To do with more what can be done with less, is vanity
Occam's Razor: To do with more what can be done with less, is vanity.
Don't fall victim to the endless barrage of "you gotta have this!" and "you gotta do that!" and "you gotta spend money to make money!" horsesh*t you read every single time you get on the Internet.
By the time you "need" brochures and postcards and direct mail campaigns and print/radio/online/CPC/CPM/banner/TV ads and a professionally-designed web site and an iPad and a projector and a comfy sales room with framed prints on the walls and Photoshop CS5 and Lightroom 3 and Animoto and a hand-stitched leather 16x20 print portfolio and die cut business cards and a marketing consultant and an outsourced post processing team and studio management software and a portable studio and Profoto strobes and PocketWizards and HD behind the scenes videos and a professional logo and all the other endless BS that gets shoved down photographer's throats (by vendors and by other grognard photogs)... My friends, by the time you "need" any or all of that, you'll be making more than enough money with your art to invest in anything you want.
The basics, the fundamentals, the stuff that gets out there and does real work at getting clients in the door...it costs next to nothing.
Hustle. And don't spend a dime on anything that won't hustle on your behalf.
Next Steps
- Put away the B&H catalog, quit staring anxiously at your Amazon.com shopping cart, and go talk to people about photography. Volunteer to do photos for a local charity, hit the town and be seen with your camera, get your Facebook Fan Page up and tell your family and friends, write something fresh for your blog, or any of the many, many other simple acts of marketing that will make the real difference in your business.
- This is one of the shortest posts I may ever write for this blog, but I truly believe the insatiable "gotta have more stuff" mentality is a disease killing off the momentum and motivation of so many potentially great artists as they try to break into this industry. It's a disservice to both the artist's muse and the potential clients who may never get to benefit from that artist's talents because he or she just can't get past the starting line. If PartTimePhoto.com never does anything more, I hope it vaccinates new-to-the-fold professionals from the debilitating effects of this disease. Want to take action? Read this post again, and take it to heart. You are all you need to be successful.
- My writing at PartTimePhoto.com exists to serve your needs as an amateur photographer making the transition to paid professional. I appreciate and welcome your readership, and invite you to click the free “Subscribe” link at the top of any page of this site.
- How can you apply Occam's Razor to your part time professional photography business? Leave a comment below, e-mail me, or call or text me at 830-688-1564.
How to get your first client in a new photography business – the Your First Customer Series
Here you go, mates – a complete list of all 10 posts in my Your First Customer Series:
Part 1: How can I find time to be a part time photographer?
Part 2: Top 10 money-making outdoor photos of people
Part 3: What should I charge for my part time photography?
Part 4: How do I get my first photography client?
Part 5: How to prepare for your first photography client’s call
Part 6: Your pre-photo-shoot checklist in four easy steps
Part 7: Your first photo shoot: expectations and results
Part 8: Culling and post-processing your first photo shoot
Part 9: Your first photo proofing and sales session
Part 10: How to earn lifetime photography customers with the perfect follow-up
There are three major steps to starting your new photography business: making the decision to become a part time professional photographer, doing the legwork and prep work to set your new business up right, and landing your first customers.
The Your First Customer Series offers 10 in-depth articles covering all the minute details you rarely hear about elsewhere – where to find the time to be a part time professional photographer, the top 10 money-making portraits (easily the most popular post on the site), and much, much more. This series has more content than you’ll find in most high-priced eBooks, with no filler – it’s the best advice I can give having been there, done it, and come out happy and paid on the other side.
Next Steps
- It’s a long journey, from making that life-changing decision to become a part time professional photographer, to landing your first customer and first sales. As they say, the longest journey begins with the first step. Start with Part 1 and work your way through each part in this series, and you’ll be better prepared than you ever imagined for taking on your first clients.
