Who's Day Job is Photography? [Archive] - Large Format Photography Forum

claudiocambon

17-Dec-2007, 15:08

Photography represents a lot of what I do in terms of my time, but less and less in terms of my income, as I do more and more translating to pay the bills. I have backed off from a lot of the commercial photo work I used to do to support my artwork, as I find commercial photography to be a brutal and hellacious way to make a living, and ultimately one not suited to my temperament (congrats to those who are able to do so!). The great thing for me has been that now, in doing the translating, I make more money in less time and with far less hassle, which means I spend more and more time doing my own art, so, in doing less photography, I am actually doing more photography now, which makes me quite happy. In the end, it's acrobatics no matter what.

Gordon Moat

17-Dec-2007, 15:09

Yeah ... 25 hours a day sometimes.:eek:

Largely somewhat anonymous corporate work, though I am trying to break into bigger and more lucrative markets. I also photograph lots of different musicians, which is creative, though not always well paid; my images from that have ended up in many small regional magazines, lots of posters, and some music CD packages. I have done some event/night club work in the past, though mostly moved away from that when pay levels went too low.

It is not always an easy line of work. I have done illustration and design work in the past, which is what led me into doing photography full time. Now I spend more time in meetings, writing proposals, and doing paperwork than I spend on location doing a shoot . . . the reality of this profession is nothing like the movies, but I enjoy the creative challenges so much that I could not imagine doing anything else.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat Photography (http://www.gordonmoat.com)

Miguel Curbelo

17-Dec-2007, 15:20

I am a translator too, but a couple of years ago I decided I needed to do something outdoors. I got into pinhole cameras, which led me to LF photography and this, in turn, led me to architectural photography. About 25% of my current income is photography related.

Dave Aharonian

17-Dec-2007, 15:25

Like you Kirk, this is my day, night and weekend job. I shoot architecture commercially and I'm working at selling my prints now as well. Sure, I'm not floating in extra cash, but I'm doing what I love.

Armin Seeholzer

17-Dec-2007, 15:26

Hi
It was in the past for 3 years but I really started to hate to work for others, so I stopped bevor it was to late.
Now its about 5-10% of my job and the rest I do other things, but in my freetime I'm almost do only my own photography!
Cheers Armin

jnantz

17-Dec-2007, 15:31

hi kirk

using a camera is also my job.
i've been doing freelance printing, newspaper,
magazine (portrait ) and habs work for a while now ..
but luckliy my wife works too ... and gets the insurance ...

john

Ralph Barker

17-Dec-2007, 15:35

We're supposed to have a day job!?

I knew there was a reason I retired. :cool:

Jim Galli

17-Dec-2007, 15:45

High speed motion picture photography of our nuclear stockpile in action. Does that count. It's a sucky job but somebody's got to do it. When it's time for personal work, perhaps that's why I choose 1 image / 360 seconds instead of thousands of images at 360 frames per second. All the same principles apply to both endeavors.

photographs42

17-Dec-2007, 15:49

Yeah ... 25 hours a day sometimes.:eek: ...........
Gordon Moat Photography (http://www.gordonmoat.com)

Gordon…. I had my own Architectural practice for 14 years. I found that if I worked 25 hours a day I only had to work 8 days a week.

For the last 27 years I have worked for a large Design-Build firm as a Designer/Project Architect. I also do LF Black & White landscape photography which I market through a couple of galleries and 5 to 10 Art Fairs each year. Over the years I have done Architectural Photography for the D/B company and for the last three years that is all I have done. So now, my day job is photography and so is my hobby.

Jerome

Charles Carstensen

17-Dec-2007, 15:55

It is a personal passion due to the fact I am retired(ded) from aviation accident investigations. However, I live photography 24/7. Occasionally a person in need chooses me for a documentary assignment/project. Then, I am in hog heaven.

Greg Lockrey

17-Dec-2007, 16:27

I'm a custom fine art printer and I use a lot of photography skills in this endeavor.

davidb

17-Dec-2007, 16:36

0 % from landscape work
100% from pornography

:D

Robert A. Zeichner

17-Dec-2007, 16:38

For me photography has been a side line for a little over ten years, although my first commissioned sales date back almost 40 years. Sales of my prints have been consistent despite some rocky economic conditions here in Michigan. I sell broadcast television equipment by day, which I have to say, has become a real grind. I have met many wonderful people in the course of my daytime activities over the years and a good number have become consumers of my photography. The equipment sales feed the stomach, but the photography feeds the soul. That's fine with me.

Gudmundur Ingolfsson

17-Dec-2007, 16:41

Photography has been my day job, all day, almost every day since 35 years. The problem is that I am lousy at marketing my personal work.

Frank Petronio

17-Dec-2007, 17:23

I worked full time at it for the first ten years, doing some nicer corporate annual report, but also a lot of tedious low-paying tabletop catalogy stuff and architecture. Moved towards digital imaging, prepress, design, web stuff, book publishing, marketing consulting... and now I'm back at photography, competing with 22-year olds to get some decent editorial assignments.

Luckily I have some money and a very understanding working wife.

I won't do "generic" anything-that-comes-along commercial photography again. I rather do the civil service or be a house husband.

Kirk Gittings

17-Dec-2007, 17:26

Photography has been my day job, all day, almost every day since 35 years. The problem is that I am lousy at marketing my personal work.

This is not unusual, IME it is far easier and straight forward to make money from commercial work, while the personal work is immensely more gratifying. While my personal work has had allot of critical success, I am glad I don't have to rely on it to pay the bills.

As Paul Caponigro told me one time...."if I were a painter and as famous as I am I would be a rich man. As it is I really struggle" (paraphrasing).

Eric Biggerstaff

17-Dec-2007, 17:29

Nope, perhaps when I retire one of these days from my current class of work and I have more time to devote to my photography and writing, ahhhh just 20 more years to wait!

I can always dream!

billschwab

17-Dec-2007, 17:34

Twenty-seven years and counting. What a long, strange trip its been.

Kirk Gittings

17-Dec-2007, 17:38

Nope, perhaps when I retire one of these days from my current class of work and I have more time to devote to my photography and writing, ahhhh just 20 more years to wait!

I can always dream!

Eric,

IMO, You are one of those guys here who has the talent, dedication to craft, and business savvy, who could make a living in photography (which of course is along way from actually doing it).

Richard Kelham

17-Dec-2007, 18:13

It used to be mine. Some good times, but I never managed to find time for my own work, plus the stress of dealing with some real arsehole clients led me to quit more than twenty years ago. I have absolutely no desire to go back to it.

Still don't get enough time for my own stuff though...

bsimison

17-Dec-2007, 18:42

It's my day job, and trying to strike a balance between the commercial, editorial, and personal work whilst keeping the wife and bank balance happy certainly makes every day....interesting. Yeah, that's a good euphemism.

John Sarsgard

17-Dec-2007, 19:45

Full time photographer who is most fortunate to have a retirement check every month from 35 years in the computer industry. Lots of work for charities for which I don't get, and don't need, compensation. Studio and location portraits that come to me, for which I am paid, but with no particular revenue objective. Some commercial website photography, when asked. Personal projects including portraits of strangers in Grand Central Terminal, and creative people in and around New York's East Village. I've had shows and hope to do books from these. I am exploring some new ways (at least for me) of doing landscapes. I'm the luckiest guy around. I do photography full time, with a little income from it, without having to do work I hate, with a retirement check to pay for room and food and wine. Who could ask for more?

Colin Corneau

17-Dec-2007, 19:52

FT job shooting for a small/midsize daily - digital helps pay for my LF work!

Robbie Shymanski

17-Dec-2007, 19:53

Lately, day job, yes. Income, totally in the red. But, I am a still a grad student. I will make the most of these last six months.

C. D. Keth

17-Dec-2007, 19:53

Kind of. My day job is motion picture photography. Lately it's been more as a camera assistant than anything, but I'm working on pushing my career toward being a cinematographer more.

Daniel_Buck

17-Dec-2007, 20:43

mine isn't photography per say, (my title is "Digital 3d/2d Artist" I believe) but I do alot of photography along with my job on the computer. Capturing lighting data (HDR domes/pantiles/flats) while on location or on set, 360 environments, textures, and images used for background plates in CG and photogrammetry.

Ron McElroy

17-Dec-2007, 21:16

With the exception of getting to do some archive printing for the local library early in my career, I've never figured out how to make money with photography.
My career path took twists and turns starting out in graphic design and moving into printing prepress. When the company I work for started a digital studio in the mid 90s I wanted to transfer to the studio, however I could not work with the prick that sold the idea to the company owners.
I keep my work personal.

Ben Chase

17-Dec-2007, 22:27

I don't do it full time, but sometimes find myself wishing that I could. I wonder though - would I enjoy it less if I was relying on it as a source of income rather than a personal passion?

That said, I do sell prints from time to time throughout the year, but no magazine work yet, stock, or whatnot.

Gene McCluney

17-Dec-2007, 23:08

I am a full-time commercial photographer. I have had a studio for over 30 years.

Duane Polcou

18-Dec-2007, 00:06

Full time producing anything media oriented with fitness/glamour/swimsuit models.
Advertising, magazines, zed cards, headshots, DVD box art, posters, calendars, book covers, web content, etc.
If I could fit on my license plate "Take off your top. Cut me a check" I would.

