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Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh
 
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liveforever



Joined: 10 Apr 2008
Posts: 8

PostPosted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 10:10 am    Post subject: Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh Reply with quote
Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, what do i need to do?
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fhotoace2664



Joined: 10 Apr 2008
Posts: 1

PostPosted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 2:17 pm    Post subject: Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh Reply with quote
Being a wedding photographer requires good shooting skills and the ability to sell prints after the images have been viewed by the clients.You need to work for a successful wedding photographer as an assistant for a couple of years to learn the business of wedding photography.
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callyl



Joined: 10 Apr 2008
Posts: 1

PostPosted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 6:23 pm    Post subject: Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh Reply with quote
It will take a awful lot of practise.You would need to experiment with lighting. backgrounds garden settings,weather conditions,colour have a black umbrella and use a spot light less red eye then a very good digital program on your puter for touch ups and adding stars and bubbles etc.I use Ulead Photo Impact but it a early one.Best of luck its not a easy thing to break into
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gryphon19110754



Joined: 10 Apr 2008
Posts: 1

PostPosted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 10:30 pm    Post subject: Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh Reply with quote
Having a business of your own is never easy. It is hard work. You need to do most of the work yourself.You need to have great photography skills and provide a great product to your customers.You also need to be good with people, as at least half the time you'll need to interact with them.
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Pooky1203



Joined: 11 Apr 2008
Posts: 1

PostPosted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 2:37 am    Post subject: Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh Reply with quote
Good answers already--I'd like to add more. The big words I was thinking of were "diva" and "prima donna". And they want you to be a "magician". Seriously.
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LEm



Joined: 11 Apr 2008
Posts: 18

PostPosted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 6:44 am    Post subject: Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh Reply with quote
Weddings are the WORST! Avoid it at all cost!
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dms479496860



Joined: 11 Apr 2008
Posts: 1

PostPosted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 10:51 am    Post subject: Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh Reply with quote
It is hard work. More important than photography skills are business, marketing and sales skills. However, once you are established it can be very lucrative. You will be working weekends shooting the weddings, during the week drumming up business. You will be working at least 12 hour days. First you need to build a portfolio of wedding pictures to show your potential clients. Do this by second shooting for an established pro. Short of that do some wedding for free so you have something to show. You will also need to invest in the proper equipment. http://photo.net/learn/wedding/There will also be leans times. You will be busy during the summer months(when everyone else is taking vacations!)and on weekends(when everyone else is off. You also have to have excellent people skills, or you ain't gonna make it! Do yopu still want to do this?
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SteveP3078



Joined: 11 Apr 2008
Posts: 2

PostPosted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 2:58 pm    Post subject: Is it hard to have your own wedding photography business, wh Reply with quote
DMS above has given you some VERY good advice, especially this statement,"More important than photography skills are business, marketing and sales skills".You need to read that over and over again. Just being good with a camera does NOT make you a good business person. A good business person will be successful in any business. A good photographer who is NOT a VERY GOOD business person WILL FAIL. I broke into the business much as some of the others have answered you, and I have had moderate success, however, I am not a good business person, never have been, never will be. It is just not "me". I absolutely hate all that goes with a business. Some people are cut out for it, and some are not. No shame at not being good in business, you just need to KNOW how you fall out before you go wasting BIG money.So this year will be my final year doing weddings... for reasons that would take me all day to discuss. My personal business shortcomings are one reason... the other is simply that I absolutely think I will scream if I have to do any more wedding shoots. It is VERY STRESSFUL, and can get very old, very quickly. I think the more of it you do yourself, the sooner you will become burned out on it. Most of the "big name" wedding photographers only take part in a small part of the process. They may take the actual photos, but after that, they have people who handle everything else... downloading, editing, submission to online support sites, design of albums, ordering of prints and on and on. All this is not to mention the everyday hassles of a business, i.e. record keeping, insurance, taxes, meeting codes, licensing, marketing, selling, advertising, etc.Now think of doing ALL of this yourself, and that is the boat I have been in for several years now. I want photography to be fun for me again, and be able to approach it as the art it is. Taking photos of fat brides in topless gowns, photos of people stuffing cake into each other's mouths, photos of shoes, photos of goofy cha cha cha dancing, ad nauseam is just not making it for me any more. So again... are you SURE you want to do this?steve
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