- Brainstorm session: What is your greatest fear about your first client photo shoot? What’s the worst that could happen? What potential rewards exist if things go exceptionally well? How can you prepare to give yourself the best odds of a great experience for you and your first client? File this in your Brainstorms folder.
- My writing at PartTimePhoto.com exists to serve your needs as an amateur photographer making the transition to paid professional. I appreciate and welcome your readership, and invite you to click the free “Subscribe” link at the top of any page of this site.
- What’s the story behind your first paid client photo shoot? Were you nervous? Did they buy? Was it as fearful as you thought it would be? Leave a comment below, e-mail me, or call or text me at 830-688-1564.
What does a successful part time photographer look like? - Startup Series, Part 4
The Part Time Photographer Startup Series:
Part 1: How to make money as a part time portrait photographer
Part 2: What you need to start a part time photography business
Part 3: The legalities of starting a part time photography business
Part 4: What does a successful part time photographer look like?
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Different people wear success in different ways.
My definition of success is probably a lot different from Work At Home Mom, Creative Outlet Corporate Executive, or Hobbyist Turned Pro. Depending on your goals (a subject we'll look at in depth in a future article), the lifestyle and business you aim to create through part time photography, your version of success, will be wholly unique.
You may be a stay at home mom, married to military, with a couple of young kids that deserve as much attention as you can give. Success to you may be to work only a few hours every week photographing babies and toddlers in your home studio. Maybe you want to have the flexibility of setting your own schedule, making photos of your favorite subject - babies - while earning enough money to pay for a great summer vacation for your family. Disney Cruise, anyone?
You may have a good, decent day job, but you have the entrepreneurial itch and you enjoy photography. You would like to stretch your legs during your recreational time each week to see what kind of business you can build on your own. It's not so much about the money as building a business with your own art and your own two hands.
You may certainly be an enthusiast photographer who loves the art and experience of your hobby and you want to make your hobby pay for itself. You want a bunch of cool photo gear to make awesome photos. You've got the inspiration - you just need the funds to buy the tools needed to make your visions reality.
You may be a regular joe like me. You have a normal day job that pays the bills, you've gone about as high as you can go with your current company, and because of wife-and-kid responsibilities, you can't just quit and eat beans for a few months while you chase your dreams. You want to take on a second job to make money and save up until you're in a financial position to pursue the career you really want. You need a flexible way to earn enough money to make these dreams happen.
Where I stray from the norm is in being a serial entrepreneur. Whereas many people work to afford play, work is my play. I am a Godinfan the way most people are Potterfans. I spend more on marketing and business books every year than I spend on food. Given the choice of a day at Seaworld or a day blogging about part time photography, well...you won't find me smelling like whale at the end of the day.
Build your own lifestyle
The beauty of being a part time professional photographer is you can create any business or lifestyle you want - and best of all, you only get better as you go along. Your business knowledge grows alongside your artistic skill; your income grows with your customer base, which increases commensurate with your business and artistic abilities.
- Want to shoot one client a week and work only four hours? Can do.
- Want to only work Tuesday evenings? Can do.
- Want to make five times as much money? Shoot five times as many clients. Can do.
Like I said, I'm an unusual example - I work 30-40 hours a week on my second job. A) I love what I do, B) I'm wired to be a workaholic, and C) my wife and kids are greatly involved in almost all of the shoots I do, so very little family time is lost because of my second career as a part time professional photographer.
The system I'll share with you through PartTimePhoto.com is very scalable and nigh risk-free. The minimum time investment I suggest sits around four hours per week, which includes marketing, shooting, processing, and selling at least one client. You can work more or less - aim at one client a month, or one every day, whatever aligns with your goals.
More clients means accelerated development as a part time photographer and accelerated income. You can set your own pace to both grow and earn.
My version of success
What's success look like for me, personally?
I get up every day at 8 a.m., I get in a good workout at the gym, then I'm at work by 9 a.m. I let myself sleep in on Sundays. Gym's closed anyway.
I'll work on a mix of newspaper and photography work for the next 12-16 hours; day job + second job.