Martin Miksch

18-Dec-2007, 02:11

countryside commercial here, from cow to bride and passport, beside this 3D CG, webdesign etc.
Regards
Martin

Gary J. McCutcheon

18-Dec-2007, 06:27

I've been a full time photographer for nearly forty years now. I am having my 30th anniversary year at my studio this year and am in the same situation as many of you. How do I market my work? I have a masters degree (fine art) and sell a few of my(fine art) prints occasionally at the studio, but other than that, I have no representation.

My studio produces portraits, wedding, and commercial photography with copy and restoration work and occassional fine artists reqesting photos of there work. I find that many of my fine art clients (buying my personal work) are other photographers and artists
and once in a while portrait clients. The studio has been good to me over the years and I have been fortunate enough not to have to market too much, an occassional mailing.

Now I am finding the competion is skyrocketing. My little town used to have 3 or 4 yellow page ads for photographers. Now it seems to be 3 or 4 pages of photographers and probably double that many not advertising and shooting just on weekends for fun and profit.

My older steady clients are literally dying off ( I'm going to one funeral tomorrow), and much of the word of mouth seems to be dwindling too. So, marketing here I come. It's like a whole new career. Market 50% of the time, photograph 40%. I guess the rest is taking out the garbage and paying bills. The scary part of all this is that my suppliers are going out of business, two recently, and in the last five years 2/3rds of the labs have closed in this area.

I have to look at it this way. I'm going to learn a lot about marketing now for my business and apply that into marketing for over 40 years of fine art work also. Most of the professional seminars I've attended in the last bit of time are emphasizing marketing. The problem I see with that is that there are a lot of untrained photographers (marketing themselves as professionals) that are marketing like crazy putting out some really horrible work and are able to do it because they can pick up a digital camera, set it on autopilot and shoot like crazy and come up with a few shots that are "good enough". You can buy a a very nice fountain pen, that doesn't make you a writer. A good dictionary doesn't a poet make. The good photographers that market well I have no problem with, but there are so many moonlighters now. The good clients see the difference, but many of the younger crowd just go cheap and quick.

So the world of the professional studio is changing in large part due to the digital world, like it or not. But where is the artistry, the lighting, technique, composition, the ability to see photographically, perception (which only comes with experience)?
When I attend professional photography conventions the emphasis is so much scewed to marketing whereas it used to be to technique and artistry. We need both, but I think the things have swung too far the other way. The photographers must be trained in their craft first and then apply the marketing tools. It's sad to see poor work being marketed for business sake without the initial training in photography.

Well, that is much more than I had expected to relate to you fellow photographers. This is a great forum and I feel like you are kindred spirits here. I don't want to start a whole new thing, but maybe those of you with similar experience would like to chime in.
Kirk?

Scott Knowles

18-Dec-2007, 06:28

It was my hobby-passion, but I retired 2 years early to do it part-time, and not require it be a source of income, although I totally misjudged the initial capital investment in the first year (2006). When I retired to do this I made a basic plan for accomplishing some personal milestones with it, but it has the flexibllity in case of life and other factors, like money, without losing sight of the passion and goals. I got a ways to go before I produce good images and have an income producing business with my own work. But then I tell people, "Hey, I got the rest of my life, so what's the problem?"

Mark Sampson

18-Dec-2007, 06:40

I have 30 years in the trade; the last 23 inside a corporation, doing everything from grip'n'grins, through big location lighting jobs, to hardcore scientific research. All with a paycheck and benefits, so I've been luckythat way. But I've always worked with the landscape; my parents were/are landscape painters, so I grew up with the subject. I shoot the occaisional architecture job on the outside, too- so I make pictures all week on the job, and do my own work as time permits. Press on regardless...

Kirk Gittings

18-Dec-2007, 07:30

Gary, My 30th year is next year. I have always had kind of an odd business. I have never marketed my business directly, literally except for my website, I have almost never done any marketing since I first started. I let the exposure of my art projects, exhibits, books, magazine articles etc., which I market heavily, keep my name in clients consciousness. The idea is something like, "geez if he can get a big museum show, he would probably do a great job on my little project". Odd strategy I know but it works for me, and since my art work is booming so is my commercial work.

Henry Ambrose

18-Dec-2007, 08:12

I'll sign in now as one of the "photography as day job guys". This time of year things slow way down for me so it feels like I'm a part timer. As some of the things Gary wrote about have transpired I've re-invented myself more than once. I've been shooting 98% architecture for the last 5-6 years trying to stay ahead of the incredible number of "idiot nephews with a digital camera" who have been a constant drain on the industry. Two years ago my biggest and oldest client out-sourced me to Thailand. That was a surprise. Let's see 'em do that with a building.

Photography has been the best thing I've ever done and the hardest, often feast or famine. I've felt like I figured out the secret handshake in some other fields but not here. My next job always seems a mystery. Kirk's marketing of his art projects is a great way to go if you've got it. My best take on that is that if you can show something a step or two above what the clients wants they'll hire you for their more mundane job.

Brian K

18-Dec-2007, 08:21

Started assisting at 17, part time, full time, freelance assisting until 19, so 2-3 years there, but still lived with my folks and went to school at the same so i don't know how much that counts.

Started shooting editorial work at around 19 and I'm just shy of 50, so that means 31 years as a full time photographer. By 2003 I closed my NYC studio and switched to landscape photography. In another 20 years maybe I'll know what I'm doing.

Robert Skeoch

18-Dec-2007, 08:25

Full time with a studio. I make most of my living as a sports photographer.
Since I've returned to Lf I have to admit a renewed interest in photography of all types. Basicly it's all I think about. It's all I've done for 31 years so I guess I'm a career photographer.
-rob

Eric Biggerstaff

18-Dec-2007, 08:37

Kirk,

Thank you very much, perhaps one of these days I will give it a shot!

david mcmahon

18-Dec-2007, 08:49

I spent 26 years making a living (barely) at commercial photography. When I realized I had nothing to show for it except bills, I decided I needed to do something for myself. I've been building a b&w landscape portfolio now for the past three years and while it doesn't pay it is tremendously more satisfying than the commercial work. The gallery shows are a lot of work but it is so rewarding to talk to people who admire the work. Now if I could just get them to invest in it.

david mcmahon

ljb0904

18-Dec-2007, 09:05

It's my second job and the sink for my income :-D

Michael Alpert

18-Dec-2007, 09:07

Kirk, you ask worthwhile questions. Thank you.

I've spent a lifetime developing skills as a book designer, editor, and publisher; and I currently work as the director of a university press. I do not want photography to become a money-making job, part-time or full-time, day or night. I've shown photographs in good galleries and a museum here in Maine, with more shows scheduled ahead; that's enough for me. My interest is photography as art; that is, as the exploration of the world and the exploration of the world of psyche. I work seriously as an artist, with the freedom to do what excites me; at my age, I plan to keep it that way.

Bill Kumpf

18-Dec-2007, 09:34

Yesterday marked 40 years in automotive engineering with some involvement with photography for product documentation.

I did some part time free lance during the 70’s with weddings and kids portraits. When I started counting the pennies, photography became a job. Dropped out for 30 years and this time it is purely for fun…………..

Kirk Gittings

18-Dec-2007, 09:54

Michael, Interesting. I was curious what you did for a living. I lived near Machias when I was a kid for awhile. I just did a job for Historic New England in Havervill. Is that near you?

Michael Alpert

18-Dec-2007, 11:28

Michael, Interesting. I was curious what you did for a living. I lived near Machias when I was a kid for awhile. I just did a job for Historic New England in Havervill. Is that near you?

Kirk, I live in Bangor. I go Down East often, so I am very familiar with Machias and the rest of Washington County. That part of Maine is still lovely, with fine people, though economically depressed. Haverhill, N.H. is quite a ways west of Bangor.

Kirk Gittings

18-Dec-2007, 12:23

Jeez, the Machias area was depressed back then, but we could buy lobsters off the dock for $1 if I remember rightly!

Duane Polcou

18-Dec-2007, 13:54

The problem I see with that is that there are a lot of untrained photographers (marketing themselves as professionals) that are marketing like crazy putting out some really horrible work and are able to do it because they can pick up a digital camera, set it on autopilot and shoot like crazy and come up with a few shots that are "good enough".

Bingo. I studied studio lighting for years, with Playboy photographers, only to watch the market share favor on-camera flash snapshots of whatever and insanely retouched non-reality. If I didn't embrace technology to re-think marketing and create a stylized niche-approach to photographing models, I would be done.

I still think those producing high quality work, with an element of uniqueness, will always find an audience. I slowly but surely do. But it just takes at least as much, if not more, attention to marketing than creating.

Les McLean

18-Dec-2007, 14:44

After a career as a rock guitarist I slid off the tracks to spend some 20 years as an accountant during which time I discovered photography. After 16 years enjoying photography as a hobby I threw in the towel on accounting and have spent the past 15 years earning my living teaching, printing and writing about photography. Best thing I ever did but couldn't have done it without a very understanding wife.

