Going pro is a big decision. We all three regularly mentor photographers making this move in their life — and we have some wisdom to offer to you if you’re considering hanging out your shingle as a professional photographer. Even if you have a photography business up and running, this episode will offer you ways to grow and expand your business practices and mindset.
Mentioned in this episode:
Cottonwood Ranch Equine Photography Experience
https://cowgirlswithcameras.com/events/
It's time to laugh, learn and take your photography to the
Jaz:next level with your favorite cowgirls with cameras, Cara,
Jaz:Kim, and Phyllis.
Kimberly Beer:Welcome to the cowgirls with cameras Podcast.
Kimberly Beer:I'm Kim Beer with Kim Beer photography and Be More
Kimberly Beer:Business.
Cara Taylor Swift:I'm Cara with Fast Horse photography.
Phyllis Burchett:And I'm Phyllis with Phyllis Burchette
Phyllis Burchett:photo. Hey guys, hey, everybody.
Kimberly Beer:Hey, before we get started this week, I want to
Kimberly Beer:tell the audience about our events and a couple of them that
Kimberly Beer:we have coming up that are really cool and that are filling
Kimberly Beer:up. So if you've been sitting on the fence, kind of thinking you
Kimberly Beer:might want to come to one of our events, it is the time to get
Kimberly Beer:yourself registered if you're going to come to one and 2023.
Kimberly Beer:So we have two fantastic experiences coming up. One of
Kimberly Beer:them is our cottonwood Guest Ranch, which had such rave
Kimberly Beer:reviews last year. This place is truly special. But lodging a
Kimberly Beer:special the people are special. And I'm going to say the
Kimberly Beer:photographic fodder, there is chef's kiss. I mean, you cannot
Kimberly Beer:ask for cooler dust cooler backgrounds, really good cowboys
Kimberly Beer:and cowgirls amazing opportunities to shoot herds of
Kimberly Beer:horses, and people doing Hellboy and cowgirl work as well as
Kimberly Beer:Western lifestyle stuff. I mean, this place is truly special. And
Kimberly Beer:this event is truly special. Because it is a place where
Kimberly Beer:we're going to do some intensive learning things. So if you've
Kimberly Beer:been seeking to really take your photography up to the next
Kimberly Beer:level, if you've been looking to expand your business, if you're
Kimberly Beer:feeling like you're stuck in your creativity, this is the
Kimberly Beer:workshop for you to come to, to get all of that growth moving in
Kimberly Beer:the right direction and to get unstuck from where you are,
Kimberly Beer:because we do so many cool things in this particular event
Kimberly Beer:to help you with all of that. So that's our cottonwood guest
Kimberly Beer:ranch adventure. It is at the end of August the 24th through
Kimberly Beer:the 29th. It's five days, five nights, and it's in wells
Kimberly Beer:Nevada, and you can find out more about it on cowgirls with
Kimberly Beer:cameras.com and just head to the events page and then click on
Kimberly Beer:cottonwood guest ranch experience. And trust me, it's
Kimberly Beer:worth your while to take a look just so you have a heads up. The
Kimberly Beer:way that this works is we do talk to all of the participants
Kimberly Beer:ahead of them registering completely for this event,
Kimberly Beer:because we want to make sure it's the absolute perfect fit
Kimberly Beer:for you. So don't be surprised when you click on the buttons if
Kimberly Beer:it asks you to go ahead and make an appointment. So please do
Kimberly Beer:because we can't hold your spot until we get an opportunity to
Kimberly Beer:speak with you. Trust me it's painless, it's easy and just
Kimberly Beer:click the button and follow the instructions and we're all good.
Kimberly Beer:The other thing we have going on this fall is a new event for us
Kimberly Beer:and it's the trappers Lake Lodge photography adventure. Now I'm
Kimberly Beer:going to tell you I have sampled this place and it is truly an
Kimberly Beer:adventure and it is some of the most breathtaking scenery you
Kimberly Beer:have ever seen in your life. We're hosted by a wonderful
Kimberly Beer:young photographer named caisson and caisson is amazing. She has
Kimberly Beer:planned so many cool things for us to go photograph. She has
Kimberly Beer:such deep knowledge of this area. It is truly a special
Kimberly Beer:place. And it is in the wilderness. It is beyond
Kimberly Beer:beautiful, I can't even begin to describe it in words, I suggest
Kimberly Beer:you head on over to the website and take a look at that this is
Kimberly Beer:an event where we're just going to shoot there's education
Kimberly Beer:available to you if you need it. But this is more of a relaxing
Kimberly Beer:sisterhood. Let's have a lot of fun shooting and really enjoy
Kimberly Beer:ourselves and get some amazing photography for portfolios or
Kimberly Beer:stock imagery or art. Anything that you are looking for. I'm
Kimberly Beer:going to tell you this place has to offer it. It is five days
Kimberly Beer:four nights from September 29 to October 3 It is near Meeker
Kimberly Beer:Colorado. I'm not gonna say it's in it because it's quite a few
Kimberly Beer:miles away from there. But it is beautiful and at the time of
Kimberly Beer:year that we're going to be there. This is peak color season
Kimberly Beer:in Colorado and I mean the Aspen's just simply light up the
Kimberly Beer:planet. So it'd be a really good place to come and join us for
Kimberly Beer:that particular adventure. So again cowgirls with cameras.com
Kimberly Beer:is a great place to find information on both of these
Kimberly Beer:events. All right, ladies, now that we've got that in the bag
Kimberly Beer:and have told people about what we're doing, I'm curious about
Kimberly Beer:what you guys have been up to in the last couple of weeks. Thank
Kimberly Beer:you for doing that Kim
Cara Taylor Swift:I'm super excited about some of those
Cara Taylor Swift:events, I'm glad we had an opportunity to share them. I
Cara Taylor Swift:have been doing a ton of deliveries this week, which has
Cara Taylor Swift:been difficult up until just a couple days ago because my truck
Cara Taylor Swift:has been broke down. So got my truck fixed. And now I've been
Cara Taylor Swift:delivering albums. It seems like it's I'm on like an album rush
Cara Taylor Swift:right now. So that's what I've been delivering is a bunch of
Cara Taylor Swift:photo albums to clients. I've had a couple of photo shoots, I
Cara Taylor Swift:had a really beautiful equestrian senior portrait shoot
Cara Taylor Swift:a couple of days ago, it was over at Princess Place Preserve,
Cara Taylor Swift:which you both have now been to from the horses on the beach
Cara Taylor Swift:workshop. So we shot over there, I was able to pull out my Godox
Cara Taylor Swift:lights, and just really lit up the beautiful big old oak trees.