Wednesdays are family day - no worky worky of any kind, although you'll catch me reading e-mails and blogs on my iPhone during downtime throughout the day.
I'll photograph 2-5 clients in a week, and spend whatever time I need to ensure they're given the best and most attentive experience possible. I'll spend around one hour culling and post-processing each client's shoot, and another hour doing a viewing / sales session with them within a few days of their shoot.
Any time I am not doing active income-generating work (shooting, processing, selling), I am marketing - and this is a big part of why my system works so well.
I like to stay booked about a month in advance, and I book as many clients as I am feeling the desire to shoot. Sometimes I'll book light weeks, one or two clients, when I have other projects I want to concentrate on. I'll book heavier weeks in busy seasons like Christmas and high school graduation when I have a lot of clients who need timely service - it can be a busy time, but the money made then allows me flexibility elsewhere in the year.
Marketing is just a combination of exposing potential clients to my business and my work, and showing existing clients lots of love to ensure they come back. From eating at the Old Spanish Trail restaurant and handing out business cards to potential clients to making connections with people on MySpace, from advertising on Craigslist to sending out a monthly e-mail newsletter, there are myriad ways to keep yourself busy with ensuring you have clients lined up to shoot with you.
What do I get out of being a part time photographer?
- I get to meet amazing people every single day, many of whom become good friends.
- I get to make cherished photos for those amazing people; a good sign of success is when clients are sincerely thanking you from their hearts...while handing you a check.
- I get a ton of satisfaction from running a successful small business, providing clients with a great service and great experience while contributing to my community and staying profitable.
- ...and the money doesn't hurt, either. I earn as much or more in my pocket from part time photography as I do from my day job as a community journalist. This enables me to enjoy financial security, job security, and freedom security - part time photography is a business you can take anywhere you go.
Your mileage will vary. It took me 10 years to achieve such a balance in my work and life. But I hope you will benefit from my knowledge and experience and enjoy exactly the success you want far faster than I did.
Does this sound like something you want to do? If so, let's get it done!
Today is the day
This article concludes our four-part Startup Series for part time photographers. These blog posts are only the beginning of what will become a vast resource for living and working as a part time professional photographer. I hope you'll stay tuned for the goodness to come.
The next series of articles here on PartTimePhoto.com will help you prepare for and photograph your first client. Then your second. Then your third, and so on. I'll help you get set up with a simple system for marketing to, photographing, post-processing, and selling to as many clients as you want.
Next Steps
- Brainstorm: Write down your ideal situation as a part time photographer. How many hours per week will you work? When can you set aside time for marketing, shooting, processing, and selling? Do you want to do it all in one or two days a week, or a little bit each day? What kinds of clients will you work with? What's your vision of a dream-come-true, successful situation? File this in your Brainstorms folder.
- Growing as a photographer and as a one-person photography business will take some time and some work, but by following along here at PartTimePhoto.com daily, at least you will know that the steps you're taking are in the right direction. If you have learned a thing or two from this blog, you're invited to click on the "Subscribe" link at the top of any page of this blog.
- Does the life and work of a part time photographer appeal to you? How would being a successful part time photographer benefit your life? Leave a comment below, e-mail me, or call or text me at 830-688-1564.
Your source for making money as a part time photographer
So who am I to give you advice on how to make money as a part time photographer?
My name is James Taylor.
I own Outlaw Photography of Bandera, Texas.
I shoot almost entirely portraits; seniors, children, brides, couples, families. My wife shoots maternity and baby photos.
I fell bass ackwards into professional photography over 12 years ago. I landed a job as a photojournalist with my hometown newspaper, and as people saw my photos in the paper, they began asking if I also did family portraits. One good paid photo shoot led to the next, and I continued to do off-and-on professional work until I launched Outlaw Photography 'officially' in 2005. Since then, I've worked hard to improve my art and my business acumen while learning to balance a full time day job, part time photography job, and life.