Daniel Geiger

18-Dec-2007, 15:37

I am working in a natural history museum, and running all kinds of imaging devices, from digi-SLR, peltier-cooled microscope cameras with automontage/heliconfocus or 3D reconstruction (amira), to running a SEM facility, and PS work. My research is heavily relying on all those imaging techniques (plus some mol/morph-phylogenetics). Have done some writing on photography/imaging (e.g., book chapter on sci. photography; res papers on SEM techniques), and have taught a couple of photography classes.
4x5 is for my personal enjoyment, with about $2K annual stock photo sales (4x5 and 35 combined); i.e., nice hobby income, but not more. Apparently got selected as a PhotoTechniques "serious photographer"; no pay, just honor or something.
Bottom line, a mixed photo grab bag.

matthew blais

18-Dec-2007, 18:03

I actually derive about 30% of my income from Commercial Photography, the other from Design/Marketing/Printing (commercial)

Ron Stowell

18-Dec-2007, 19:43

Retired. Most of my income comes from SS, Pension, Investments; but I can spend all day and evening if like on photography. Once in a while I make a few bucks doing some photoshop work.
If I had to make a living at it, I would probably get tired of it and wish I was doing heavy duty truck repair. O I did that for a lot of years!

windpointphoto

18-Dec-2007, 19:46

The problem I see with that is that there are a lot of untrained photographers (marketing themselves as professionals) that are marketing like crazy putting out some really horrible work and are able to do it because they can pick up a digital camera, set it on autopilot and shoot like crazy and come up with a few shots that are "good enough".

So what? In the days of 35mm, remember those, you'd go out and expose rolls of film and be happy if you came home with 2 or 3 keepers. I'm not a trained photographer and make a nice income from my hobby and passion, and I take many more stinkers then winners. Guess I'm not in your league. At least they're out there making pictures instead of sitting on there butts and complaining. But lets spit on digital. Sigh.

Jrewt

18-Dec-2007, 20:44

Right at the moment I'm making enough to pay the rent doing photography, which isn't much. I'm working my butt off at it (as is my girl, she is my bidness partner), and seeing as how we have only been at it for 5 months we are doing pretty well. It's amazing how much you have to literally bug the hell out of people to get work, even when they are impressed and actively LOOKING for a new photographer and stylist (I do food photography).. Oh well, I can't complain because it's pretty fun..

bgh

19-Dec-2007, 07:12

I occasionally pick up HABS/HAER projects through my job as a historian/cultural resources guy for an engineering firm, but most of my photography is the same kind of documentation jobs albeit on a volunteer basis.

Maretzo

19-Dec-2007, 07:52

I am quitting a very well paid position in Asia to a less generous job in Switzerland, but not in photography, simply because I cannot practice LF in Thailand or Vietnam.
What about that? Not a day job but a vocation! I miss my Tachi soooooo much...and the mountains of course....,and the wine.....,and the cheese fondue,...and the snow....,and etc, etc. Next step: a Misura:D, because I do not want to have a heart attack seeing my brand new Chamonix grounded in China :p

QT Luong

19-Dec-2007, 08:52

My family sole source of income is the licensing of images and sale of prints from my website. We live in the SF Bay area. That said, I don't really consider photography to be my day job. I spend most of my time behind a computer to prepare digital files, enhance the web site, and run the business. When I was working as a research scientist, there were years where I photographed more, however I didn't have a family back then. What hasn't changed, though, is that I photograph exclusively the cultural and natural subjects I am interested in, to the exclusion of any assignment. I don't find it particularly great to be a full-time photographer, but with my family obligations, I wouldn't have time to be a part-time photographer.

rjphil

19-Dec-2007, 10:34

I tell people that photography is a high school hobby that has gotten SERIOUSLY out of hand:) Been a traditional (darkroom) fine art printer for 28 years this year, and a photographer of works of art for about 20 years now. My goal for next year is to get a web gallery up and running for sales of my personal work (hey, everyone needs a goal).

Bruce Schultz

19-Dec-2007, 12:46

Roughly half of my work in the communications dept. at the LSU AgCenter involves photography, all digital.
I also do freelance wet-plate work, mostly civil war reenactments and portraits. I shot a dilapidated 200-year-old house last week that's about to be restored.

Thom Bennett

19-Dec-2007, 12:53

I work M - F as a commercial studio and tabletop shooter. I photograph antique furniture, jewelry, porcelain, glass and artwork (paintings, sculpture) for an antique company; we have our own in-house marketing department and produce 6 - 8 catalogs a year plus ads, sale sheets and images for the website. In my "off" hours I shoot some editorial work, portraiture and do custom black & white printing. I'm learning platinum printing and next year will be devoted to printing 8x10 work in platinum. I have been lucky in that I have worked as a photographer in some capacity since college ('81). I still dream of photographing architecture (like Kirk).

Thom Bennett

19-Dec-2007, 12:56

Bruce, I just saw your previous post; you are just up the road from me. I'm in New Orleans.

esbtse

19-Dec-2007, 13:49

I do not earn my living by it as I am a microwave system designer. But I do some product documentation at work. Equipment and workshops take a big size of my savings each year and dont improve my photographic skills.

Michael T. Murphy

19-Dec-2007, 15:59

I *was* doing it for a living. I have been "retired" for 2 years due to health problems.

At 49, with a 9 year old, I need to get back to work as soon as I can! I can't afford to retire. Maybe in 6 months I can work again?

Mystery Jig

19-Dec-2007, 16:18

I've been a shooter (running and gunning) at a daily newspaper in Maine for almost eight years now. I think I'm ruined for any kind of inside job.

Hollis

19-Dec-2007, 22:11

It is my only source of income, my career and my passion. Its hard to call it a day job because, well, it knows no hours. I make my money by selling my fine art prints through galleries, commercial assignment work and some PJ/Documentary work just for fun. I wouldn't have it any other way even though it drives me to the brink of insanity and regardless of what anyone says, Nashville is a rockstar town and it can wear you out.

Saulius

19-Dec-2007, 22:42

So far only in my dreams.....

Scott Squires

20-Dec-2007, 13:57

I just became a full time Photographer. I became full time after spending 38 years in Highway Construction. I took an early retirement (57) so I could finally work at something I always loved and did part time. Thankfully my main income does not have to come from Photography.

Jeremy Moore

20-Dec-2007, 16:05

I work with photography at my day job (lab manager for the Digital Projects Unit at UNT) where I have a number of student employees scanning books, photographs, letters and I also do art reproduction with a betterlight scanback. Also spend my nights and weekends doing photography while working on my MFA in photo and an MA in art history.

John Flavell

20-Dec-2007, 20:22

24/7 at a Kentucky daily and dealing with new ways to tell stories with images, such as this:

http://static.cnhi.zope.net/flashpromo/dailyindependent/flashpromo/slideshow/buchanan_show2/

claudiocambon

21-Dec-2007, 09:52

24/7 at a Kentucky daily and dealing with new ways to tell stories with images, such as this:

http://static.cnhi.zope.net/flashpromo/dailyindependent/flashpromo/slideshow/buchanan_show2/

I love the pictures and the integration with the audio. Nice work!!

Charles Carstensen

21-Dec-2007, 10:47

24/7 at a Kentucky daily and dealing with new ways to tell stories with images, such as this:

http://static.cnhi.zope.net/flashpromo/dailyindependent/flashpromo/slideshow/buchanan_show2/

John, great work. Very creative. You put a lot of effort into this wonderful piece. A wave in the future of photography.

Photojeep

21-Dec-2007, 22:43

After spending 11 years as a "generalist" photographer, working only 1/2 days-12 hours a day, I now split my time shooting for my existing clients (not actively looking for new ones) and as a photography professor in Las Vegas. 40% shooting, 60% teaching.

I tell my students that if they aren't willing to put themselves entirely into photography, don't try to make a living at it. It must be a passion that you can barely control. With that passion, you will make it, one way or another. Without it, they simply won't.

Brandon Draper

22-Dec-2007, 11:34

Full time Senior/Wedding Photography for me. I've had a studio since '95. Decided to pick up my 4x5 again and work on a personal project. Have to see if my film in the fridge is still good.

Ben R

22-Dec-2007, 11:49

Full time wedding photographer, just given up the events work so I can concentrate on the weddings only and give myself time for the projects I've invested so much money into in the shape of LF gear!

Gary Nylander

22-Dec-2007, 18:58

Who's Day Job is Photography?: Twenty-four years as a staff photographer for the Kelowna Daily Courier located in the Okanagan Valley of Southern B.C., before that, I worked for a daily newspaper in Brampton Ontario for 4 1/2 years and started my career as a 18-year-old at the weekly paper, The Goldstream Gazette located on Vancouver Island where I grew up. I have been passionately shooting large format for the past 20 years or so.

billschwab

23-Dec-2007, 12:21

I have been passionately shooting large format for the past 20 years or so.I looked and you have some beautiful work Gary.

jwaddison

23-Dec-2007, 18:51

Beautiful work Gary.

MenacingTourist

27-Dec-2007, 12:20

I'm not a professional photographer by any stretch but I do work with them on a regular basis. I've been an art director for several years (currently with BareNecessities.com) and always like to see how each photographer handles thier work. I would love to get Frank Petrino to do some of our editorial work but I'm not sure I could convince my bosses that it's "on brand" enough.

As a young AD I read an article in Communication Arts stating that every art director/designer should have photography as a hobby. I finally took the advice about 4 years ago and I think my work has improved because if it.

For me, photography is really about the journey right now.

Alan.

Gary Nylander

1-Jan-2008, 16:36

Thanks, Bill, I had a look at your work also, simply beautiful.

and thank-you, jwaddison, I appreciate your comments !

Colin Corneau

1-Jan-2008, 18:04

Gary, and especially his wonderful blog, has been a real inspiration for me to begin shooting large-format.

Now, if I could just find a few landscapes around here like HE has to play with out west....;)

Richard Raymond

2-Jan-2008, 12:49

My job is photography but with a difference from most. For my landscape work I use both satellite and aerial cameras as well as more traditional equipment. I also do a lot of work in wavelengths other than blue-green-red. Even have used lasers to make reflective intensity return images.
My none work photography is more traditional and a nice change of pace.
Ric

Gary Nylander

2-Jan-2008, 19:13

Thanks very much Colin, for your very nice words.

