AboutJohn and Chris Expertise We are both professional photographers, with over 15 years experience. We can answer questions about photography, as well as questions about cameras from the 60s to 90s. (extensive 35mm, quite a bit of other formats.) Please, no darkroom questions.
Expert: John and Chris Date: 4/2/2007 Subject: how to get started
Question i was wondering how do i get started on photography
because i am very interested in it
and i wanna know if its hard doing photography and taking
picture well please answer this because i really want to know
thank you bye bye!!!
;]
Answer Lydia,
If there were a simple answer to your question it would be "start by taking pictures". Unfortunately, there is no simple answer and there are many way to get started. Some people go to art school or a photo school like "Brooks". Some people simply start by finding people to pay them to shoot... like by doing little league games or weddings. Of course, those people know how to shoot already but you could practice first.
Learning the basics of photography isn't hard. I learned the basics when I was around ten years old. Getting good at it is a whole other matter. It's possible to have the technical skills but have no creative ability. I've also known people who are naturally creative and artistic but have a hard time with the technical side. It's possible to make money at it if you don't have both abilities but I don't think you could make it your living unless you have both.
I guess you should start by taking pictures. Read a book on basic photography. And look at the photo's of pro photographers. You could join a photo club so others could see your work and give criticism and advice. There are also places on-line to post your pictures and look at the work of others. I'm a member of a community called pBase. People can leave notes on your page about your pictures. Another good place is photo.net. You can get free accounts on both sites but you'll get full access and more space if you pay.
You asked if it was hard. Well, that's kind of subjective. To some people parts of it are. And of course to some, it's easy. One of the problems I had was the "business" side of it. A lot of times a good photographer will fail because he/she has no idea how to run a business properly. There can be a lot involved in running a business. Taxes, accounting, insurance, licenses, marketing, advertising, contracts. Of course you'll only have these issues as you become successful. Many folks just keep it small and do weddings and the like.
Well, I'm starting to ramble. But as you can see from all I've just written, there is no simple answer.
If this doesn't help you, perhaps you can tell me about yourself and I can guide you from there. Some things I'd need to know:
How old are you?
Any experience with photography?
Do you consider yourself an artist?
Do you have a camera and what type?
Do you live in a big city or small town?
Have you been to college? If not are you going to?
Do you expect to some day make your living with photography?
Or just make a little extra money?