Life for me includes my better half Jacklen and three young kiddos, McCayla (7), Canon (4), and the newest addition, Athena Corinna (celebrating one year in November 2011). Yes, Canon, as in my son is named after my preferred camera manufacturer. But that's a story for another day.
I have been blessed with a great deal of success as a part time professional photographer over the years, and after a decade, I've hit a stride which now allows me the chance to share this success with others. Success to me is happy clients, happy family, happy self. A big part of the latter for me is giving back, which is what I hope to do here at PartTimePhoto.com.
After years and years of studying the art, business, and industry of photography online and here in the real world, I've learned that the people making the transition from unpaid amateurs to part time professionals is a massive, confused, underserved, underappreciated community.
That's about to change. Drastically.
You generally have three levels of photographers:
- Amateurs and enthusiasts who shoot for fun and don't care about making money off their work (Hi Uncle Joe!)
- Amateurs interested in making money with their photography (that's you!)
- Professionals actively earning good pay for their time
Certainly there are, as the supermodels of ModelMayhem call them, "GWC's" or "Guys With Cameras"; you have insanely talented amateurs and students all over Flickr; and you have a wide range of professionals from starvings artists to the Vincent Laforets and Anne Geddeses of the world.
This entire web site is targeted squarely at that Middle Category: amateurs, enthusiasts, students, part-timers, stay at home dads, unfulfilled day job moms, teenagers looking for summer work, etc.
I'm living that dream right now, and have been for many years. It is fun, it is stress-free, it is a perfect creative outlet, it's a great way to meet interesting people, and it pays well. It took a lot of trial and a lot of error to learn how to achieve that sweet-spot balance between art, business, and life.
I hope that through sharing here on PartTimePhoto.com the whole of my experience in this journey, I will help others achieve the same success I have as a part time professional photographer.
Here's some boring background bio info for you, just to show you how small-town I am and that it's possible to be successful anywhere:
James Taylor's "If I can do it..." Profile:
Me: Outlaw Photographer James Taylor.
Born in Tarpley, Texas, population: 30.
Graduated from, got a job in, and started part time photography business in Bandera, Texas, population: 957.
Still working for the same newspaper over a decade down the road.
Still a happy part time photographer.
Won gobs of big fish, small pond journalism awards, for sports photography, feature photography, news writing, page layout and design, etc. Voted "Best Photographer in Bandera County (population < 20,000) in 2007, 2008." Most recently picked up my biggest contest win yet, a first-place sports photography award from the Texas Press Association.
Everything I know about being a successful part time photographer, I look forward to sharing here on PartTimePhoto.com. It will take time and plenty of writing, but I truly believe you have the capability to better your life and the lives of those around you through the art and business of part time photography.
It's benefited my life, and if you so desire, it can benefit yours.
Next Steps
- Surf over to Flickr and find three photographers whose portraiture work inspires you. Bookmark their photo streams. Contact each one: say by phone, e-mail, or picture comment, "I am an aspiring professional photographer and your work on Flickr is really inspirational. May I contact you once in a while to talk about photography?" You'll learn that the most successful photographers are often the most open to helping you.
- Brainstorm session: make a list of all the people - famous, celebrity, or otherwise - with whom you would love to do a portrait session. From the President to a favorite comedian to Grandma. Save in your Brainstorms folder.
- If you're down with the clown until you're dead in the ground and would like to continue benefiting from the articles posted to this blog, please feel free to click the "Subscribe" button at the top of any page of this site.
- Who inspired you to take up photography, and then take it to the next level by doing paid work? Leave a comment below, e-mail me, or call or text me at 830-688-1564.
Want to make money as a part time photographer?
If you're here, you know you're here, and that's good enough for me.
If you have a few hours a week, access to a camera, and a hint of gumption, it's my goal to help you make money as a part time photographer.