Cara Taylor Swift:And it's gorgeous, a gorgeous shoot had so much fun doing it.
Cara Taylor Swift:I'm still recovering from the ticks though my gosh, there's, I
Cara Taylor Swift:think I got in a nest of them or something. But it was just a
Cara Taylor Swift:beautiful shoot. I'm also working on I'm a little late, a
Cara Taylor Swift:little late this year, but I'm working on updating my artwork
Cara Taylor Swift:guide. A lot of the vendors that I really love to work with have
Cara Taylor Swift:done some product changes that I'm just really crazy about. So
Cara Taylor Swift:I'm updating pricing, updating what I'm offering my clients to
Cara Taylor Swift:just kind of reworking and kind of reconfiguring how that is
Cara Taylor Swift:laid out and the pricing structures. So I've been really
Cara Taylor Swift:busy this week on top of all the cowgirls with cameras stuff, so
Cara Taylor Swift:but it's I'm happy to see your faces. What about you, fellas?
Phyllis Burchett:Well, this time of year is just a lot of
Phyllis Burchett:office work. For me, I think I mentioned before I was signed by
Phyllis Burchett:a new publisher. So I'm trying to get artwork submissions,
Phyllis Burchett:organized for them, and then getting new work from my old
Phyllis Burchett:publisher, trying to get some other stuff done on an old
Phyllis Burchett:publisher that is no longer in business. So I'm switching those
Phyllis Burchett:images over to the new publisher. So that's extra work,
Phyllis Burchett:which is all good. I'm happy to have the work very happy, very
Phyllis Burchett:thankful. I'm also working on images from my website, update
Phyllis Burchett:that Denise over it Storm Lily Marketing is doing for me. And
Phyllis Burchett:she wants a bunch of old pictures of me, which is a
Phyllis Burchett:little worrisome pictures of when I used to show horses and
Phyllis Burchett:stuff. So that's kind of cool. And actually, it's kind of been
Phyllis Burchett:I don't know, it's just been kind of neat going back through
Phyllis Burchett:these old pictures of when I used to show horses and a lot of
Phyllis Burchett:travel like with my sister and stuff. And she wants pictures
Phyllis Burchett:from all that from when I very first started photography and
Phyllis Burchett:before so it's been very bittersweet, kind of a good
Phyllis Burchett:thing and a bad thing. Just looking back at old times,
Cara Taylor Swift:you're taking a walk down memory. So
Phyllis Burchett:I am taking a very, very long walk down memory
Phyllis Burchett:lane got some family stuff going on. My sister's still obviously
Phyllis Burchett:recuperating from her knee surgery, and I've been home
Phyllis Burchett:working or trying to help her some and then just it's been so
Phyllis Burchett:pretty here. It's of course it's raining today. But it's really
Phyllis Burchett:been in the seven days most days here and everything's blooming
Phyllis Burchett:and Spring has sprung Of course now it's going to be a cold snap
Phyllis Burchett:next week, which is what we do here in Georgia, we get hot and
Phyllis Burchett:then we get cold and then we get hot and then we get called again
Phyllis Burchett:for Easter. So but that's about it for me, Kim, what do you been
Phyllis Burchett:up to?
Kimberly Beer:I have been the networking queen, you have heard
Kimberly Beer:of the dancing queen? Well, I'm the networking queen. So I have
Kimberly Beer:an extended stretch when I'm not traveling. So I have been a few
Kimberly Beer:places this year so far. But it's it's been this time a year
Kimberly Beer:it's more at home kind of stuff. And I'm working on building some
Kimberly Beer:groups and stuff for my Gestalt business. And so I've been like
Kimberly Beer:super concentrated on that. However, it's funny to me that
Kimberly Beer:even in my other life, I run into so many photographers, they
Kimberly Beer:like end up in the same circles that I'm in. So I have had
Kimberly Beer:photographers in almost every class that I have taught around
Kimberly Beer:business in the last couple of weeks and it's been super
Kimberly Beer:fascinating to sit and talk with them about what we do as equine
Kimberly Beer:photographers and western lifestyle photographers because
Kimberly Beer:a lot of them have never experienced that and they find
Kimberly Beer:it really really awesome to hear about what we all do as cow
Kimberly Beer:girls with cameras versus being I guess just a person with a
Kimberly Beer:camera. So that's been a lot of fun so yeah, I've been I've been
Kimberly Beer:out promote my book I've been I don't know signing books and
Kimberly Beer:kissing babies and just talking to people about joint ventures
Kimberly Beer:and creating opportunities which is you know, as Cara is sitting
Kimberly Beer:there smiling so big and Phyllis too they know that that's me and
Kimberly Beer:my element right? That's me doing what I love
Cara Taylor Swift:talking I was Yes, exactly.