Stephen Willard

2-Jan-2008, 22:02

Up to a year and half ago I did high-end weddings all over the state of Colorado. I would average between 75 to 130 a weddings a year. It was a grueling job, but I also made a lots of money at it. In between weekends I would make feeble attempts at landscape photography.

One day it occurred to me that I do not have to do wedding photography because I do not need the money so I stopped. I do know why I did not think of it earlier, but that is what I did, and I guess I was just running on auto pilot. Now I do landscape photography full time. I make enough through sales to just barely pay for my exorbitant expenses. I have not really started to market myself in a big way and do not intend to do so for several more years. My focus is on perfecting my craft, and building up a body of work.

Landscape photography is most definitely a labor of love for me. I find it seductive and absolutely intoxicating. My hope is to retire the day they bury me.

scrichton

4-Jan-2008, 17:41

I harness the inter-nets for a UK music magazine called clash. Other than that I do staff photography at gigs for them and do a lot of freelance work for smaller record companies promos. Recently moved a bit into hair photography like this One here (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2022/2100758258_8ce176ff27.jpg). Still most of the time it is just inter-nets :D

Kirk Gittings

15-Nov-2010, 12:54

I want to resurrect this thread and see if the recession has driven many people out of the profession. One guy I know said the hell with it and went to law school.

I'm still in it, though I have been beaten up by the recession. My magazine clients have tanked-with one offering me $600 for a shoot I did for them for $2200 in 2007. FA print sales have been holding there own-which i don't understand.

Steve M Hostetter

15-Nov-2010, 13:35

I run a monkey grinder,,,

Kirk Gittings

15-Nov-2010, 13:41

I run a monkey grinder,,,

:D

Vaughn

15-Nov-2010, 13:53

FA print sales have been holding there own-which i don't understand.

I am involved with photo education, so as a dfarkroom tech, my day job is still photography. FA print sales have been steady (steadily low, but steady)..

One reason I heard for steady art sales during these tough economic times is "staycations". Many people can not afford their usual expensive vacations, so instead spend a fraction of the cost on something to make their homes a nicer place to stay. I am a member of a art cooperative (28 members, multi-media) with a gallery in town. Our gross sales have increased by about 10% each year for the past two to three years.

Vaughn

15-Nov-2010, 13:53

I run a monkey grinder,,,

Yum! Monkey burgers! :D

Kirk Gittings

15-Nov-2010, 13:55

One promising sign in the creative economy is my son's business. He develops high end web sites for Factory Design Lab in Denver for companies like North Face, Acura, Audi, Oakley etc. They are booming-doubling the web development staff this year.

cjbroadbent

15-Nov-2010, 14:58

Mine was, I'm afraid.

lenser

15-Nov-2010, 17:53

24/7 ---365 days a year (if needed) for the last 45 years.

brian mcweeney

15-Nov-2010, 17:59

Still a photographer ... it's the only thing I'm good at.

rguinter

15-Nov-2010, 18:05

I was talking to a newby here the other day about the forum. He was surprised given the level of knowledge and talent evident here how few posters actually make their living in photography. As a matter of fact some of the most knowledgeable people here do other things for a living and I believe there are some real good reasons to keep photography as a personal passion rather than trying to make a living from it.

Just curious. Whose day job is photography? Or if you are like me it is my day, night, weekends and holidays job.

Kirk: A nice thread opener.

Not me. If I had to do photography for a living then it would be a job. My day job (i.e, career) is engineering specialist... something I have great passion for and trained many years to get where I am. But not what I want to do in a few years when I retire.

If my health holds out I plan to buy a 4x4 Quigley van, load up all my photo gear, and hit the road (or should I say off-road) for those obscure photo opportunities that the average tourists never see.

Cheers. Bob G.

Greg Blank

15-Nov-2010, 18:24

I am in my mid forties, five years ago bought my first home. It was a fixer upper and I was pouring money into the new place to get it to the point I could use the place as a biz location. It sits on a main street where about 75,000 cars pass a day on the way to work. So although I was making good money to initially get the loan, I needed income quicker than I could make it doing photo and billing and recieving it from clients. I did a mix of weddings both subcontracted as wel as my own weddings where I was advertising and working direct with clients. I was also doing magazine features. So I made the very hard decision having one income and not a spouse, that I would work PT and still do some side photo while I continued to work on the house. I am not too far from the goal, though the future is sort of unsure, I try to be positive. But my publication clients are all but gone- down to like one becuase I don't consistently market, which is required- I think. I am not subcontracting weddings at all- which I am actually happy about- it sucked. Both income streams have declined, and there are less weddings though in general- aybe because I decided to remove all advertising for that,- at over a hundred a month it it was money not being well spent. Over the past five years I have slowly been teaching myself something of electronics, once my renovates are complete I may start marketing photo services some more, and to ultimately decide my course of action. I am also learning to weld :)

My PT job is in Photo distribution.

I want to resurrect this thread and see if the recession has driven many people out of the profession. One guy I know said the hell with it and went to law school.

I'm still in it, though I have been beaten up by the recession. My magazine clients have tanked-with one offering me $600 for a shoot I did for them for $2200 in 2007. FA print sales have been holding there own-which i don't understand.

Peter De Smidt

15-Nov-2010, 19:43

My day job is being an assistant photographer, which is kinda like being a photographer but involves taking less pictures and carrying more stuff.

Brian Vuillemenot

15-Nov-2010, 22:31

How can anyone who's day job is photography afford to buy large format lenses, film, and accessories? ;)

Brian Vuillemenot

15-Nov-2010, 22:34

FA print sales have been holding there own-which i don't understand.

Most of the people who buy fine art prints on a regular basis have so much discresionary income that the downturn in the economy hardly affects them.

PViapiano

15-Nov-2010, 22:52

How can anyone who's day job is photography afford to buy large format lenses, film, and accessories? ;)

Brian, your comment hits home because it fits my experience in the music business almost exactly. I'm a very successful musician here in LA, and when lay people ask me about my instruments, they expect that I have $10k-20k guitars and am always looking for the next great one. They're always surprised when I show them my beautiful instruments that get the job done but cost nowhere near that. In fact, I'm still playing instruments I bought in the late 60s-early 70s, which still sound great.

It's nice to have an amazing luthier-built custom instrument, but it's not necessary to get the job done and in the end doesn't really sound any better. How can you spend a third of your income on equipment every year and still be able to live semi-comfortably? If I make a purchase decision it has to also inflate my bottom line. That's just sound biz practice...

Eric Woodbury

15-Nov-2010, 23:05

I did try photography when I was fresh out of school and I didn't like taking pix for others. Oh well. I know that if my day job were photography, I wouldn't enjoy it as much, but that is just me. I design digital cameras for my day job. That's kinda close.

edtog

16-Nov-2010, 01:05

I've been full time for the past 16 years and have only discovered LF photography (Avoided it at college as I wanted to be a press photographer.)
It's added a whole new perspective to my commercial work and it's nice to use skills I'd long lost forgotten.

Reason I'm shooting LF is that I've been wanting to do more of my own projects, but I don't want them to feel and look like my day to day commercial work.

eddie

16-Nov-2010, 03:57

you mean you can get paid money to shoot photos! *gasp* and still eat?

nope not me. pure fun. no one wants to pay for my images....:(

eddie

Michael N. Meyer

16-Nov-2010, 06:29

2007 and 2008 were rough despite several decent jobs. The middle of last year I joined a jewelry company as a product photographer and then early this year they made me full time. It isn't glamorous, but it does pay the bills, gives me insurance and leaves enough for me to make personal work. 100 to 150 items a day every day gets pretty old pretty quick though. Arrange, click, repeat; then process and retouch the bunch.

My fine art sales have been lower since 2006. I'm showing more but selling less... Speaking of which, if anyone is in the Richmond, VA area, stop by 12 12 Gallery (http://www.1212galleryrichmond.com/). I've got a couple of pieces up in the gallery's annual Juried Photography Show juried by Patrick Amsellem, Associate Curator at the Brooklyn Museum. Help me out and buy a print!

-m

Robert Skeoch

16-Nov-2010, 08:16

Does that pay well? I've often thought of that as a new career.
-rob

Robert Skeoch

16-Nov-2010, 08:36

This is where I'm at.

After years working as a sports photographer, I realized the money was gone from the field. So I lucked into a one year contract with Sony, mostly testing their prototypes and giving support to the dealers.

That work eventually became full time.

I still shoot some sports but now it's just the NHL. I have an open ended relationship with the client. I shoot what I can and they pay me. If I can't fit the game in, they don't mind.

I worked for years part-time as a Photo Editor at one of the large daily papers, but have quit in the past two weeks. I'm busy enough and have some projects I want to get done more than I needed the money from the paper.

My fine art sales sit around the same which is below $2000 a year.

I do own Bigcameraworkshops and continue working away at the business. I doubt if this business will ever turn a profit but I love to do it and am hopeful that one day it might. I see opportunity with this business but there isn't enough volume selling traditional photo supplies in Canada to make it a full-time gig... and I have no interest in selling digital gear and becoming a regular camera store.

I used to shoot some of my magazine portraits on LF just to keep it interesting. I've let that work slide because I don't have the time to do it. For the most part I'm very busy and not looking for any clients... just trying to keep the ones happy that I'm involved with.

