Maybe you have a digital camera, enjoy taking photos and want to become a photographer. Or you don't have a camera but are seriously thinking of buying one and to make money with photography.
Becoming a photographer is possible. Unless you want to make a living as a photojournalist, you don't need formal education. You can learn as you go and become skilled at digital photography.
A good digital camera will be your best friend. If you want to take quality photos, you will need a digital camera that has a resolution of at least 5 mega pixels. With this resolution it's easier to post process your photos and they can be printed out at a decent size. Also a five mega pixel resolution is what you'll need in order for your photos to be accepted on microstock photography sites if you want to sell your photos online.
Once you've gained more experience and have clearer ideas of the types of photos you want to take, you can make the investment to a higher-end digital SLR camera and a fast lens.
Take as many pictures as you can. At the beginning, you'll want to take as different kinds of photos as possible. In the process you'll learn to master your camera. You'll experience all sorts of settings under different lighting, expositions.
At the same time, you will make selections of your photos to build up a portfolio so you can show to your prospective customers. Some of the most popular themes include landscapes, portraits, wedding, pets photography to name few. As an example to build up your portfolio in landscape photography you might want to take pictures of sceneries that are typical to your town, city. If you are invited to a wedding you can practice taking photos of the wedding and ask for feedback from the groom and bride. For portraits, you can start by taking photos of friends, colleagues, family members.
Specialization. This is up to you and it also depends on the market. If you want to take photos and sell them online, then you would not necessarily want to specialize. The reason being to be successful at selling photos online you'll need to take photos that sell. You can read more on this in the article I've written for EzineArticles called "Selling Photos Online - Foundation of Your Success at Selling Your Photos Online". You can find the link to that article on my Bio page.
On the other hand, if a specific segment of the market is not saturated and it's a theme that interests you then you might want to specialize in that theme. As an example if you enjoy taking photos of pets and your market research indicates there are opportunities in this niche then you will invest and work to become the best pets photographer in your area.
Look for freelance jobs. The majority of photographers are self employed. To be successful they need to work on the art of photography as well as the art of marketing. Freelance jobs in photography are great to get work. There is a variety of freelance jobs. It could be taking photos as a field photographer for an insurance company or being an assistant photographer to an established wedding photographer in your city. There are websites where you can go to look for freelance assignments. You can also take photos of cars for people who are looking to sell their cars on eBay Motors.
Keep learning as you go. Photography evolves. As a photographer you will keep learning all the time so you can stay ahead of the game. Read websites, magazines, buy e-books to learn techniques and tricks. Attend seminars on your areas of photography to keep your skills up to date. Visit manufacturer websites to download the latest firmware for your camera.
Learning how to become a photographer comes at ease for those who have a passion for this art. You'll find photography is a very appealing field because each photo you take is unique.
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