Cara Taylor Swift:I'm sitting here smiling because I'm like she's actually like
Cara Taylor Swift:it's such a chore but she loves every minute of it
Kimberly Beer:certainly is not well and you laugh at that but
Kimberly Beer:and I know people on this thing are gonna go oh my god, what is
Kimberly Beer:Kim doing now? But I'm also in this Hypnosis Training Course
Kimberly Beer:like I've taken uncut slate, deep dive six months, incredibly
Kimberly Beer:in depth Avenue to Learn hypnosis. And I have lots of
Kimberly Beer:ideas around that that I want to bring to our community here to
Kimberly Beer:help with creative blocks. And to help with getting resistances
Kimberly Beer:out for businesses. I have millions of ideas, which is
Kimberly Beer:another thing I'm never short of. But what's funny about it,
Kimberly Beer:and I'm terrified is when I started into this, like I went
Kimberly Beer:to these hypnosis and like training sessions, and I've been
Kimberly Beer:to hypnosis, and I came home and I told my son I said, I think I
Kimberly Beer:have found, like, the ideal career for me because basically
Kimberly Beer:what hypnosis is, is you talking people into a coma. So it's
Kimberly Beer:truly up my avenue to talk people into a coma. So natural
Kimberly Beer:talent for I do, it just comes really natural.
Phyllis Burchett:I was just sitting here thinking about that
Phyllis Burchett:you had asked me to be one of your guinea pigs for your
Phyllis Burchett:testing. And now when you tie coma now I'm a little bit
Phyllis Burchett:worried about what is she going to have me doing while I'm under
Phyllis Burchett:the influence?
Kimberly Beer:Well, I fully assure you that hypnosis is not
Kimberly Beer:what you've seen on TV and I cannot convince you to do
Kimberly Beer:anything that you would naturally be disappointed
Kimberly Beer:inclined to do. It is a little disappointing Cara, because
Kimberly Beer:dammit, I really wanted to send her to town to rob a bank and
Kimberly Beer:bring us back a lot of money so we could all buy new camera
Kimberly Beer:equipment.
Phyllis Burchett:Hey, speaking of that, Cara just did buy a new
Phyllis Burchett:camera equipment.
Kimberly Beer:She came to the dark side. Yes.
Phyllis Burchett:Congratulations, Cara.
Cara Taylor Swift:Thank you, it's arriving today. I'm super
Cara Taylor Swift:excited to test out my first mirrorless camera so I'll still
Cara Taylor Swift:be shooting with my go to 1DX Mark ii. I love that camera. So
Cara Taylor Swift:it isn't going anywhere. And I really love it for video. So
Cara Taylor Swift:it's definitely sticking around for video. And then I'm gonna
Cara Taylor Swift:give this R5 a try and see if I can enjoy it or not. Otherwise,
Cara Taylor Swift:I'm sending it right back.
Kimberly Beer:Oh my god, don't even say that. You're gonna love
Kimberly Beer:it so much. I tell you I'm sitting here thinking about it.
Kimberly Beer:Don't tell Ed this but it's like getting a new boyfriend. You
Kimberly Beer:know that new boyfriend feel when you're all in love and told
Kimberly Beer:that he can't wait to see them and think about them all the
Kimberly Beer:time. That's what the our five is for photographers. Yep.
Cara Taylor Swift:Well, I have to sign for it. So it might
Cara Taylor Swift:actually arrive while we're recording today. So I've got to
Cara Taylor Swift:keep keep an eye out for it. I thought it was coming yesterday,
Cara Taylor Swift:I misread the alerts. And I sat here in my office all day
Cara Taylor Swift:waiting for it to arrive. And it was supposed to arrive by 4:30.
Cara Taylor Swift:And I had to leave at 4:30. And it didn't come and so I was like
Cara Taylor Swift:man, I really missed it. I came home it wasn't sitting on the
Cara Taylor Swift:front porch just thinking randomly would be delivered and
Cara Taylor Swift:went back and looked at the email. And it was today. So I
Cara Taylor Swift:sent home all day yesterday waiting on it. And today's the
Cara Taylor Swift:actual delivery day. So I guess maybe I'm subliminally under the
Cara Taylor Swift:radar excited?
Kimberly Beer:Well, I think we'll excuse you if you have to
Kimberly Beer:get up and leave while we're doing this. So maybe you should
Kimberly Beer:go first and our chosen subject of the day, which is going from
Kimberly Beer:hobby to Pro. So that way if your camera arrives, Phyllis and
Kimberly Beer:I'll be talking
Cara Taylor Swift:Yeah, so we're talking about going from
Cara Taylor Swift:hobby to pro today. Kim normally does a really nice job of
Cara Taylor Swift:introducing the subject. So I will make an attempt at that. So
Cara Taylor Swift:we work with I mean, we come in contact with photographers every
Cara Taylor Swift:day that are making the decision to take their hobby to the next
Cara Taylor Swift:level and either form some type of business or try to monetize
Cara Taylor Swift:their hobby in some way. We've all been there. I mean, I
Cara Taylor Swift:started as a hobby photographer, Phyllis, you were a hobby
Cara Taylor Swift:photographer originally right and enthusiastic hobbyist, I
Cara Taylor Swift:think is how you described it to me at one point. Yes,
Cara Taylor Swift:absolutely. Yeah. And Kim, I don't I can't remember if you
Cara Taylor Swift:jumped right in and started making money or if you started
Cara Taylor Swift:as a hobby photographer, do you remember I
Kimberly Beer:was a hobby photographer cuz I was 13 and
Kimberly Beer:couldn't get quite figured out how to make money. But yeah, I
Kimberly Beer:dove into the making money part pretty quick.
