GO PRO
Enjoyed a long-established career but want to turn your photographic passion into a vocation?Here are some things you’ll need to consider…
As the saying goes, it’s never too late to try something new. It’s not uncommon for photography to be your hobby as you go through life while establishing a successful career in another field. But perhaps you’ve always had a nagging feeling that you could quit the day job and turn your passion for photography into an illustrious career.
There’s always a risk anytime you try something new, but taking risks can lead to rewards. The risks from turning pro later in life aren’t necessarily worse than going pro at a younger age – in many ways, it can be an advantage – but it all depends on your situation and where you are at in life.
For example, if your household relies on the regular income from your nine-to-five job, then it’s a bigger risk than if you’re at an age where you’ve paid your mortgage off in full and are in a position to draw down from your pension. In that scenario, you could use photography as a casual and part-time means of earning some extra income as you head into retirement.
In this feature, we’ll look at the types of risks you’ll need to weigh up, how to slowly phase yourself out of the day job to give yourself a better chance of creating a successful list of clients and the challenges you’ll need to overcome when you finally decide to go self-employed.
Decide when the moment is right
If you’re thinking of jumping careers, you have a couple of options. The more drastic one would be to hand in your notice to your current employer and dive straight into going solo, though I can only really recommend this if you have a safety net of savings and you’re confident enough in your selfdetermination and drive to make it work.
The more sensible option I’d recommend is to start to build up your photography business in your spare time while you’re still employed. This means you will get your regular monthly salary and a little bit extra from shoots you do in the evenings or weekends. This will also help you build up a list of clients that will hopefully give you regular work in the future.
Another option would be to find work for an existing photographer. This isn’t likely to pay very well to begin with, but the experience you will gain from seeing how an already established professional manages their photography business and workflow could prove to be priceless insight.
Get the balance right
Setting up your own photography business gives you more freedom and puts you in the driving seat. The downside is that the buck stops with you. While giving up the nine-to-five sounds idyllic, the harsh reality is that many se
