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Should I start my own business in photography?

I work at a portrait studio now and have been in photography for the last 8 years, part of me wants to go to school and learn enough about photography and how to run a small business. The other part is worried that photography is a dying business with so many people doing their own photography with digital cameras & photoshop. Is it worth all that school ,money & time?

Public Comments

1. follow your heart. if your heart is telling you to start a business, then do it. i think you will have a lot a headache at first but once they subside you will be cool.... do it!
2. i go to nyip.com it's only $900 for your associates in professional photography.
3. the abillity to produce great images in the camera is a dying art as people think great images are made from hours in the computer, do what you feel is the right thing to do a
4. Yes it is. Follow your dream. Remember the old saying: "Its better to have tried and failed than to have never tried at all."
5. Why not give it a shot? Sure alot of people can take decent photographs..but how many can take the "holy sh** that pic's awesome!" type of photos? Anyway, at the very least, you'll learn a little bit about how to run a business. Speaking of that, one book you might wanna check out-- "The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Fail, and What to do About it". VERY informative book for someone who's thinking about starting a small business.
6. If you know anyone who has a current Mac computer, you can use IWeb to create a website showing your recent photographs. Set up an .mac account [$99 per year] and publish your IWeb webpage(s). Acquire from Vistaprint.com a colorful business card by selecting from their many templates a suitable one that meets your needs. Make sure to list the URL of your website along with a telephone answering device. Do not place your home address or anything personal such as a cellphone on this businesscard. Then when you receive the finished business card, pass it around to various churches, temples and the like to solicit business. When you receive a major photography assignment, visit your local professional camera store and "rent" the necessary camera equipment to fulfill this assignment. When starting out, you don't want to tie your money up with a piece of camera equipment which because of ever changing technology "becomes obsolete." Remember, that 90% of professional photographer are not "buying" camera equipment continually which can easily become outdated; instead, they merely "rent or lease" the camera equipment for set period of time; thereby keeping their money for other expenses. Even though you may have your heart set on an SLR and film, you may have to give up that concept for the moment, since digital photography offers the most economic method of photo reproduction. Digital imagery is easy to edit on a computer and the print quality is often far superior to regular film-generated prints. You want to buy an "essential/basic" DSLR system which has an all-around affordable accessory lenses, then consider the award winning Pentax KD series beginning with the Pentax K100D 6.1 mp DSLR with "image stabilization" built into the camera body. "Image stabilization" is essential for allowing you to take telephoto pictures at weddings, parties, while on the go and you don't have to drag along a tripod to steady your camera. Unfortunately, Canon and Nikon have chosen to install their "vibration reduction" devices into very expensive auxiliary lenses. But getting back to the Pentax K100D which comes in a starter kit consisting of two Pentax lenses: a 18-55 mm. normal lens and a 50-200 mm. telephoto which sells for $650 at samys.com. Again, the Pentax K100D starter kit runs circles around the D40 Nikon! For digital print processing, find a private professional film processing lab who can handle all your client's print orders. And with a resale license, you will be qualified for considerable "professional" discounts on lab fees. A search on the Google and Yahoo for wholesale photo albums will connect you with various distributors who, again, you can sign on as a photography studio and get a dealer's pricing for any number of albums, guest books, etc. Instead of renting a studio, take people pictures at local parks and beaches and for indoor shots, go to the client's residence or office to set up a photo shooting environment which consists of a set of lights, reflective screens, background drapery, etc. Good luck!