Cara Taylor Swift:So our hope is to talk a little bit about
Cara Taylor Swift:some thought processes around that and give you guys some tips
Cara Taylor Swift:for anyone that's out there and they want to take their
Cara Taylor Swift:photography just to the next level they want to make it a
Cara Taylor Swift:business they want to try to monetize some element of their
Cara Taylor Swift:photography. I think in my two cents on this subject is that
Cara Taylor Swift:you have to start by considering how that relationship with
Cara Taylor Swift:photography is going to change if you have your hobby being
Cara Taylor Swift:photography and it was something that you do for fun, a stress
Cara Taylor Swift:reliever. I know for me photography started as a hobby,
Cara Taylor Swift:and I was shooting when I was doing domestic violence work. So
Cara Taylor Swift:I was doing really heavy domestic violence and sexual
Cara Taylor Swift:assault work and photography and getting the camera out was a way
Cara Taylor Swift:that I relieve stress. It was a way that I kind of just was able
Cara Taylor Swift:to shut all of that off. and go out and just kind of be one with
Cara Taylor Swift:the world around me and capture that. And when it was no longer
Cara Taylor Swift:my stress reliever, and was no longer something that I just did
Cara Taylor Swift:for fun, it really did take on a different role in my life. And
Cara Taylor Swift:it just isn't my hobby anymore. So I'm sure that you guys will
Cara Taylor Swift:have some things to add to that. But I do think that's a big
Cara Taylor Swift:piece of it. It's no longer one of the things you do for fun,
Cara Taylor Swift:it's now a responsibility, another responsibility. And I
Cara Taylor Swift:think people have to consider, you know, do you have the time
Cara Taylor Swift:do you have the grit, do you have the ability to develop a
Cara Taylor Swift:consistent photography product that will sell and build your
Cara Taylor Swift:photography brand, build a client photography, client base,
Cara Taylor Swift:all while working, potentially working your nine to five, your
Cara Taylor Swift:existing job, in my case, while being a parent, and all of the
Cara Taylor Swift:other responsibilities that come along, you know, with everyday
Cara Taylor Swift:life, so there's a balance there that happens. And my personal
Cara Taylor Swift:experience, it was a balance that it was a struggle, because
Cara Taylor Swift:I was going from this one extreme work experience, and
Cara Taylor Swift:then taking my hobby, to something that was originally
Cara Taylor Swift:something that was for stress relief, and then making it into,
Cara Taylor Swift:you know, into a new responsibility for myself. And
Cara Taylor Swift:then the next piece of that was, are you ready to monetize your
Cara Taylor Swift:photography. So I think one of the things I learned real quick
Cara Taylor Swift:is that people loved my photography and my work when it
Cara Taylor Swift:was free. They loved it. I mean, I would get all the kudos. And
Cara Taylor Swift:people would tell me how great my work was. And they would bend
Cara Taylor Swift:over backwards to let me come out and shoot their horses for
Cara Taylor Swift:free and, and let me photograph their families for free. But
Cara Taylor Swift:things change when you suddenly have to when they have to pay
Cara Taylor Swift:you. So you know, being aware that that is going to be a
Cara Taylor Swift:shift. And that you may have to realize that those people that
Cara Taylor Swift:loved your photography, when it was free are probably not your
Cara Taylor Swift:client, if they're not willing to pay you. So I think as new
Cara Taylor Swift:photographers, or someone wanting to jump into the
Cara Taylor Swift:business you need to spend before hanging your shingle, you
Cara Taylor Swift:need to spend a little time researching your competitors
Cara Taylor Swift:actually look at your existing target market, I spoke to
Cara Taylor Swift:someone the other day, and we were on the phone and we were
Cara Taylor Swift:chatting, and she said I don't think that there's anyone else
Cara Taylor Swift:in my area doing horse photography. And without even
Cara Taylor Swift:Googling, I was able to list three different photographers in
Cara Taylor Swift:her general area that I just happen to know that are in the
Cara Taylor Swift:business. And so I just said, you know, I think you should
Cara Taylor Swift:spend just a little time just researching who's already
Cara Taylor Swift:they're already doing the work already in your market,
Cara Taylor Swift:determining if there's a need, and I will never be someone to
Cara Taylor Swift:say there's not room for you, because there probably is room
Cara Taylor Swift:for you. But you have to figure out what makes you different.
Cara Taylor Swift:And how you're going to be able to stand out in a crowd of
Cara Taylor Swift:professionals that are already established and already in that
Cara Taylor Swift:market. So spend a little time figuring how many photographers
Cara Taylor Swift:are already in your area and how you're different. And like I
Cara Taylor Swift:said other photographers, there does not mean that there isn't
Cara Taylor Swift:room for you, you have to figure out why you're different. And
Cara Taylor Swift:then I think the next step that is often overlooked,
Cara Taylor Swift:photographers will jump right into their business, but then
Cara Taylor Swift:they and then they do a lot of backpedaling is get straight on
Cara Taylor Swift:the legal stuff. And we do have an episode coming up on this
Cara Taylor Swift:topic where we're going to go through some of that. But you
Cara Taylor Swift:need to understand your legal business structure, you need to
Cara Taylor Swift:get your contracts in place, you need to get your insurance, you
Cara Taylor Swift:need to understand your tax benefits and liabilities, you
Cara Taylor Swift:need to spend the time doing that work. And I'm going to say
Cara Taylor Swift:do it when you're getting started before you get started,
Cara Taylor Swift:figure all of that out. So you don't have to deal with the
Cara Taylor Swift:aftermath and the mistakes when you're already a year down the
Cara Taylor Swift:line and you're sitting down and you're trying to figure out how
Cara Taylor Swift:to do your taxes. It's a mess, take it from someone who's been
Cara Taylor Swift:there, it's a mess. And then the last little piece of that is Do
Cara Taylor Swift:you know the existing channels to access your target audience?
