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Starting A Photography Business - Insights
Author: Roy Barker
If you have the required skills and a strong passion for photography, then all
you'll really need is the right photography equipment (and
that's not over-the-top), allocate a room in you home to use as
your base and you can immediately commence.
Dark rooms are all but obsolete during this era of the SLR
digital camera and sophisticated photo editing software. My
favorite is Photoshop. It can be tricky when you first use it
but it doesn't take long to master and you can manipulate your
pictures professionally and fast.
Keep in mind that if you're not able to buy all the equipment
you think you'll need, simply hire it as required. It's cheaper
and makes a lot of sense when you're starting out. A digital
photography business gives you liberty, freedom to work part
time to start with - which makes it that much easier to achieve
success without going broke and ensuring that you are balancing
your pennies. Really, in order to succeed, you must be serious
about it. That alone will get you through.
While the technical side of photography is so much more advanced
and easier, the business has been altered with other changes to
tradition. The photography market is so much broader these days
that there are a vast array of photography type businesses to
consider before just jumping in. Most photographers these days
specialize in one particular area. That doesn't mean their
services don't bleed over to other modes of photography from
time to time, simply that they have a specialization and it's
usually the area they love most. While the photography business
areas have expanded, prices have dropped a little but I believe
this is in line with the amount of time and effort required to
produce the final product for the customer/client. This allows
more time and focus on marketing and idea generation. The doors
are wide open now for travel, baby, nature, wildlife,
underwater, pet and even doll photography businesses.
Your dream can now easily turn into reality and create a
worthwhile business out of an engrossing hobby. However, in
today's modern world there is more to it than simply pointing a
camera, and shooting a picture. You need to be aware of
Marketing Technique and here marketing simply means transferring
ownership of a product, in this case an image from a buyer to
the seller. You also need to be aware of any local gaps in the
market in your local area. You should also try to be on top of
your competitor's prices, to undercut an existing photographer
is one choice, but to neglect to value your skills and not
charge enough to cover your overheads is another matter
entirely. Remember this, it's an important point.
Use your skills to the best advantage of the business and define
what you want from it. Writing a business plan helps to keep you
focused on the areas you specifically want to exploit. A
business plan helps you to define your goals and strategies, it
will be changed and updated, but it will help you, to keep
things in perspective. You can then refer back to it when things
become confusing or complicated. Everyone's business plan will
be different, as every objective will be different, but there
are certain common factors that make up a good business plan
which will help your business grow. It allows you to develop a
professional attitude to your business, which not only helps you
to increase your earnings, but also help you to finance your
business.
For the photographer it should include, your business name, or
your own, with full details of the proposed location of the
business, a copy of your logo, as well as details of your
copyright notices. What is the form of your proposed business
(sole ownership, partnership, Limited Liability Company or
Corporation). This should be followed by a table of contents,
which focuses on a logical order. There are resources that will
give you greater details such as one of the author's sites where
some of the items are free at - Photography Business Equipment.
Included after this should be the type of business you intend to
pursue, in a fair amount of detail, and it should contain the
services you intend to offer. This section should include any
future gaols or avenues you would like to explore, stating your
clear objectives. This is so you can check at a later date
whether your objectives are on course, or if you have become
sidetracked.
If you envisage at any time you may need financial help, then
you should include your personal business history.
You should also state a clear and concise marketing plan that
should demonstrate how your business will differentiate from the
businesses of your competitors. You should be able to establish
whom your customers will be, as well as where your market will
be, as in wholesale or retail or a combination of both. You
should also be able to determine how long this type of market
will be available to yourself.
The next section should clearly define your opposition, as well
as their strengths and weaknesses. This should include the ways
you may be able to exploit any gaps in the market in the
specific area where you live. A section should follow this on
how you intend to market and promote your individual services.
A financial segment should be included as to how you intend to
manage the day-to-day bills of the business. How you intend to
price your services, and what factors influence this pricing
structure, which includes a section on your competitor's
financial structures. This means a fair amount of detective work
as well as homework. Get your friends to ask for quotes from the
local competition. Or try an even more direct approach, tell
your competitor's that you intend to start a new business, and
that you do not want to undercut them, as this reduces the cake
for everyone. They may well offer to help you construct a
pricing structure that ensures everyone's livelihood. It is in
their interests to help. Not everyone will be cooperative, but
it may mean you can get a truer picture of the market factors
that govern your area.
Make a list of all the equipment you will need in your first
year, as well as how and where you intend to purchase. Note any
difficulties that may arise in obtaining your supplies. Note
whether the prices of your supplies have a seasonal fluctuation,
that may help you influence you when to buy. Make a study of all
your business assets and get protection. You can get
photographer's insurance here.
You should make a note of any local licenses that will be
necessary, as well as any zoning restrictions, that may restrict
the growth of your business. Your neighbours may not be thrilled
at a procession of customer's to your door, check whether they
can restrict your services.
The final segment should be devoted to how you intend to finance
the growth of your business, as well as isolating what your
financial needs will be. This should include a projection on
your future earnings, as well as an accurate assessment of your
outgoings'. This should be assessed on a monthly basis for the
first year, and on an annual basis for the following three
years. An important aspect of the financial statement is an
assessment of the break-even point of your business, in other
words the minimum you will have to take to pay your expenses.
The purpose of this documentation is to allow you to enunciate
what the core elements of your business will be, in doing this
it should help you to be able to quickly evaluate the success of
your business objectives. If you are not clear on your
objectives then you cannot possibly make a plan to bring about
the success of those objectives. If you are interested in
fast-tracking your way into your own photography business where
you can make money part or full-time, we have discovered a
unique program which just may fill this need for you if you
would like to start in a niche area of photography to begin with
- see cash from niche photography. As you make money and build
your confidence, you can then move into a full blown profitable
photography business where it becomes quite lucrative.
About the author:
Hi, my name is Roy Barker and I've been earning an income from
photography for a large portion of my life and to start your own
commercial photography business you don't need a diploma or a
degree. Find out how to earn from what you love to do
here:http://snipurl.com/1c44y
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