e-learning / becoming a pro tog?

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scottyboy

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199
Name
scott
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hello all,
i'm after doing a course online / e-learing
i would like to become a pro tog
but would like to know how you would go about this

i have done some night school (20 weeks)
and some weekend course's
but? is there a course which people- would say
he must be @ a good level because??? etc

i know this may come across abit ????
but i would like to step my photography up a level

or do people just become a pro tog after just doing say 5 years
of paid work - 20 weddings etc???


please help - many thanks
scott


p.s would - Photography NCFE Level 3 Award - be a good start?
 
Oh crikey... this thread is a classic for the bully brigade. So before people jump all over they guy on his post, please remember this is a photography forum, and someone has simply come here asking for help and advice.

Scottyboy: I don't have the answers to the courses question; but you'll need to educate yourself in all aspects of running a business, as well as of course, developing your skills as a photographer such that people will buy your work. :)

I wish you good luck... go for it, it's good to have a goal.
 
thats for the info - themusicman

we all have to start somewhere!

i'm looking forward to 2015-2020 as my goal
 
Learn as much as you can from all over the place - knowledge is power and all that...

Try to get as much 'work' as possible, paid or not, to get your foot in the door and to get an idea of what you want to do....

Just enjoy taking photos... it's easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day or doing it pro and ultimately forget why you started in the first place...
 
theMusicMan said:
Oh crikey... this thread is a classic for the bully brigade.
Click to expand...

True, however....


scottyboy said:
i'm looking forward to 2015-2020 as my goal
Click to expand...

This shows that this isn't just a 'I've bought an SLR and now I'm starting doing weddings professionally, how much do I charge and what do P, A, and S stand for?' type thread :D

My first suggestions would be to just to start ploughing the 'Talk Business' section. There's such a vast wealth of knowledge that you'll learn a crazy amount. Then when you get inevitably confused, ask a particular question and I'm sure you'll get a decent answer.

There's no set criteria for when you can start 'being a professional'. It's cheesy, but when you're ready, you're ready. Personally I wouldn't really consider charging until you know you can consistently deliver results your customers will be very happy with. Get as much experience as you can, and start putting money aside if you don't already for the inevitable outgoings (backup kit, kit insurance, public liability, marketing, further courses etc etc).

While qualifications are nice to have, a first-rate portfolio to me says more than any certificate ever will. I've seen some people's work on here, and I'd happily pay them if I needed a photographer. I don't care what courses they've done, or what certificates they hold, I just know that they can take truly exceptional photos!

Sorry, this is all a bit vague, there's no right or wrong answer. Firstly, you need to be able to take great photos. Then you need to be able to have a good understanding of running a business. Then with bucket loads of enthusiasm and determination, you'll get there if you want it enough!

Chris
 
Start asking yourself this question when you're objectively reviewing your pictures; "Would I pay good money for this photograph?". When "yes" outweighs the "no" you can start showing your work to others, and when their answer to the same question is predominantly "yes", you can start charging for you work.

:)
 
You're a pro when you charge for your pictures ;) Some people define pro as earning over half your wages from it, and semi-pro as earning but under half (or some less neat percentage). Either way you're a pro.

Courses are great to teach you about the technical side if you enjoy them - lighting, using modes, understanding photo shop etc. However no course can make you a good photographer.

I'd think putting photos up on here is a damn good start! :D
 
learn how light works, learn manual (helps you think about light) then start assisting ;)

Control is the absolute key, its what you need to understand everything else

ps where ya based someone on here might let ya tag along ;)
 
Courses can be a good way of learning but generally they don't prepare you at all on the business side of things. I did a photography degree but it wasnt until I had been assisting a lot and done a lot more research that i felt I could really start up my own business. You might find it more useful to do an evening course in business rather than photography. Assisting is also a great way of starting up as you will be getting paid as a photographer but without all the pressure on you so its ok to make a few mistakes while you are learning. You will probably find you will start getting work passed onto you that the main photographer doesnt have time to do and then you can just build up from there.
 
scottyboy said:
based - malvern (worcestershire) area!!
Click to expand...

bit far to tag along with me then :p

Hazemyster said:
Courses can be a good way of learning but generally they don't prepare you at all on the business side of things. I did a photography degree but it wasnt until I had been assisting a lot and done a lot more research that i felt I could really start up my own business. You might find it more useful to do an evening course in business rather than photography. Assisting is also a great way of starting up as you will be getting paid as a photographer but without all the pressure on you so its ok to make a few mistakes while you are learning. You will probably find you will start getting work passed onto you that the main photographer doesnt have time to do and then you can just build up from there.
Click to expand...

and the quality of the learning is just amazing, not only are you learning photography from someone really ****ing good at it you learn how to do it for a client and what they want and how to plan and even better mebe get kit you can beg borrow or steal if you need it because you don't have it or yours is broke

in short assisting is AMAZING

also you often meet interesting people doing it
 
scottyboy said:
is phototraining4u worth the £200 per year?
Click to expand...

Except you don't get what you get on PT4U on TP. :D It's more a case of adding it all together rather than one or the other.

You don't get on average 13 training videos a month. Yes you can read and read and read any you sometimes get conflicting opinions too. What you get on PT4U is no nonsense training material that you can watch at any time, almost anywhere since you can also download some content to ipod.

I'm in my second year of membership on PT4U and I have learned a lot from it and added to that are the discounts I have had on Loxley products (saved me a significant amount on marketing material) and Lastolite that I would have bought anyway. :)

I read photography books, magazines, read on TP, read on DWF (specialist wedding one) watch tutorials on youtube, member of PT4U, watch DVD's, go on training days with instructors, assist other photographers and have them assist me too. Also did an Open Uni course three years ago and did my LRPS with RPS.
 
chris321 said:
True, however....




This shows that this isn't just a 'I've bought an SLR and now I'm starting doing weddings professionally, how much do I charge and what do P, A, and S stand for?' type thread :D

My first suggestions would be to just to start ploughing the 'Talk Business' section. There's such a vast wealth of knowledge that you'll learn a crazy amount. Then when you get inevitably confused, ask a particular question and I'm sure you'll get a decent answer.

There's no set criteria for when you can start 'being a professional'. It's cheesy, but when you're ready, you're ready. Personally I wouldn't really consider charging until you know you can consistently deliver results your customers will be very happy with. Get as much experience as you can, and start putting money aside if you don't already for the inevitable outgoings (backup kit, kit insurance, public liability, marketing, further courses etc etc).

While qualifications are nice to have, a first-rate portfolio to me says more than any certificate ever will. I've seen some people's work on here, and I'd happily pay them if I needed a photographer. I don't care what courses they've done, or what certificates they hold, I just know that they can take truly exceptional photos!

Sorry, this is all a bit vague, there's no right or wrong answer. Firstly, you need to be able to take great photos. Then you need to be able to have a good understanding of running a business. Then with bucket loads of enthusiasm and determination, you'll get there if you want it enough!

Chris
Click to expand...

This seems like good sound advice to me. Thanks for this, useful for me too.

Regards
 
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