Photography Business

Have you explored different photography types and figured out you’re good at capturing faces or scenery? Do you possess knowledge of portrait cameras and lenses? If so, you can turn your passion for photography into a business?

Starting a photography business sounds like a lot of work. But it doesn’t have to be stressful. You can begin by researching and planning your business strategy for maximum success. Taking small but constant steps will help you build a solid clientele list.

Are you ready to start getting paid for the picture you take? If yes, here are some valuable tips that you can follow.

Decide your Services

Many businesses and individuals often need photographers for various reasons. For example, a business owner might need the services of a photographer for products. On the other hand, realtors need to be captured the homes they’re selling.

Magazines also need relevant photographs for the articles they plan to publish. That’s why it’s best to decide which services you’d like to offer beforehand. This way, you can also choose a name for your photography business with ease. If you want, you can try opting for wedding photography or baby portraits.

Choose a Business Name

Whatever photography business names you select will become your brand image. Therefore, it’s best to go for a name that fits the type of photography service you want to provide. If you’re into baby portraits, you can choose a whimsical name. But if you’re a business photographer, you want to go for a professional or elegant name.

Moreover, if you don’t want to use your name as your business name, you can consult with your country clerk’s office and need to file a fictitious name statement. To ensure whether a name is protected by the trademark office or not, you can check it with the U.S Patent and Trademark office.

Work on your Business Plan

A business plan is essential for many reasons. It outlines the services you’ll offer, financial projections, how you’ll differ from your competition, and marketing strategies. You can also determine your pricing structure while creating your business plan.

Don’t know how to do it? Suppose you want to make $50,000 yearly and you have enough space to book 26 weddings in a year. In this situation, you need to charge around $2,000 per wedding. While determining your pricing, don’t forget to include equipment, supplies, and travel costs.

Establish your Business Officially

After setting up your business name and structure, you also need to obtain a business license or permit as required by your county. You may capture photos using a digital camera. But you’ll be sharing prints with people; you may need to collect sales tax, especially if your state charges sales tax. To get more information on collecting and paying sales tax, you need to consult your state’s comptroller or tax office. Once you acquire your business license, you can go for a dedicated business bank account.

Organize Equipment and Supplies

You might have most of the equipment if photography is your hobby. But you need to ensure that the quality of your equipment is high enough to provide professional services and charge accordingly.

Apart from the camera, you need lenses, flashes, photo editing software, batteries, good quality photo paper, and packaging to share photos with your clients. More importantly, you also need lights and screens to ensure the lighting is perfect.

Work on Marketing Material

It’s essential to create marketing materials, including a website, brochures, and business cards. However, ensure to take permission from your clients before using their photos as your portfolio.

You can also target your audience by setting up accounts on different social platforms. Suppose you’re a wedding photographer, build a professional page on Pinterest.

Market your Photography Business

Like any business, the success of your photography venture is based on how well you market it. You can’t build a solid career in photography if no one hires you. You may have a website, brochures, and business cards to spread the word about your business.

But you also need professional and personal networks to become a credible photographer. One sure way to build connections is to attend shows and events focusing on your market. For example, if you’re into pet portraits, you can attend dog shows.

Bonus Tip: Sell your Photos Online

Apart from getting paid for professional photography, you can try selling your photos to stock photo websites. This way, your work will gain exposure, and you will generate bonus income.

You can find many stock photo websites that allow buying or selling your photos. If you’re wondering, here are a few websites you can consider:

• BigStockPhoto

• Corbis

• Dreamstime

• Fotolia

• Shutterpoint

• Shutterstock

Over to You

If you keep your camera ready to capture moments, it’s safe to say that you’re passionate about photography. This passion can also become a lucrative business venture.

Before you start, you need to spend time on building marketing materials, business strategy, and gathering essential equipment.

You also need to focus on providing excellent customer service and building solid client relationships. Apart from this, you can follow the mentioned tips to start your photography business and take it two steps ahead.