How to Get Your First Gig

Today is the four year wedding anniversary for my cousin and her husband.  This is significant to my business because their wedding was the very first wedding that I photographed.  Looking back on that wedding I’m thinking about what led up to them asking me to photograph their wedding and what opportunities have followed.  When I first picked up a camera thinking of it as a tool that I could use to express something and share it with people I had no real desire to photograph people.  I found moments in inanimate objects and landscapes with the occasional person appearing not so much as the main focus.  So there was something my cousin saw in my style that she liked, even though I had very little experience photographing people and absolutely no experience shooting a wedding.

So this is when I made a Pinterest account and scoured it for photo ideas.  I began trying to visualize how I would do certain shots that I liked and break down how I could direct people to do the poses.  I’m not going to pretend even four years later that I did this perfectly or even very well at all, but preparation work is a large key especially for a first gig.  I purchased my second DSLR, the Canon T2i, for this gig along with an off-brand auxiliary flash.  I was still shooting with only a kit lens (Canon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6) needless to say I needed to make the very best out of my equipment.

My advice to anybody aspiring to “become a professional” would be to not focus on the “professional” part that is easy to zone in on; the money.  As soon as you are only motivated by money, you stop growing as an artist and you can start missing out on opportunities.  Don’t advertise “I’ll do your wedding for FREE” or even a price so low that it would be hard to pass up for the client that is on a tight budget.  This will not only distort the value of photography for clients seeking photographers but will hinder your own growth as a business.  The important thing to do is to go out and shoot.  Use your siblings, children, friends, nieces/nephews, etc. and build a portfolio.  Only use the very best of your images to advertise with and showcase on a website.  You want 10’s everywhere even though nobody takes 10’s constantly.  A small strong portfolio is way better than an extensive portfolio of mediocre photos.   Another incredibly valuable opportunity would be an internship/apprenticeship for an already established photographer.  You will not only grow a portfolio, but you will gain experience with how to deal with people both as models and in business.

So get out there and shoot!

Best regards,

Jake