Cara Taylor Swift:So you know, how do you plan on? How are you going to reach out
Cara Taylor Swift:to people that you want to have be your clients, people
Cara Taylor Swift:automatically think website social media, and I would
Cara Taylor Swift:challenge you to think beyond that. And I like to talk about
Cara Taylor Swift:what I call boots on the ground marketing, but it's really just
Cara Taylor Swift:networking, you know, where are you going to get your
Cara Taylor Swift:information out into the world and start thinking about what
Cara Taylor Swift:your options are? And are you connected, I'm sure that each of
Cara Taylor Swift:us can agree that we've met with photographers that want to get
Cara Taylor Swift:going, they want to take their hobby, but they have no
Cara Taylor Swift:connections in the equine world yet. So they've got some work to
Cara Taylor Swift:do to establish where those channels are and where they
Cara Taylor Swift:exist and how they can access them. So that's my two cents.
Cara Taylor Swift:The last little piece of that is get help find a mentor, find
Cara Taylor Swift:someone that's been there that's done it that's walked that path
Cara Taylor Swift:and can help guide you. It's going to save you so much in the
Cara Taylor Swift:end in terms of the struggle, the mistakes that are made,
Cara Taylor Swift:hopefully they can help head off some of that and kind of smooth
Cara Taylor Swift:that path for you a little bit more and save you the time and
Cara Taylor Swift:struggle that a lot of folks go through when they first get
Cara Taylor Swift:started. Fellas, I know you have a lot of nuts and bolts to Add
Cara Taylor Swift:here why don't you jump in?
Phyllis Burchett:Wow all good advice Cara I appreciate
Phyllis Burchett:everything you just said and ditto on every bit of it, it's
Phyllis Burchett:all good advice. My first thing I'm just gonna bring out seven
Phyllis Burchett:interesting or very, very good points for people that are
Phyllis Burchett:thinking about going pro or are already there is first off know
Phyllis Burchett:your technique and your niche that would be number one for me.
Phyllis Burchett:Number two, of course would be to know your market understand
Phyllis Burchett:the needs and wants of your potential customers or potential
Phyllis Burchett:clients that you want to work with understand the day to day
Phyllis Burchett:life of a full time pro, it's number three. Number four, and
Phyllis Burchett:this is a real big one is build portfolio. If you don't have a
Phyllis Burchett:portfolio in place before you even start your professional
Phyllis Burchett:career, then you're way behind. Number five, as Cara said,
Phyllis Burchett:mentioned, client contracts and pricing, number six insurance
Phyllis Burchett:and business licenses. And number seven, which probably
Phyllis Burchett:should be a little bit higher up is have the proper gear. So I'm
Phyllis Burchett:just gonna go a little bit into each one of these are a little
Phyllis Burchett:bit more is when regards to finding your niche, have a set
Phyllis Burchett:genre that will help you solidify your brand and allow
Phyllis Burchett:you to focus on your energy on developing your own style, and
Phyllis Burchett:marketing to the right audience that you're wanting to gear your
Phyllis Burchett:photography business to. And like Cara did I think it's
Phyllis Burchett:really cool how you might even want to consider incorporating
Phyllis Burchett:your niche into your brand name, which I think is cool the way
Phyllis Burchett:Cara has Fast Horse Photography and her name instead of like me
Phyllis Burchett:who has Phyllis Burchette Photo. But I think that's cool is
Phyllis Burchett:thinking about trying to put that in your niche into your
Phyllis Burchett:brand name. Number two, build your portfolio. Gosh, without a
Phyllis Burchett:portfolio, no one's going to know what you can do. So before
Phyllis Burchett:you try to turn your hobby into a business is important to build
Phyllis Burchett:your portfolio and start working on images that reflect your
Phyllis Burchett:style of shoots that you want to do on a regular basis. A great
Phyllis Burchett:way to do this is by signing up to go to events to workshops,
Phyllis Burchett:tours, like ours. For instance, there's so many great places to
Phyllis Burchett:go shoot, finding things to do and go shoot in whatever niche
Phyllis Burchett:that you've chosen, be sure to focus on that your portfolio
Phyllis Burchett:will be one of your main selling points. So make sure you put
Phyllis Burchett:your best images and the style you specialize in. And I can't
Phyllis Burchett:emphasize this enough. It's funny how some people will I
Phyllis Burchett:know the other two, I get this a lot. Do you ever take a bad
Phyllis Burchett:photo? Well, of course we do. We just don't let people see them.
Phyllis Burchett:So yes, that's very important. As always put your best work out
Phyllis Burchett:there for people to see engage some subjects to help you set up
Phyllis Burchett:shots if you have to. I mean, you can there's if you have
Phyllis Burchett:friends, you don't already have them in your existing portfolio,
Phyllis Burchett:make sure that you have all the equipment, you need to create a
Phyllis Burchett:portfolio of images that will truly showcase your talent. So
Phyllis Burchett:and you can do this you can grab friends, I mean and set up photo
Phyllis Burchett:shoots on your own. But building that portfolio is really key to
Phyllis Burchett:your business.