My plans for the next couple year include cutting back on the hours worked.... and shooting portraits with a new 4x10 camera that I ordered last week.

Ask me in three years how it went.

-Rob

Kirk Gittings

16-Nov-2010, 10:07

How can anyone who's day job is photography afford to buy large format lenses, film, and accessories? ;)

They are still a business expense ;) .

Ari

16-Nov-2010, 12:18

I was a musician before becoming a full-time photographer; believe me, this is a step up, even with the crummy economy and cheap-o clients.
I've had countless other jobs, for a week or even a month, but those were to keep me going during leaner periods. In principle, I could do almost any kind of job, but this is what I love.
That said, I honestly don't know what else I would do.

edtog

16-Nov-2010, 12:22

you mean you can get paid money to shoot photos! *gasp* and still eat?

nope not me. pure fun. no one wants to pay for my images....:(

eddie

Yes, although the past couple of years have been "fun."
On a more positive note the recession has weeded out a lot of the people who entered the market and really shouldn't have picked up a camera.

Greg Blank

16-Nov-2010, 16:31

Are you planning on just photographing skinny people?

This is where I'm at.

My plans for the next couple year include cutting back on the hours worked.... and shooting portraits with a new 4x10 camera that I ordered last week.

Ask me in three years how it went.

-Rob

Jack Dahlgren

16-Nov-2010, 16:56

Are you planning on just photographing skinny people?

4x10 is wide people. 10x4 is for skinny people.

rguinter

16-Nov-2010, 18:10

Brian, your comment hits home because it fits my experience in the music business almost exactly. I'm a very successful musician here in LA, and when lay people ask me about my instruments, they expect that I have $10k-20k guitars and am always looking for the next great one. They're always surprised when I show them my beautiful instruments that get the job done but cost nowhere near that. In fact, I'm still playing instruments I bought in the late 60s-early 70s, which still sound great.

It's nice to have an amazing luthier-built custom instrument, but it's not necessary to get the job done and in the end doesn't really sound any better. How can you spend a third of your income on equipment every year and still be able to live semi-comfortably? If I make a purchase decision it has to also inflate my bottom line. That's just sound biz practice...

Brian: I have a vintage Guild D25-BR that I bought new in 1970. And after all that time it still has the sound I prefer best. I have 6 or so other Guilds and Gibsons.

But there is no way I could make my living as a musician... not then or now. It's just another hobby. Cheers. Bob G.

Brian Vuillemenot

16-Nov-2010, 20:41

Brian: I have a vintage Guild D25-BR that I bought new in 1970. And after all that time it still has the sound I prefer best. I have 6 or so other Guilds and Gibsons.

But there is no way I could make my living as a musician... not then or now. It's just another hobby. Cheers. Bob G.

Wow, another Guild fanatic on the LF forum- I have an X-700, an X-170, a F4-12, and several other guitars. Not surprizing that many of us here enjoy fine guitars, since we like fine wood cameras. As far as making any money off of them, that's another story... ;)

Jim Fitzgerald

16-Nov-2010, 21:23

One day I hope to quite the day job but it may not happen. It gets in the way of teaching carbon transfer, building cameras and following my passion: Large and Ultra large Format photography and carbon printing. I've been able to make a little extra money that helps with the $$$ necessary for the 14x17 camera build. Yes, I too love fine instruments. I've got a nice 1968 Martin D-28 that my middle son plays and can't put down, 62' Strat, Yamaha Grand Piano etc. Always wanted to be a musician and I'm glad my three sons are amazing musicians. They keep telling me to let them play and me do the photography!

Jim

dsphotog

17-Nov-2010, 00:48

Until lately, shooting weddings, family & senior portraits, and the odd product, paid the bills & supported my LF habit. It's gettin' tougher, but photography is my only marketable skill.....

sergiob

17-Nov-2010, 06:42

Full time job.

bsimison

17-Nov-2010, 06:50

Full time gig, though LF (or any analog shooting, for that matter) doesn't comprise much of the paying work. Here and there, clients want some B&W and every once in a while I sneak in a LF environmental portrait. I'm just getting into fine art sales, but am viewing that as chiefly a promotional tool at this point.

Commercial, product, and editorial portraits are paying the bills right now.

Michael N. Meyer

17-Nov-2010, 06:52

Rob--were you asking me about how well my position pays?

I don't think I'm typical. I work for a large volume oriented company based in New York with numerous clients across the country. The other photographer I work with joined the company at a time when the prior photographers were making a mockery of product photography. He negotiated a fairly high salary and a sweet work week for himself. When I came on, I didn't get quite so sweet a deal, but better than I might have if the company's experience was that talented photographers were a dime a dozen. The company can both keep two photographers humming and afford to pay us. To make what I make now as a freelancer, I'd have to bill double my current salary at a minimum plus make room in the budget for insurance, marketing and other expenses--not to mention a higher tax burden (no company to pay half my SS tax). At the end of the day, I'm still making about half what my fiancee makes as an I.A. at an information technology consulting company. My hours are better, though. And I get all the Jewish holidays off. You'll forgive me if I defer from giving my salary straight up.

If anyone is interested, I've heard that Plow and Hearth is looking for an in house catalogue photographer.

Robert Skeoch

17-Nov-2010, 08:03

That's a good point. I'll have to shoot wide people, or have skinny people lay down.
-rob

David Beal

17-Nov-2010, 11:17

For 28 years I've been a full time lawyer. Five years ago I got tired of the direction the profession was going and got out of litigation. I'm now what the Brits would call a solicitor, rather than (in my former life) a barrister.

About 10 years ago my wife and I started a part time business, doing weddings and events. That lasted until we realized we were getting older and wanted our weekend time together more than we wanted more income.

LF has been the saving of my soul. I shoot landscapes and some portraiture, and every time I go out I run across somebody who can't believe that "cameras are THAT big" and "they still make FILM???" and who wants to know "what kind of batteries does it use?"

And as the light of a winter's day fades, and I wait for the moment with my no-autofocus, no-batteries, no-rangefinder, no-digits big black box, I experience a little bit of the peace I've sought all my life.

Good shooting to us all.

David

Robert Skeoch

18-Nov-2010, 07:41

I realize this thread is about making money as a professional using a large format. And I don't want to hijack the thread. It's tough to make money using a LF if you plan to do portraits or art.

But if you take out the pressure of making money with the big camera, I believe it's the most rewarding "shooting experience" in all of photography.

I make my living in other areas of photography and that means a DSLR.... and I'm thinking about photography constantly.... but it's the LF that really turns the crank.

-rob

PS. Michael.... I was unclear in my post regarding how much money the job paid..... I wanted to know how much having a "Monkey and Grinder" would pay. LOL

Kirk Gittings

18-Nov-2010, 10:59

Brian Vuillemenot

18-Nov-2010, 17:47

mandoman7

19-Nov-2010, 01:02

I've made my living from photography for 30 years, for better or worse. There were other suggestions and options, but I stayed with the path out of a belief in and fascination with the power of imagery. I, like most old pro's, can remember the first image I saw coming up in the fixer. Living away from an urban center, survival has required flexibility with periods of of studio work then location, portraiture then table tops (wine bottles, being in the wine country). Lots of preschool portraits lately, a far cry from contemplative work behind a view camera. I do have work in a local gallery that's LF produced and have been represented in some good galleries in other states.

Its less clear to me now, but I always felt that if I took another job and tried to keep up with the shooting, it would lose something. That most of the good work I saw came from people who were fully invested, and not part timers. While it may have been true for me, its also true that I've seen great work from some pretty casual shooters, so whatever.

Still, I would argue that its beneficial to have some pressure when it comes to producing work. Maybe its just a show at the local library, or one print in a group show somewhere. I've always found those experiences to be instructive in surprising levels. Finding out what people think, or whether it will sell, is part of the communication process, in a sense. Putting it out there, if you will, and not just in front of like-minded enthusiasts.

JY

cjbroadbent

19-Nov-2010, 09:28

... I would argue that its beneficial to have some pressure when it comes to producing work. ... JY
Absolutely. To reach a certain level of competence and creativity I believe a photographer needs criticism that really hurts and many re-shoots. You don't get that in a workshop you are paying for, nor from your wife.
I knocked my thing into shape when I started to work for art-directors who could draw better than i, knew their beaux-arts, and were demanding to the limit of cruelty.
Photography (at least in editorial and advertising) is the Snakes and Ladders game - you are only as good as your last job. Screw one and and it take three successful jobs to get back in line. To stay in line you've got to make into an art-directors Creative Annual (your CLEO) once a year. Drop out of that and you are a has-been.
In summary, it is the whip that makes it a easier to produce good work as a pro. Forget the money.

Gudmundur Ingolfsson

19-Nov-2010, 11:50

Bravo! Bravo! Signori Broadbent !

Brian C. Miller

19-Nov-2010, 12:37

The best critique I have received was one for which I paid. It was straight and honest, and I knew where I needed improvement and I had ideas on how to get there. Yeah, I felt "stung" by it, but that was just a bit of air out of my ego. And then what did I do afterwards? I loaded up my camera and made more photographs!

Martin Miksch

19-Nov-2010, 13:47

...For 28 years I've been a full time lawyer...

I´ve been for 15 years, after that I started producing videos and later on computer animations and 3 years ago the local photographer retired and I bought his "photoshop" and studio.

Now I do pics needed in driving licenses and passports, some weddings, some sport, some (family ) portraits, some cars, some dogs etc. etc..all digital.

