Last Updated on March 4, 2015
Becoming a professional photographer is a process but above all a great career choice for anyone who wants to earn money for their creative talent. Photography is the essence of capturing a moment, turning reality into a memory people can hold forever. The objective is to get a quality product and people who are self-discipline tend to achieve that best. Although photography is very competitive, so becoming prepared should come first then evolve from a small time photographer to perfecting your craft. Below are tips on how to build a strong portfolio and get you to the photographer you need to be.
Find a mentor
Seek a mentor or other professional photographers. Find some that are willing to give you advice, they may tell you what to do and what not to do when you start in the business. Ask if you can learn from them for a week, possibly follow them on their daily routine and pick up some tendencies that could better your craft.
Educate yourself
Become a student of your field. Study photography books and teach yourself about the different angles and techniques. Lighting and composition will also be explained in these books or online, here you will learn that those aspects may be the most important part of a photo. Pros contribute their techniques to these book lessons so take heed to what they are saying and try to implement what you learn into your everyday photography. Here are 100 Tips from a Professional Photographer that you may find useful.
Consider earning a degree from photography colleges around the nation. You will also meet classmates that can give you advice on things they learned – connections are very valuable, do not overlook them. Give them a glance at your work and except their praise and critique. If you need help finding an institution, try HBCU Digital Arts Programs.
Experiment with lenses and other accessories
A photographer is only as good as their equipment so invest in a good lens. If you are ready, purchase the best equipment that you can afford because you are your own investment and it will make a great difference in the product and your career. Your lens should be a removable kind so your camera can adjust to several different looks. A removable lens is also cost effective because you can use one camera to capture a variety of different looking shots.
Review your photos
Become your own critic and evaluate each photo that you take. Be open to criticism as well and ask others what they think about your portfolio because this gives you the perspective of a third party. Go back over your photos after a little while and correct any mistakes in editing software, photographers are well versed in photo editing software. Pro photographers will never take a perfect picture, neither will you so get use to correcting the mistakes you find. Good photo editing software are such programs like Photoshop or Gimp.
Strive to make your own mark in creativity. Be original with your work and use editing software to get your message across the audience. Give your photos a fresh look and make them attractive so that viewers will want to see more of your work.