Cara Taylor Swift:We actually did a whole episode on that
Cara Taylor Swift:subject on using models and putting models to work for your
Cara Taylor Swift:business. So that's such a good point, fellas.
Phyllis Burchett:Yeah, yeah, we did. I forgot about that. Good
Phyllis Burchett:point. Thanks. This is something that I'm really especially on
Phyllis Burchett:your website, I think it's really important to always tell
Phyllis Burchett:people where you're located as well. And along in that same
Phyllis Burchett:line is include your prices there's nothing more
Phyllis Burchett:unprofessional than a photographer that doesn't have a
Phyllis Burchett:price list. If you're going to jump in from being a hobby to a
Phyllis Burchett:business, make sure to list your prices and clearly outline what
Phyllis Burchett:is included in your various packages. If you're going to
Phyllis Burchett:have packages Cara is a great one to work with. If you're
Phyllis Burchett:going to be a portrait photographer in respect to in
Phyllis Burchett:person sales, I highly recommend talking to her and doing a
Phyllis Burchett:mentorship with her. If you're jumping in the professional
Phyllis Burchett:pool, take the time to work out the cost for your services and
Phyllis Burchett:ensure that you're on par with other photographers in your
Phyllis Burchett:nation in your local area. Be sure to create some marketing
Phyllis Burchett:and branding materials if you haven't already done so you'll
Phyllis Burchett:of course need a business name some other you'll need logo a
Phyllis Burchett:business card, digital flyer maybe to kick start your
Phyllis Burchett:business. It's a really good idea to set up a website of
Phyllis Burchett:course and as well. I think having social media presence is
Phyllis Burchett:big too. It certainly has helped my business grow in leaps and
Phyllis Burchett:bounds. That way your clients can review your portfolio and
Phyllis Burchett:services at any time. They can go to your website or they can
Phyllis Burchett:check out your social media pages. This is a perfect way for
Phyllis Burchett:customers to review some visual marketing before they need to
Phyllis Burchett:contact you. But be sure that your email is listed somewhere.
Phyllis Burchett:Don't depend on social media to be your way to correspond with
Phyllis Burchett:potential clients or old clients. Find a way to generate
Phyllis Burchett:leads and consider freelance work. Whether you advertise on
Phyllis Burchett:Google or Facebook, or do job boards for people looking for
Phyllis Burchett:it. Photographer equine photographers dotnet is a great
Phyllis Burchett:place for that as well. You'll need to do something to find the
Phyllis Burchett:work as it won't. It won't just magically come your way A
Phyllis Burchett:although we like to think it will, but you have to put some
Phyllis Burchett:effort into it waiting for work to come in when your photography
Phyllis Burchett:is just a hobby can be fine. But when it comes to your full time
Phyllis Burchett:business, it's vital for you to ensure you have regular
Phyllis Burchett:inquiries and work coming in, especially if you're depending
Phyllis Burchett:on that income for your day to day expenses. If not, you can of
Phyllis Burchett:course end up with some serious cashflow issues. Consider
Phyllis Burchett:approaching local clubs, schools, art galleries events, I
Phyllis Burchett:don't know if you want to I personally did enough weddings
Phyllis Burchett:that I found out I didn't want to shoot weddings anymore. But
Phyllis Burchett:some people do that a little bit on the side at first just to
Phyllis Burchett:boost their income. But find out what's happening in your local
Phyllis Burchett:area and maybe go to those and maybe hand out some marketing
Phyllis Burchett:material. I think when you're starting out too is put your
Phyllis Burchett:hand up for as much work as you can, and set up a range of
Phyllis Burchett:different options for lead generation and options for any
Phyllis Burchett:kind of photography work that that you can find that will be
Phyllis Burchett:in your genre. When you're starting out your phone's not
Phyllis Burchett:going to ring much. But it's always good to have other
Phyllis Burchett:options. Of course, when the time is required to build up
Phyllis Burchett:your sales and meet your cashflow needs. One way to do
Phyllis Burchett:this, of course, is by getting referrals and testimonials from
Phyllis Burchett:either clients or even people that you've done, maybe some
Phyllis Burchett:free work for actually, if you do a job at no charge, treat
Phyllis Burchett:that like it's a paid job and have that client or have that
Phyllis Burchett:person that you did the shoot with actually go through the
Phyllis Burchett:whole process of of setting up an appointment and going through
Phyllis Burchett:the whole process. And then ask them for a referral or a
Phyllis Burchett:testimonial afterwards. I know for me when I was doing client
Phyllis Burchett:work, that was my best advertising was my past clients.
Phyllis Burchett:Potential clients often do use testimonials when they're trying
Phyllis Burchett:to make a decision about whether or not to book a photographer.
Phyllis Burchett:So make sure to ask previous clients or of course, those that
Phyllis Burchett:were happy with your work to write a short testimonial that
Phyllis Burchett:can include your portfolio, your social media, and your website.
Phyllis Burchett:Another thing too, I think that's been really helpful for
Phyllis Burchett:me to build my businesses, the email system, send out an email
Phyllis Burchett:with a questionnaire to create these and use them in your
Phyllis Burchett:marketing. Thanks Survey Monkey is one that does that. So don't
Phyllis Burchett:be scared. I mean, I know. I know, for me when I was going, I
Phyllis Burchett:kind of felt the same way. Cara did because the hobby part of it
Phyllis Burchett:was what I did for fun but and I'm back to that now at first it
Phyllis Burchett:was scary trying to think about having to make a living and
Phyllis Burchett:depend on this income to you know, to pay the bills and pay
Phyllis Burchett:my mortgage and all that with and at first, it was very nerve
Phyllis Burchett:racking having to worry about that. But now I'm back to really
Phyllis Burchett:enjoying photography and sharing my passion for photography with
Phyllis Burchett:others. So I hope that if you're considering this, that you'll
Phyllis Burchett:take all these into consideration before you jump
Phyllis Burchett:into the professional pool.
