Market Your Photography Business

Setting up your own photography business it easy, you don't need office space in can be done from your own home. However this is not the easiest type of business to market, especially if you are new to the business. Quite often to market this type of business you need specialist contacts, and your newness to the business precludes you from having these contacts, unless of course your surname is Eastman.

Don't underestimate the power of marketing, because it is the tool that can make or break your business. Marketing is the commercial aspect of transferring goods from one owner to another. Without this tool you are lost, but don't despair, there are effective avenues you can explore to market your business successfully.

First of all you need to decide what form of business you are going to set up, there are only two basic types - Assignment photography and Stock photography.

Assignment photography covers jobs that you have been hired to photograph. In other words you have a specific target to photograph. An example of this type of photography is to cover Mr X's wedding. This type of the photography is the bread and butter of photographers, however it is unlikely to win you the Pulitzer Prize for photography.

The photographs will have a limited appeal, in the case of Mr X's wedding; no matter how technically perfect those photographs are, they are going to have a limited appeal. They are simply not marketable outside the field of the family of Mr X.

Stock photography, is exactly what the name suggest, you have a stock of photographs and you have to market them. You have taken the photographs without having a buyer. This type of photography is much more speculative, and you may waste a lot of resources. You may have to invest a great deal of time and or film, depending on whether you are using an SLR camera, or a Digital Camera. Non-professionals think these photographs occur when you are in the right place at the right time. In reality though, being in the correct place has an element of advantage, who can forget the child on fire from Napalm running out of a village in the Vietnam war; often they are a particular photograph taken out of a series of hundreds. Whilst these photographs are often more exciting to take, they can be boring as well, and you may never quite get that photograph that "Says it All".

There are effective ways to market these stock photographs, which is wonderful for the beginner because you do not bear the cost of the marketing. There are several stock picture libraries on line. You submit your photographs to these libraries, and they then sell the rights for others to reproduce them. The price structure on this type of photography depends on its content and also where it is sold. It may go on the front page of an encyclopaedia with a print run of half a million, and it may go on someone's private web site. There will be a different rate for the type of photograph and its market. When your photograph is sold the library will deduct a percentage of your commission for marketing and of course profit.

Most photographers when they start will combine these types of business to varying degrees. There are several ways that you can boost your marketing profile without actually spending any money. Join a local photography society is one way, another is to go to your local town hall and see if your local chamber of commerce has a group of professional photographers. Another more involved way to market your business and bring it into a higher profile with the local community is to offer to teach photography free of charge. Yes I know the chances are that you are working from home, but why not offer to do it in a local school.

The debate is still raging about SLR cameras versus digital, and it looks like it will for some time to come.

It is still fair to say that most photographers want great imaging, in a compact affordable package. Improved design techniques for the digital camera are now delivering a viable alternative to 35mm film, but one of the drawbacks to marketing this type of film, was the time consumed producing digital photographs at home. Home development often does not give a professional finish. There are now photo development agencies online which will give you great images. You upload the photographs on to your chosen site and they will print them and forward them on to you. This way you can ensure crystal clear prints to your instructions. Kodak gallery allows you to share your prints online afterwards by allowing you storage space, which means that you don't even have to scan your pictures. Don't forget to check out our other articles for great hints and tips for every step of your business development. Make your business work for you!

Whilst marketing is a very important aspect of the business, it does not compensate for lack of quality. Sharp clear prints sell, and others don't. Make sure that you invest in good quality basics, such as a tripod. It is not necessary to invest in products you will use once a year, if you need them then hire them, especially when you are just starting. Even if you use digital, it is still a fact that the lens is more important than the camera. Make sure the equipment you buy is going to work for you. Extra time spent asking questions before you buy will pay dividends later, in terms of money saved. Everyone wastes money at some time or other, but being forethought and researching can reduce that substantially.

Publisher & author: Roy Barker. Roy is the author of the popular ebook, Income from Photography - a downloadable ebook which guides the reader on how to start up and market a Profitable Photography business. It can be viewed at http://www.profitable-photography.com. Other related and reviewed services & research sources can be found at http://www.profitable-photography.com/html/11 7/ The information on this and adjoining pages may be reprinted and used on other sites providing all information remains unchanged and the article and all pages remain as they are found here in its current font size & image with all links in tact.

---

Tips for Better Vacation Photos

Photos are a great way to share your travel experiences... Read More

Entering the World of Digital Video Cameras

Gone are the days when you would need to employ... Read More

8 Simple Tips for Taking Great Baby Photos

Taking pictures of your new baby is a great way... Read More

The Truth About Pixels, Part 2-1: Printing 4x3 Inch Photos

Why is a 3 megapixel camera better than a 1... Read More

Elephants in the Sky and Four Poems

Elephants in the Sky[1980s, Lee Evens in Mali, Timbuktu/Africa]Advance: Lee... Read More

Stock Your Kit with Digital Camera Accessories

There are a large number of digital camera accessories available... Read More

Getting Your Photos Ready for Sharing

One of the main reasons people buy digital cameras is... Read More

Let Those Digital Photos Out! (You Don?t Have To Print Them Yourself)

What have you done with the photos you've taken with... Read More

Exposure Compensation

The digital camera is in reality a great possession with... Read More

How to Take Great Photos of Your Child

Children are naturally photogenic. Ive worked in studios and children... Read More

Pinhole Photography: Right Back to Basics

Why Pinhole Photography?It's fun. It's creative. It's educative about the... Read More

Using a Camcorder to Record Family Events Quickly and Easily

Let's start there (but not spend too much time on... Read More

Travel and Scenic Photography 101

When you're driving through the mountains somewhere, and you... Read More

Digicam File Formats

Looking at the digital camera, a person can visualize it... Read More

Get Closer to Your Subject

Almost any shot will look better if you take two... Read More

Digital Photography: The RAW vs JPG Debate

If you use a digital camera (I use a Canon... Read More

Photography - Things to Consider Before Buying a Camera

Before you are able to take the kind of photos... Read More

Guidelines for Printing Great Photos at Home

So you have this great digital camera and you've taken... Read More

Nikon Digital Cameras - Cool(pix) and Functional

Even though Nikon entered the camera world by 1948, today... Read More

How to Make Your Production Look a Lot Slicker for £40 More

Tight BudgetsTight budgets are common these days. But the demand... Read More

Canon-Powershot-A80 Review

Last month we bought the Canon Powershot A80 online for... Read More

Choosing the Right Digital Camera

Choosing the right digital camera for general use can be... Read More

Megapixel Cameras: How Many Megapixels Do You Need?

Knowing which megapixel camera to buy can be intimidating. There... Read More

CCTV Camera Tip: Apply Simple Common Sense when Picking CCTV Cameras and Lenses

Get a good face shot: Use Higher quality cameras at... Read More

Selecting Your First Digital Camera

Purchasing a digital camera is a wise decision, particularly if... Read More

Freelance Photography: How to Begin Your Career

Photography is a vast world. There are many different types... Read More

Stitching Memories

Sometimes, usual photographs look so common and boring. Converting your... Read More

The Best Wildlife Camera To Take On Safari

Good wildlife camera equipment on safari can make the difference... Read More

Tips for Taking Better Vacation Photos

Photos are a great way to share your travel experiences... Read More

The Venice Rookery

Love is in the air at the Venice Rookery. The... Read More

Underwater Photography: The Wonders Under the Sea

The world of photography is an amazing one. It's been... Read More

Taking Professional Quality Pictures

By now I'm sure you've used Either a digital or... Read More

Where Do Great Ideas Come From?

At a Photo Club meeting I attended recently, the President... Read More