While photography has been around for a long time, there has recently been some stigma attached to the hobby. Non-photographers have been caught giving horribly inaccurate advice to aspiring photographers. These five lies have spread throughout the photography world and into the minds of amateurs.
1.You have to take photography courses to be a real photographer.
Some of the best work has been done by no-names in small towns with little to no educational background. Just find your niche and work with it until it’s perfect. Study other photographers that inspire you and base your work off theirs (without copying, of course).
2. You have to have business knowledge to book clients.
While it will help in the long run, your business will not depend on if you took Management and Finance in college. As long as you can determine a fair price for an hour session, while also making profit, you’re good. Also note that charging $40 per hour-long session does not mean you are getting paid $40 an hour. Take into account the amount of time you edit, print, set up meetings, etc. before setting a price for your client.
3.Over editing will make you look professional, right?
Wrong. Over editing is the giveaway of most juvenile photos. If a portrait’s eyes are an uncanny shade of green and the sunset looks a little too perfect, your photos will look similar to those we used to make our Myspace icons. (Picnik, anyone?) Also, while some portraits need to be black and white, editing all your photos in B&W will narrow your clientele. Ultimately, when editing, choose what feels most natural.
4.You need the most expensive equipment.
Not exactly. Some of the most beautiful pictures have been taken on simple iPhones. What needs to be considered more than the camera is the editing programs and the lenses and even those can be cheap brands.
5. Recently hopping on the photography bandwagon makes you a Fauxtographer.
Just like any other hobby, as long as you stick with it, you are doing just fine. Don’t let anyone invalidate your skills and photos and don’t let anyone skimp out on paying you for a session because you are not experienced yet. You still take the time to learn, edit, schedule, etc. and you deserve to be paid.
So before you new photographers get discouraged, remember that every expert started somewhere. Stick with it, and you will be fine.