Cara Taylor Swift:Well, I'm gonna interrupt real quick
Cara Taylor Swift:because I really loved what you said about like in the
Cara Taylor Swift:beginning, the early days, you may not have a lot of clients.
Cara Taylor Swift:But that doesn't mean that you can't be like still busy and
Cara Taylor Swift:working on your business and working in your business. And
Cara Taylor Swift:one of the things I knew I needed to do early on was I
Cara Taylor Swift:needed content, and I needed connections. And so I did a ton
Cara Taylor Swift:of just going out and shooting and I was doing it weekly, so
Cara Taylor Swift:that I needed that visual content, I needed it for my
Cara Taylor Swift:website, I needed the practice, I needed it for my social media
Cara Taylor Swift:channels. And through all of those. That part you mentioned
Cara Taylor Swift:about the referrals and testimonials, I put those people
Cara Taylor Swift:through my process. And I made that part of shooting doing the
Cara Taylor Swift:work for free. And I'm putting that in quotations because even
Cara Taylor Swift:though I didn't get paid money at the time, I was getting paid
Cara Taylor Swift:and other really valuable things, which were the
Cara Taylor Swift:testimonials, the referrals, I asked him to do a certain number
Cara Taylor Swift:of social posts, that sort of thing. So that's really huge.
Cara Taylor Swift:And Kim, I know you want to jump in here, so I'll shut up now.
Cara Taylor Swift:But thanks for letting me jump in Phyllis, because that was
Cara Taylor Swift:such a that just really triggered such an important
Cara Taylor Swift:thought in my brain. So thanks. You're welcome.
Kimberly Beer:So for those of you who out there who are
Kimberly Beer:considering going pro, and I know you may have been sitting
Kimberly Beer:there for a little while thinking I really want to be a
Kimberly Beer:professional photographer. But I don't know if I'm going to be
Kimberly Beer:ready. I don't know if I'm ready, I may need to do this, I
Kimberly Beer:may need to do that. You're ready. I mean, honestly, to be
Kimberly Beer:straight honest with you, you're never going to be fully ready
Kimberly Beer:for this. Because you don't know what you don't know friend. And
Kimberly Beer:until you dive in, you're not going to figure those parts out.
Kimberly Beer:So as you sit there listening to this, and I think Cara and
Kimberly Beer:Phyllis have given you some outstanding advice for that. And
Kimberly Beer:if it gets you excited, and now you've taken notes and you're
Kimberly Beer:ready think oh gosh, I've learned another step in this.
Kimberly Beer:But I don't know if I'm completely ready to do this. I
Kimberly Beer:may not know everything about my camera or everything about how
Kimberly Beer:to pose a horse or everything about how to pose humans. You're
Kimberly Beer:not going to know at all. All three of us learn something new
Kimberly Beer:Every single time we work with a client, every single time we go
Kimberly Beer:out to shoot, it's always going to be a learning and expansive
Kimberly Beer:experience. And business is something you're going to have
Kimberly Beer:to experience. You can read about it, you can do all your
Kimberly Beer:bed books and studying, you can interview people, you can do all
Kimberly Beer:kinds of things. But until you get out there and get your hands
Kimberly Beer:in it, you're not going to learn how to navigate it. So you are
Kimberly Beer:ready. I had a person in one of my classes yesterday, who was
Kimberly Beer:not anything near photography, it was a food business
Kimberly Beer:conference, I was talking to people who own restaurants and
Kimberly Beer:food trucks and one lady had software and another guy was
Kimberly Beer:doing a kitchen competition. I mean, it was a really hodgepodge
Kimberly Beer:of rooms, but everybody had food in common with each other. And I
Kimberly Beer:did have a comment from somebody this is I just don't know, if
Kimberly Beer:I'm ready to launch my business. And I'm like, You're never going
Kimberly Beer:to be ready, you just got to pull the trigger and go. And
Kimberly Beer:when I say that was, you know, how do you actually move in this
Kimberly Beer:day, it's not like when you become a professional
Kimberly Beer:photographer, that all of the sudden, you know, you like go
Kimberly Beer:by, you may. But most of us don't do it this way, like go
Kimberly Beer:get a studio and have a place to go to work every day. And all of
Kimberly Beer:those kinds of things. You're talking to three photographers
Kimberly Beer:I'm in my home care is in her home, Phyllis is in her home.
Kimberly Beer:Cara has probably the most organized space. I don't know
Kimberly Beer:I've been to Phyllis his house. But I know of Cara is she's got
Kimberly Beer:the most dedicated space where clients come in and out my
Kimberly Beer:photography clients, I don't think I've ever seen the inside
Kimberly Beer:of my office except on Zoom. So you're typically going to be
Kimberly Beer:working in your house, which is going to be if you've come from
Kimberly Beer:a world of where you get an hourly salary, or where you have
Kimberly Beer:a day job, where you go somewhere to work, working from
Kimberly Beer:home is a whole challenge in and of itself. And I'm going to give
Kimberly Beer:you a couple of tips there. One, how successful your business is,
Kimberly Beer:is a direct result of how often you show up for your business.