During this 3 years I didnt shoot my 5x7s, and only some rolls with my Mamiya 330, so for me phtography was much more fun before.

Regards

Martin

Robert Brummitt

20-Nov-2010, 08:58

I currently work part time for Shriners Hospital in Portland, Oregon as photographer and assistant graphic artist. Fun job! Neat people and working with kids is just grand.
I also spent 10 years running Portland Photographers Forum. That was a joy as well. Loved it.
Now, I'm developing a new group that helps high school kids photography, working with other non profits and their photographic needs and future ideas. Being closer to the general community.
I love what I do!

mandoman7

20-Nov-2010, 11:52

Absolutely. To reach a certain level of competence and creativity I believe a photographer needs criticism that really hurts and many re-shoots. You don't get that in a workshop you are paying for, nor from your wife.
I knocked my thing into shape when I started to work for art-directors who could draw better than i, knew their beaux-arts, and were demanding to the limit of cruelty.
Photography (at least in editorial and advertising) is the Snakes and Ladders game - you are only as good as your last job. Screw one and and it take three successful jobs to get back in line. To stay in line you've got to make into an art-directors Creative Annual (your CLEO) once a year. Drop out of that and you are a has-been.
In summary, it is the whip that makes it a easier to produce good work as a pro. Forget the money.

Yes.
Its a bittersweet experience, working in the world of self-expression, if that's what it is. But we're in agreement that growth comes out of experiencing some degree of pressure. There are things you'd never try unless you had to, but end up being glad you did.
Like having to shoot a big honcho for a national publication when you've been told in advance that the guy is notoriously difficult. Do a few jobs like that and your skills will go beyond what was happening when you were just photographing friends, in spite of yourself. Without intending to, I became the go-to guy for those guys in the local wine industry back in the film days. Mainly by developing the ability to engage the subject while fiddling with compositions. I can't imagine how that's learned unless you've got an assignment.
Work like yours doesn't come along from someone who's trying out the craft, Christopher. I admire your commitment.

Emil Schildt

20-Nov-2010, 15:39

I want to resurrect this thread and see if the recession has driven many people out of the profession. .

workwise, the recession has been good to my school(!!)...

I have been teaching photography at a folk highschool for 10 years now.

As the recession tightens, more people doesnt' have the work possibillity as they used to have - the Goverment has made quite strict rules on how long you can stay unimployed with pay, so many more people gets the chance to attend this kind of school than in a situation, where we have "success" as a country....

funny thing: that thing is the only good thing I can say about our goverment...

My personal photography could never be a scourse of income here in DK...

Nobody is willing to pay for photographs....

Armin Seeholzer

20-Nov-2010, 16:25

Nobody is willing to pay for photographs....
But Emil this started almost similar with digital here in Swiss, bevor everybody could take pictures they have paid for!
But now everybody can take pictures!

Cheers Armin

Emil Schildt

21-Nov-2010, 05:07

But Emil this started almost similar with digital here in Swiss, bevor everybody could take pictures they have paid for!
But now everybody can take pictures!

Cheers Armin

I thing the problem has been the same always here in DK.

There's actually a court ruling that photography isn't art....

And the danes have had a LOT of cameras always, so "everybody" have taken pictures for a long, long time....

Derek

23-Nov-2010, 00:12

Mon-Fri and weddings on the weekends and I still can't wait to get out of bed every morning and get down to the studio!

Even in a "bad" economy, people still graduate from high school, get married, have babies, have family reunions, milestone events, and have a continued desire to document all of these.

Don Dudenbostel

24-Nov-2010, 18:01

42 years as a commercial photographer. I love the work and would follow the same path again. The business has been very good to me.

Greg Blank

24-Nov-2010, 19:44

Long time, to do this stuff Don. But are you self employed?., Not to pick a fight, I am eager to know the secrets of being self employed and being a millionaire photographer :) PM me :)

42 years as a commercial photographer. I love the work and would follow the same path again. The business has been very good to me.

Lynn Jones

8-Dec-2010, 10:45

Hi Kirk and all,

I've been a photographer for money since 1947. I've been a professor of professional photography for a bit over 20 years, Brooks Grad, USN Med Photo School grad, lots of other things. Still photograper, motion picture photographer, photo writer 450 magazine credits, photo advertising person, inventor/designer, gen mgr of a pro motion picture lab, created our digital photography, and in addition to teaching 5 college classes per semester, 2 in the summer, I still shoot for myself fairly often and still write occasionally.

I confess, I still love photography after all of this (including being 9 years a Navy Hospital Corpsman before during and after the Korean war.

I think you told me Kirk that you are not related to the late and famed Paul Linwood Gittings, that's OK, you can be the new famed Gittings.

Lynn

Don Dudenbostel

17-Dec-2010, 21:39

Greg I've been self employed for the past 28 years. My work has been for major corporations including Phillips Electronics, Arco Petrolium, Union Carbide, Exxon, Miller Brewing, Bristol Myers and dozens of others. I did ads, annual reports, catalogs, pop and other advertising projects. I was in it during the golden age of advertising and photography.

In the past few years budgets have dried up even with the big clients. During the golden era it was common to have budgets of $10-40K and budgets for a single project of six figures. I've had many day projects in the $10K range. Keep in mind these budgets covered all expenses including assistants, models and sets. One of the larger single day shoots ran almost $20k which covered assistants, film and my fee. The client covered rent on a 4k sq ft studio, construction of a back yard, lawn, fully size trees and landscaping including walkway and picket fence. Fund story here, the client selected the models themselves. We did a day shoot and the film looked great. The art directors were delighted so the had the set torn down and the several truck loads of soil, grass and trees removed. When the folks in charge of the project saw the shots the felt the models were too young and we had to do the entire construction and shoot again with older models. Total cost was probably $50-60k.

Those days are over.

Don Dudenbostel

17-Dec-2010, 21:57

One additional comment, making good money takes a very good head for business and the ability to deliver top quality work. It also takes time to build clients and constant work to keep them. My studio was 6k sq ft and my yearly materials, lab and film costs exceeded $200k. I downsized 11years ago when I saw the big budgets drying up and now have a very lean opperation. Its much nicer with overhead at a tiny fraction of what it used to be.

I've worked tword replacing the commercial work with my art and have done quite well with it. In four years I plan to retire from the commercial and do only my xray art and documentary work.

Brian K

23-Dec-2010, 07:15

My day job has been photography since 1977 when I left SVA to assist full time. I also started shooting for magazines then, and by 1979 officially opened my NYC studio, a studio share, previous to that I rented studios on a daily basis. I out grew that shared studio and by mid 1980 I got a 2000sf studio of my own. I out grew that studio and in 1984, at the age of 26, I built a 5000sf studio. I was there for 15 years, until 2000 when I partnered with another photographer to build a 7500sf studio.

Over those years I shot a mix of advertising and editorial. Most often still life but enough people and location work thrown in to keep it interesting. I shot a lot of food, beverages, cosmetics, electronics, tobacco and off figure fashion. In my early days I did some fashion and beauty. Being based in NY my clients were almost always major corporations and the work was usually national.

At the end of 2002 I changed the focus of my business to my personal work and the sale of prints, and closed the NY studio. I still work everyday as a photographer and will most likely never retire from it. I had to sell off a lot of the large bits of gear, i had little use for 4 camera stands and enormous boom arm banks lights. I still have a lot of the smaller gear although much of it I haven't used in years. The last time I shot a still life was for a drug company ad, by this point, 2003, my NY studio was gone, my new home studio was under construction, so it ended up getting shot in my living room. The lab processing the film 45 minutes from my home. Quite a different experience from having the NY studios, where the lab would send a messenger by in 15 minutes and have the film delivered back to me in a little more than 2 hours.

The only use my lighting gear and my rather substantial studio camera systems get is the occasional exercise I give them just to keep them functioning properly.

I miss the scale of the shoots, I miss the camaraderie of working with a crew, I miss the paychecks, boy, do I miss the paychecks, but I can't complain about the course my life has taken. I sometimes wonder just what my life would have been, and what work I would have produced, if I had forgone the studio route and just did my personal work from the start. The most productive 25 years of my life having been focused on the production of commercial photographs.

emmett

28-Dec-2010, 14:25

Started in photography in 1976. I was an assistant in a catalog house, a professional color printer and a still life photographer. Sometime in 1987 I got into exhibition design and gave up professional photography. That was the best thing I ever did because It made me love photography again.

David R Munson

28-Dec-2010, 21:52

I majored in photography and was a freelance assistant for a while, but haven't exactly made the transition into full time shooting for various reasons. I still intend to, and in fact have a goal to be fully freelance (photography, writing, design) in another year, but the path from here to there has been a lot less direct than I had originally expected it to be. Had to make a lot of mistakes and figure things out. Now I know a lot better what I want to do with it.

TL;DR: Not yet, but almost.

Kirk Gittings

16-May-2012, 14:11

Resurrecting this thread for 2012. The recession drags on. I'm still a full time photographer, but "fulltime" has a different meaning these days (used to work 80 hour weeks)-now barely enough work, commercial prices have largely plummeted, magazine market has tanked, print prices are up but volume down.................so I spend more time at less profitable ventures, speaking, teaching, artist-in-residence gigs and much, much more time for my personal work!

