Don’t wait for someone to hire you to create your dream photoshoot. Do it on your own, and let that work attract clients who have a need for what you want to create.
When you start a new shoot, you never really know what is going to happen. You may have a loose idea, but there is a certain serendipity when it comes to photography. You can plan and prep, but at a certain point, you just have to shoot and see what happens.
As a photographer, I never know when I am going to create my best work. Sometimes, I may have a feeling that the shoot is going to be something special, but most of the time, when I produce my best images, I am completely caught off guard and blown away by what comes out. It is this uncertainty that reinforces my belief that it is incredibly important to shoot as much as possible.
Undoubtedly, shooting for clients is essential. That is what pays the bills. But I believe it is equally important to allocate time for personal work. Always make it a priority to push yourself creatively and create personal work. By prioritizing self-expression and embracing your creativity, you unlock the gateway to create your most powerful and resonant images. The freedom to explore without constraints facilitates the emergence of new and innovative ideas. The ideas can just flow. This allows you to explore and try new things that you might otherwise shy away from during client shoots. Ironically, I’ve found that personal projects are what tend to attract the most client work.
Don’t wait for someone to hire you to create your dream photo shoot. Do it on your own, and let that work attract clients who have a need for what you want to create. Clients hire you because they like what they’ve seen, so it is critical that you are constantly creating new work that is true to who you are and what you want to create.
While dedicating resources to personal projects may require an investment, it is definitely worthwhile. Invest in yourself with these shoots. It’s worth putting some money into personal projects to make them the absolute best they can be. You can be creative. One approach to maximizing resources is through creative collaboration and print trades. By assembling the best team possible and collaborating, you can pool your talents and create better work.
When we invest in ourselves and our personal projects, we are investing in our growth as artists. It's not just about the immediate results; it's about the long-term impact. Shooting for yourself allows you to explore new avenues, discover your artistic voice, and push the boundaries of your creativity. That knowledge and self-discovery will spill over into your professional client work and elevate it.
2021 was a game-changer for my husband and creative partner, David, and me. We built 100 sets and did 100 shoots on them to push our creative boundaries and completely redevelop our portfolio. While that was a significant investment of time and money, it proved to be invaluable and helped us build a stronger name for ourselves within the photography community as well as attract our dream clients of musicians, creative brands, and fashion designers. Looking back now, I can confidently say that those 100 sets were worth every minute and every penny.
So, here's the bottom line: to create your best work, you have to shoot. Shoot as much as possible. And you've got to make time for personal projects. Pour your heart and soul into them, just like you would for any paid gig and let that work guide your path.
Thanks for discussing a great topic. I think that photographers are all over the spectrum when it comes to this issue.
I know two photographers who do NOT enjoy photography - they do it purely as a way to make a living and have no interest in photography outside of their portrait and event work.
Then at the other end of the spectrum there are folks like me, who love photography so much that monetizing our images comes as an afterthought and most of the time/effort/energy goes into personal work. If the images I take for personal satisfaction happen to sell well, great! But if not, I don't really care because fulfillment from creative expression and passion for my subjects is what my life is all about anyway.
I had an interesting conversation with a very successful wildlife photographer some years ago. He has probably made more income from pure image licensing sales than any other wildlife photographer in North America over the past 25 years. He really LOVES to shoot. But he said,
"Looking back, I should have gone into insurance or banking and gotten a regular job. My friends who did that have gotten to shoot more of what they love over the years because they're not depending on this for a living. I'm out shooting all the time, but I have to shoot what sells, which is big game species, when what I really love are birds, which don't sell anywhere near as well."
So while he gets to photograph wildlife year round, on a full time basis, his drive for income causes him to spend most of his time and energy shooting species that he isn't as passionate about. I have avoided that problem by being content to be poor. I hardly make any money from my photography or from anything else, but I get to shoot what I want when I want. If I hear about a certain species of snake that is really cool looking and lives in Missouri, I can go spend a month in Missouri searching for that species if I want to. I can spend November photographing the Whitetail Deer rut because I love Whitetail bucks! I can go to southern Arizona for a month each summer because I love the Sonoran Desert and the palette of desert species that live there. I can go to Northern Minnesota for a week or two each winter because I love the way Pine Grosbeaks and Boreal Chickadees look.
When you put income and standard of living on the back burner, it opens up a lot of possibilities to pursue what you are most passionate about. But if you want a home and a family and a decent car and health insurance and all that middle class stuff, then you're pretty much stuck shooting for money and putting your passions and interests on the back burner for long periods of time.
On the commercial or editorial side, personal work is very important. The clients already have a group of photographers who can do the jobs that they have equally well. But they also want to see what your "passion" is regarding photographer and who you think. There were more than few times when an AD liked my personal stuff and wanted to work together so aI shot a lot of products for him...