professional online photography portfolio?
7# Open the doors to your photography studio
Depending on the type of work you want to do and the discipline you want to specialise in, you may (or may not) need to set up a photography studio.
For those cases in which you do see it as essential to carry out a series of sessions in an interior space and totally controlled by you, both in terms of lighting and decoration, we have created an article where you will find a series of tips and recommendations for creating your own professional photo studio.
>> How to set up a photo studio?
8# Create a photography website with photo sales
Another must-have when it comes to finding a job as a photographer is a website. Because in any kind of job offer or interested client who wants to know about your services, the first thing they are going to ask you for is the URL of your photography website.
If you decide to work on your own, in addition to a professional website you can include to your online business a series of public and private galleries that will allow you to offer a series of services such as selling images, products, courses and services online.
With the new plans you will be able to create the photography business you have always dreamed of:
- Website adapted to photography businesses.
- Blog integrated into the website.
- Private galleries to show customers the stories and offer them more options for selling products and services.
- Public galleries to sell your photos, courses and products.
- Etc.
Best of all, you can get started with Arcadina today and try all the business solutions we offer for free for 14 days.
>> How to create a professional photography website?
>> 6 advantages of having your own online photography business with Arcadina
Another very interesting way to make yourself known on the Internet and that the heads of agencies or potential clients who are currently looking for the services of a professional photographer will resort to them are the social networks. Instagram, Facebook or Twitter will be one of the first places where they will look for references about your work and experience.
Therefore, having them updated, creating a visual aesthetic in accordance with your style of photography and encouraging your first clients to leave you their evaluations, will be essential to show a good image of you as a professional.
Moreover, if you have the possibility of linking your website with your networks, you will be able to unite 2 essential elements for your business and this is what we explain in the following article.
>> Learn how to integrate Instagram, WhatsApp and SMS galleries in your website
10# Be aware of the requirements of job offers
At this point, you already have to: have an appropriate training, have a proper equipment, have done a few photo shoots to gain experience and portfolio and have perfectly defined in which fields and under which style you want to work.
Now it’s time to take your job search for photographers more seriously and you can do some research beforehand on what kind of requirements you might be asked to meet in a job interview, for example:
- Type of work to be performed.
- Experience required.
- Equipment needed.
- Location or possibility of displacement.
- Etc.
The more prepared you are for your job interviews, the more likely you are to find a good job as a photographer.
10+1 # Use job boards to find work as a photographer
Another method you can use to get a job as a photographer, especially if you are looking for a position in a large company or working for a third party, is to use job boards.
Job portals are designed in such a way that the job search is simplified for both employers and job seekers.
One of the places where you can search is Jooble, an international job board where millions of people use it every day to find job offers. On this website you can search for jobs as a photographer all over Spain.
How to get a job as a photographer
To get a job as a photographer, it is important to be well prepared and to know where to look for job offers, if you want to work for other companies.
If you are looking to run your own photography business, you can start by working for other colleagues as a second photographer to gain experience and portfolio and then take the leap to become your own boss.
No matter which path you choose, the important thing is that you are ready and well prepared to achieve your dreams and work in what you truly love. Photography.
More tips on how to get a job as a photographer
Other aspects to consider when looking for a job as a photographer may include:
- Attend photography events to not only gain knowledge, but also to network with companies and colleagues.
- Look for a photographers’ association in your area or one that specialises in the same discipline as you.
- Create collaborations between colleagues or professionals that need your services such as web designers, marketing specialists, models, magazines, etc.
I’m sure that some photography work will come to you through one of these channels.
Here are some more recommendations.
>> The most important mistakes a photographer starting out should avoid
Learn how to find work as a photographer
As you can see, if you follow these 10+1 recommendations, finding a job as a photographer will be a much more fruitful process. The important thing is that you pursue your dream, take advantage of the experience of other colleagues who have already gone through this process and all the tools you currently have at your fingertips to become the professional photographer you are currently dreaming of becoming.
On this occasion we would like to share with you the testimony of nature photographer Efrén Valiente, who once had to go through this process of finding work for photographers. We are sure you will like his interview.
>> ‘My website is the best tool to sell my photos’, Efrén Valiente
And to say goodbye, here’s the final question: which of the 10+1 recommendations for finding a job as a photographer do you find the most difficult to tackle? We’d love to read and help you in the comments.
Arcadina goes with you
Creativity goes with you, offering you the best service goes with us
Fulfil your dreams and develop your professional career with us. We offer you to create a photography website for free for 14 days so that you can try our platform without any commitment of permanence.
Arcadina is much more than a website, it is business solutions for photographers.
If you have any queries, our Customer Service Team is always ready to help you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We listen to you.