John Brady

16-May-2012, 15:02

I wasn't full time when you started this thread but I am now. I spend full time at my photography and part time overseeing another business to help make ends meet. Been at it full time for a few years now and each year continues to get better but I am still climbing the ladder.

www.timeandlight.com

bdkphoto

16-May-2012, 15:55

30 years and counting. Still at it, business has picked up a bit, shot some fun magazine projects recently, commercial has picked up as well. Teaching at ICP, lecturing a bit, and finishing my second term on the Board of Directors of ASMP. Working on some personal projects too, some of this is heading over to China for exhibition there.

Kuzano

16-May-2012, 16:10

I shoot a graveyard shift. That's why I am one of those thousands of photographers who would prefer that ALL developments in photography were aimed SOLELY at high ISO capture. You know the one's, concert-goers who could care less about interrupting others entertainment with their clicking shutters and such.

And no, I don't make any money at that enterprise. At the stroke of midnight, I don my cape and cane (monopod, as it were) and strike out into the evening. As I must be back indoors by the crack of dawn, I get a full 5-6 hours of capture, and can then spend the other 18 hours of the day in my dark room either processing images or resting before venturing out the next night.

Love those shadowy, poorly lit images, however. "GRAVEYARD Shift".... Yum!!!

Old-N-Feeble

16-May-2012, 16:32

Keep your beloved passion as your hobby because 99.99 percent of the time, when it becomes your livelihood... "needs outweigh passion". Sweep streets, if you must, because no one is passionate about street-sweeping... so no love/passion is lost due to need. I speak from experience as, I'm sure, many here do.

adam satushek

16-May-2012, 16:56

After graduating from art school I spent a little over 5 years in the photography business mostly assisting and some shooting for a commercial studio. For the most part I really enjoyed it though I was never really fond of actually shooting. The hours were often long, but I got to travel some for shoots, and I still managed to make time to shoot my personal work, prepare for exhibitions, and remodel the house. But now I have moved and am currently in the mapping industry, specifically quality control for aerial imagery. Still involves photography, though I am never behind the camera which is fine by me. When I make images I want to be in complete control and not have an art director or designer telling me the angle they want on the latest cell phone or catheter or whatever (yes I had to shoot catheters). I prefer to be outside with a 4x5 or 8x10 ground glass in front of me shooting whatever I want without regard to how commercially useful it is.

That being said, I often wish I had the drive/personality to be a commercial photographer. From the pros I have known, it can be a lucrative profession and its often not a normal 8-5 type job which is nice. I had a great opportunity to become a commercial photographer, but for reasons I cannot explain it just did not suit me.

Old-N-Feeble

16-May-2012, 16:58

ADAM... you're NEARLY jaded enough to call yourself a photographer. Give it a few more years and you'll get there. Don't worry... it won't take long. Life is short.

Henry Ambrose

16-May-2012, 17:00

Its been a long dry spell for the last few years.
However, this spring I'm getting lots of calls and my share of the jobs.
I'm busy and pretty darn happy about it.

adam satushek

16-May-2012, 17:09

ADAM... you're NEARLY jaded enough to call yourself a photographer. Give it a few more years and you'll get there. Don't worry... it won't take long. Life is short.

Ummmm.........thanks?

Old-N-Feeble

16-May-2012, 17:11

Ummmm.........thanks?

You're welcome... and welcome to the real world. Now, don't you wish you'd chosen the blue pill? ;)

adam satushek

16-May-2012, 17:18

You're welcome... and welcome to the real world. Now, don't you wish you'd chosen the blue pill? ;)

Well not really...I'm happy I spent time in the commercial world, even if just to figure out that is wasn't for me. And now I'm very happy with my recent career change, and I still have plenty of time for my personal work. But I have no regrets (well in terms of career choices that is).

Old-N-Feeble

16-May-2012, 17:26

Your response belies your true feelings...

Kirk Gittings

16-May-2012, 17:29

Adam, I'm going on 34 years as a full time professional. Even with all the up and downs and idiot clients I can't imagine doing anything else. Its been quite a ride. With the same amount of education I could have made more money in other fields but I can't imagine any field that would be more satisfying.

Old-N-Feeble

16-May-2012, 17:43

Adam, I'm going on 34 years as a full time professional. Even with all the up and downs and idiot clients I can't imagine doing anything else. Its been quite a ride.

Kirk... with all the posts you've made... there are "NO" regrets???

I'm posting this with all due respect and best wishes. "I" sold out, as do most of us SELL OUT because we have no other support and MUST SUPPORT our families.

You're single, right??

Ari

16-May-2012, 18:37

Full time for almost 15 years, took a long break when my daughter was born, and now re-evaluating the situation.
Looks kind of bleak out there, but I'm still plugging away, albeit with a different mind set and priorities than before.

Jess C

16-May-2012, 19:06

Kirk Gittings

16-May-2012, 20:26

Kirk... with all the posts you've made... there are "NO" regrets???

I'm posting this with all due respect and best wishes. "I" sold out, as do most of us SELL OUT because we have no other support and MUST SUPPORT our families.

You're single, right??

Sorry to burst your bubble. No, I'm happily married with three children in their thirties and two grandchildren. I put three kids through out of state colleges with my photo income-a fact I'm very proud of and two of them are currently in doctoral programs. I have no source of income outside of photography-no rich uncles in my family-just drunks and bullshitters. And I didn't say "no regrets" I said "I can't imagine doing anything else". And FWIW I don't view it as "selling out"-its taking care of business. You gotta do what you gotta do. I was lucky enough to find a way to do it through photography.

If I have any regrets it would be not being able to adequately pursue my second love-archeology.

Kirk Gittings

16-May-2012, 20:46

I have been a full time photo instructor for 33 years. Does that count? I'm now looking to retire next year and hope to devote a lot more time to my photography than ever before. And with a new 810 on the way I better be.

It counts to me. I have taught photography part time at the university level consistently since 1986. Its the hardest thing in photography I do-much harder than making photographs.

gth

16-May-2012, 22:04

Well I just read through this whole thread.
I really enjoyed it.
Thanks all, keep on truckin'....

sully75

17-May-2012, 02:51

I wasn't "full time" but part time with no other income for about 6 months. Did 6 $3k weddings and travelled for 6 months. At some point I decided to go to nuursing school which may or may not have been the best move. "something to fall back on". I'm on my 2nd year of work and now I'm considering trying to get back to some paying work again. I don't have a lot of interest in just taking gigs, but if I could get paid to do LF portraits or something cool like that, it would be cool.

My job is incredibly stressful, so I don't need or want to be super stressed out with anything else, but if I could use the job to make it possible to do more of what I love, well...that was the point in the first place.

bob carnie

17-May-2012, 05:30

I have been making my sole family income from photography since 1977 , our business is growing and I am happier today printing and exposing film for myself and others than at any other time, I plan to keep at it until the depends fill up and drag me down.

7 day a week passion year in year out , I cannot think of anything else I would rather do.

Kimberly Anderson

17-May-2012, 06:14

Since 1994 here. Photography only, nothing else. Either shooting commercially, editorially or teaching at various universities and a local prep-school. It's been a wild ride for sure, but amazingly fun.

Old-N-Feeble

17-May-2012, 06:57

Sorry to burst your bubble. No, I'm happily married with three children in their thirties and two grandchildren. I put three kids through out of state colleges with my photo income-a fact I'm very proud of and two of them are currently in doctoral programs. I have no source of income outside of photography-no rich uncles in my family-just drunks and bullshitters. And I didn't say "no regrets" I said "I can't imagine doing anything else". And FWIW I don't view it as "selling out"-its taking care of business. You gotta do what you gotta do. I was lucky enough to find a way to do it through photography.

If I have any regrets it would be not being able to adequately pursue my second love-archeology.

My hat's off to you, Kirk. It's heartening to know some folks are making a living doing what they love and are enjoying it. I probably just have a lousy attitude. :D

FWIW, I've been working in the photo field my entire adult life doing things of little interest to me for other people. Time became short and the days of photography for the love of it were over. Seldom are the times I can claim any degree of personal creativity and pride in a given project. There were a few shining moments but not many and those were long ago. Now, it's just difficult. Wa-a-a-a.... wa-a-a-a... :D

Brian K

17-May-2012, 09:01

About 35 years. 25 years shooting advertising and editorial, and this November will be 10 years since closing my NYC studio, ceased taking assignment work and switched to my more personal work which I do full time.

A few old timers here, I see Kirk, Bob and I started around the same time.

David R Munson

17-May-2012, 14:03

An update! While not shooting for money enough to call it my day job, I am at least back to freelance assisting here in Chicago, so my day job is *in* upon the photo industry. It's a start.

Robert Brummitt

17-May-2012, 20:14

For the past six years, I am a "Media Specialist Assistant" for Shriners Hospital here in Portland, Oregon. My main duties is to photograph patients, The Doctors, The Shriners and staff. It's been a very rewarding job as I see how folks work together to help those in need. The position also offers me chances I know I would never have in this life. For instance, documenting a surgery procedure, That is so neat! Or covering a benefit concert. I also have to find, scan and print negs that are from the 20's and 30's.

cjbroadbent

18-May-2012, 03:32

Frank Petronio

18-May-2012, 04:45

You cam always specialize in more than thing, to the extent of having two different websites, marketing campaigns, etc.

Brian K

18-May-2012, 05:15

Brian, add me to the old-timer list.
It has been my full-time day job since 1967. Before then, ten years in movies. I do advertising and editorial illustration - or did, nowadays I get the occasional annual report and do still-life for fun and for no profit. Yesterday I shot a couple of b&w VIP testimonials for organ donation (you never know).
In 1980 I found it paid to specialize (like doctors) and to stick to a recognizable style. My advice to young people starting out is - specialize. Nobody remembers to call a jack-of-all-trades.
I can boast here, to the only audience likely to be receptive, of having shot more than twenty five thousand sheets of large format film.
Digital? Yes, I can't afford drum scans but if the client can, then let's shoot 8x10.