Perhaps:
- You have an unfulfilling day job and want to stretch your legs as a professional photographer
- You have a good day job that doesn't pay enough, and you want some extra money to pay down debts, save up, or play with as fun money
- You're a stay-at-home mom or dad and would like to earn some money working part-time with a set-your-own flexible schedule
Whatever drives your desire to explore the world of part-time professional or ProAm (professional-amateur) photography, it's my own desire to help you be successful.
There are metric tons of information online about starting your own business and becoming a better photographer. Where I saw a need was while surfing photography forums and seeing so many men and women asking best-guess questions about how to get started. You don't know what you don't know, right?
In the same threads, I saw a lot of full time professional photographers give half-hearted advice and plenty of negative feedback.
"It's not as easy as it looks."
"Your photos are horrible; perhaps you should find another job."
"The market is saturated with amateurs like you killing the industry."
"If you're not doing it full time, and you don't have my expenses, and you don't charge what I do, you're not a real professional and you're taking food out of the mouths of my babies."
To which I indelicately respond, "BS."
Anyone who has studied business will tell you there are many, many markets and demographics for any given product range. Professional photography is no different from car sales or widget sales or interior decorating.
From "budget" to "luxury," there's a lengthy scale of customers seeking different levels of service at different prices.
Everybody has to start somewhere, every journey begins with the first step, and it's my goal through PartTimePhoto.com to help you transition and grow into the ProAm or Part Time Professional Photography business. I want to help you make money with photography.
I have no love for overcomplication, hidden agendas, withholding information, snobbery, and bait and switch games. I like simple instructions, "do this this way" clarity, and obvious next steps. Reading this blog and learning to make money with your photography shouldn't be an exercise in existential thinking.
On a daily basis, you'll find within these pixelated walls my best advice in developing your artistic and business skills to make good money for your time. I'll give you concrete examples, walkthroughs, visual examples, step-by-step tutorials, equipment buying advice, marketing pieces and projects, a hell of a lot of encouragement, and a holistic approach to doing good business that serves your own life as much as your customers.
Who am I to give such advice? Tune in tomorrow for my self-indulgent bio, but all you really need to know is that my name is James Taylor, I own Outlaw Photography in the rural town of Bandera, Texas, and I've enjoyed the life benefits of part time professional photography for over 10 years now.
Next Steps
You'll find that I am very big on clear, specific Next Steps. David Allen's system of Getting Things Done is a brilliant one, and one of the biggest things I got out of his book was the practice of establishing Next Steps.
I think the two biggest things missing from most instructional-type web sites are real world examples and well-defined Next Steps, so you'll find plenty of both here on PartTimePhoto.com. At the end of every article, I'll provide one or several Next Steps to give you an exact idea of what you can do at that point to better your part time photography business.
Here are today's Next Steps:
- Take a deep breath and let go of any preconceived fears or doubts you have about becoming a part time professional photographer. Shake them haters off.
- Get a sticky note or piece of paper and tape - write down the three biggest ways being a successful part time photographer would improve your life. Put this piece of paper on your monitor or somewhere you will look at it on a daily basis.
- Grab a piece of paper or open up your computer's note pad and brainstorm - this will be a Next Step for nearly every article I post to PartTimePhoto.com. I cannot overemphasize the value of a good brain dump, pouring your ideas out on paper or to a text file. Today's topic: Envision how your life would be different if you could earn some money through part time photography. No idea is too stupid or simple - write everything down. Spend several minutes on this. Try to build off every item you write down. Don't do it any specific order, just get it out on the page. Grab a folder for your paper or create folder on your desktop in which to place these brainstorm sessions.
- If this all sounds like a good thing for your life, please feel free to click on the "Subscribe" link at the top of any page on this site.
- What experiences have you had in your search for information and inspiration in becoming a part time photographer? Leave a comment below, e-mail me, or call or text me at 830-688-1564.
Congratulations - you have taken the first steps toward enjoying the lifestyle of a part time photographer!