CJ since 1967? You aren't an old timer, you're freakin' pre-historic!! :)

I got you beat on the LF film though, I did about 25,000 LF shots on assignment, and figure an average of about 8 sheets per shot, that's 200,000 sheets of LF film, figure a 100-200% markup on that and you'll see why I was able to switch to landscape work full time at age 44. And let's not even get into LF polaroid, sometimes I'd shoot 20-30 polaroids on a single still life.....

God I miss those markups......

As for specializing, I was 99% still life, but within that I shot a lot of food, beverages, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and cigarettes. Those were considered specialties themselves.

cjbroadbent

18-May-2012, 07:44

You cam always specialize in more than thing, to the extent of having two different websites, marketing campaigns, etc.

Like bigamy. You get found out.

Brian K

18-May-2012, 08:19

I think that the notion of being specialized beyond the obvious, still life versus fashion versus people illustration/portrait doesn't matter. I routinely shot a wide variety of still life, some considered very specialized like food and cosmetics. I shot virtually every form of still life from silhouettes to building room sets, I've even shot cars for magazines. Once you have established yourself with your clients as being a very competent photographer, I found that I shot ALL their still lifes, and would often get assignments out of still life such as people work. I've shot kids, animals, special effects, off figure fashion, fragrances, jewelry, you name it. Clients always like to work with people they trust, and a long time vendor who has never let them down but might not have experience with glassware but has done beverages in a glass or bottle, or perfumes, is not that much of a stretch.

John Flavell

19-May-2012, 22:36

Twenty three years as chief photographer at a small daily. Now, I'm freelancing and just worked my 27th Kentucky Derby. I've just returned from a three-day gig in Louisville shooting the state track and field meet.

The large format has been a therapy for me: Making pictures without deadline, other people's purposes or providing visual information. Actually, I think I just like to hike. There are no images from the big camera on my web site because I don't have a method of scanning or printing, yet. I may order a v700 sometime this week.

johnflavell.com (we don't need no stinkin' Ws)

David A. Goldfarb

20-May-2012, 09:26

My day job isn't photography, but I've managed to shoehorn some photography into my day job in the last couple of years. My background is in academia, but what I'm doing currently is public and cultural diplomacy, which is kind of like PR in the service of diplomacy. We often need portraits of writers, artists, filmakers, still life for advertising, event photography for reports and publicity, and sometimes video. The institution doesn't have enough budget to hire outside photographers, so I started shooting for my own projects mainly to make my job easier--so I'd have high quality photos that fit our layouts and that I controlled the rights to and could add to my portfolio or sell as stock or for other purposes. Those of you who follow me on facebook have probably seen some of these photos.

Here's an ad that I photographed and designed. It ran as a half page in a local arts and culture monthly tabloid:

73931

Kirk Gittings

25-Jan-2013, 12:23

Wanted to resurrect this thread. .....some days I wake up and realize how damn fortunate I am......I have been making my living fulltime as a photographer since 1978, 35 years-holy mashed potatoes Batman!

The 12 months of July 2011 to say August 2012 seem to have been the economic bottom of the architecture industry and my part in it. There are now real signs of life emerging.

Peter De Smidt

25-Jan-2013, 12:30

That great to hear, Kirk!

bob carnie

25-Jan-2013, 12:36

I have been making my sole income from 1976 till now. Unlike you Kirk I have done it as a printer for others, but the last few years I have been putting my photography out there for sale with some promising purchases.

For us the worst years were 2009,2010, 2011, business has been steadily been picking back up the last 12 months for us.

Wanted to resurrect this thread. .....some days I wake up and realize how damn fortunate I am......I have been making my living fulltime as a photographer since 1978, 35 years-holy mashed potatoes Batman!

The 12 months of July 2011 to say August 2012 seem to have been the economic bottom of the architecture industry and my part in it. There are now real signs of life emerging.

Bob Salomon

25-Jan-2013, 12:37

Kirk,

Photography has many faces, I have earned my living full time (except for one 6 month period) in photography as as retailer, then a photographer and then in the wholesale end of photography since 1960. From 1957 to 1957 I worked part time in photo retail and then in a studio.

So does your question mean that one had to earn their living solely behind the camera or would it also include other aspects of photography as a career?

bdkphoto

25-Jan-2013, 12:40

I'm at 30 years and counting. Saw a nice recovery in the architecture and hospitality market in last 2 quarters. I have 2 nice projects out now getting a little traction

http://www.brucekatzphoto.com/#/17/0 --Post Sandy NYC

http://www.brucekatzphoto.com/#/13/0 Pre Sandy NYC

Finishing up my 5th year on the National Board of ASMP, and teaching summers at ICP.

Can't complain too much.....

Kirk Gittings

25-Jan-2013, 12:41

No Bob as I also teach photo etc., I am interested in all facets of photography as a career.

Kirk Gittings

25-Jan-2013, 12:44

and FWIW, 2012 was the second best year ever for my b&w print sales. And the best year since 1991.

In 2012 I also had my 90th show since 1972..........

Kirk Gittings

25-Jan-2013, 12:46

That's great.

I'm at 30 years and counting. Saw a nice recovery in the architecture and hospitality market in last 2 quarters. I have 2 nice projects out now getting a little traction

http://www.brucekatzphoto.com/#/17/0 --Post Sandy NYC

http://www.brucekatzphoto.com/#/13/0 Pre Sandy NYC

Finishing up my 5th year on the National Board of ASMP, and teaching summers at ICP.

Can't complain too much.....

Cesar Barreto

25-Jan-2013, 15:16

Maybe I should better say it's my life job and although I couldn't expect so, right now I may be reaching the top of my career, just after some 35 years on the road. Gotta be patient? Sure, but I wouldn't change it for nothing.

C. D. Keth

25-Jan-2013, 15:20

I do but it's a very different sort: motion picture photography.

Kirk Gittings

25-Jan-2013, 15:58

Tell us more?

papac

27-Jan-2013, 07:11

Photography are my only income for the last 7 years. Have had it as a big interest and passion in +35 years.

I had another career before, far from photography, but had an accident with 7 surgeries that left me with cronic pain. I got an indemnity that I used to buy me some new gear and started my business. If I gonna live with pain I have to work with something I love and thats photography. It´s been 7 good years fully booked, have to deny jobs almost every day. Can´t think of any other way to make my income, I have pain but handle it with medication and love for what I do.

Many years ago an old photographer told me that if you love photography don´t make it your work, all the fun get lost in money making. In a way he was right. I´m one hell of a worker but a bad businessman so the first years as my own there was only work, 24/7. I guess I got some kind of diagnosis because I only have one way of doing things and thats all in. Doing things "kind of" are not my way;) Had I been a better businessman maybe I haven´t had to work as hard. Have to work on that:)

Since a couple of years back I found my way back to my personal photography and that like recovery and meditation. I shoot digital all day for income but my personal work are all analog. It have taken me from 135 via 120 and now 4x5, life is good:) So now it´s photography 24/7 but not only business.

Kirk Gittings

27-Jan-2013, 10:54

I too shoot digital commercially and 4x5 film for my personal work. The separation helps me too enjoy my personal work more because it doesn't feel like work.

photobymike

27-Jan-2013, 11:31

I had a studio for a number of years and did wedding photography kid picts ect.... i cant stand to be around people now..... i have seen stuff that would curl your toes. I used to be a cop also and since i had experience in photography i used to photograph accidents.....i am 60 years old now... i just take pictures of my cat and my bird.... darn bird has out live 2 of my cats.... anyway i have an aversion from being around people. I really like alligators and birds and i will sit in the park for hours talking to them. I dont need to work but if i had to i would be as a nature photographer.... When you "talk" too and get to know animals around you they will show you some amazing things.

881138811488115

gleaf

27-Jan-2013, 11:57

Digital micro work through inspection microscopes 1x to 30X magnification. Occasionally things as large as an inch or two. Large format is escapism and therapy. Sanity in large slow doses.

C. D. Keth

27-Jan-2013, 12:28

Tell us more?

To be more specific, right now I'm a camera assistant. I manage a camera package, do all of the technical setup with it, freeing the director of photography and camera operator to spend their time lighting and creating shots. My other main duty is to pull focus. Since there are so many things to potentially change during a shot (camera height, position, pan, tilt, roll, zoom, iris, and focus) control of these things are usually split between the operator, one or both assistants, and the dolly grip. As a shot changes, I have to change focus based on distance marks on the lens and measurements I have taken in the scene.

Vinny here works in the same business but in the set lighting department. I've worked with him on a couple of shows now.

Don Dudenbostel

3-Feb-2013, 21:21

Started my full time photo career in 1968. Started as a photo journalist and then apprenticed with a master commercial photographer for a year and a half starting in 1972. Since then I've been a commercial and documentary photographer. 45 years and still love photography no matter whether I'm creating images for myself or a client. Until last year all of my documentary work was B&W film.

I still shoot some film personally and getting into collodion now. Virtually all of my commercial work has been digital for thirteen years. I have no issues with digital and now get a great deal of enjoyment shooting it. In the beginning I didn't enjoy digital for personal work but the turning point was going medium format and using the back on a view camera.