Kimberly Beer:So you do have to show up. And I know Cara, Phyllis both hinted
Kimberly Beer:at that to say calm even when you don't have clients be out
Kimberly Beer:there shooting using your camera building your skills. Yes, I
Kimberly Beer:totally agree with that. But even when it's a rainy day, and
Kimberly Beer:you wished you had a client, even if you can go ahead and get
Kimberly Beer:dressed. And I say in the beginning, once you're advanced,
Kimberly Beer:and you're a senior photographer, you can come to
Kimberly Beer:zoom meetings with your pajama pants on. But until then get up
Kimberly Beer:get a dress like you could go do your job. Like if somebody
Kimberly Beer:called in that moment and said I want to go have a meeting with
Kimberly Beer:you about doing my photography, that you wouldn't have to go
Kimberly Beer:change your clothes and put your makeup on or do your hair or
Kimberly Beer:whatever it is that you do. And that you could just get up and
Kimberly Beer:walk out and meet them. There is a psychological little tick in
Kimberly Beer:there that when you get up, you get dressed, you are official,
Kimberly Beer:you show up to your desk or your studio. And you really have a
Kimberly Beer:dedicated place to work that is for work that you have a door on
Kimberly Beer:the room where you can shut it and tell the other people who
Kimberly Beer:live in your home that you are working. Now your work in that
Kimberly Beer:space may not all be photography, it's gonna be the
Kimberly Beer:things that these two ladies mentioned, it may be writing a
Kimberly Beer:blog post, it may be doing your social media, it may be putting
Kimberly Beer:together your portfolio, it may be looking up that competitive
Kimberly Beer:research, it may be a million other things that you have to
Kimberly Beer:show up for your business, because that's the way
Kimberly Beer:professionals walk through the world. That's one of the
Kimberly Beer:differences between a hobbyist and a professional photographer,
Kimberly Beer:is a professional photographer shows up and works on their
Kimberly Beer:business, not just in their business. Along those same
Kimberly Beer:lines. You really need to start embodying who a professional
Kimberly Beer:photographer is, even when you're not quite there yet.
Kimberly Beer:start presenting yourself to people as a professional
Kimberly Beer:photographer. Don't caveat when people say what you do, you
Kimberly Beer:don't say what do you do? Well, I'm a photographer. I don't give
Kimberly Beer:them a lot of extra information. Like I just bought my camera a
Kimberly Beer:couple of years ago and I feel like I've gotten really good at
Kimberly Beer:using it. And I'm going to start charging people money here
Kimberly Beer:pretty soon for doing my photography because I'm moving
Kimberly Beer:over to being a professional photographer. No, no, no, no,
Kimberly Beer:no, you are a professional photographer. The minute you
Kimberly Beer:flip that switch in your brain, you know what? I'm going to
Kimberly Beer:anoint you as an official professional photographer. So
Kimberly Beer:show up as one when somebody asks you what you do. I'm a
Kimberly Beer:professional photographer I work with whatever happens to be your
Kimberly Beer:niche. Make sure you embody that professional photographer, even
Kimberly Beer:if you're not sure about what you're doing fake it till you
Kimberly Beer:have a complete under standing above it, that is the way you're
Kimberly Beer:going to learn how to embody yourself as you're moving
Kimberly Beer:forward as a professional photographer, adopt it as really
Kimberly Beer:who you are part of who you are, at least you don't have to tie
Kimberly Beer:your entire identity to your business in photography. But
Kimberly Beer:definitely, when you're showing up as a photographer show up as
Kimberly Beer:a professional photographer, not a hobbyist, Cara and Phyllis
Kimberly Beer:both mentioned competition, and to look at the competition in
Kimberly Beer:your area and understand where you fit into that niche and how
Kimberly Beer:to kind of look at it. I think that all three of us as
Kimberly Beer:professional photographers have utilized our niches very well.
Kimberly Beer:So in other words, the people that we work with, there's a
Kimberly Beer:definite brand to who we are, and there's a definite audience
Kimberly Beer:to who we have as our clientele. I'm gonna tell you, that did not
Kimberly Beer:happen overnight. I didn't wake up one morning and decide that
Kimberly Beer:my career was going to be built around reining horses, and I
Kimberly Beer:have a second niche around people who partner with horses
Kimberly Beer:and healing modalities. I didn't wake up and say those are my
Kimberly Beer:niches. What I did was found that I was magnetized into those
Kimberly Beer:things. And over a few years, I developed a portfolio around
Kimberly Beer:that. Now Phyllis, more mindfully did this. I know
Kimberly Beer:because I've had this conversation with her, where she
Kimberly Beer:started to make her Instagram account, which is a booming
Kimberly Beer:success, very focused on Western imagery. So she very mindfully
Kimberly Beer:focused in on it, I kind of blindly tripped over what I was
Kimberly Beer:going to have for my niche. I've never talked to care about kind
Kimberly Beer:of how she settled on what she was doing in her area. But I
Kimberly Beer:think it's an important thing to know that there's many roads to
Kimberly Beer:get here. And if you don't immediately know in this minute,
Kimberly Beer:what you're going to do as a professional photographer, what
Kimberly Beer:your brand is, what your style is exactly what your niche is,
Kimberly Beer:don't sweat that, don't sweat it, it's a small stuff, you will
Kimberly Beer:figure it out, be mindful about it and start focusing in on it
Kimberly Beer:because you will be more successful. When you're
Kimberly Beer:targeting a specific group of people than a broad group of
Kimberly Beer:people. I always tell my marketing clients, when you're
Kimberly Beer:marketing to everybody, nobody will hear you. But when you
Kimberly Beer:start marketing to a specific group, they will hear you loud
Kimberly Beer:and clear. So that's the reason why you want to develop that
Kimberly Beer:niche. But you may take a little bit of time, and I want to give
Kimberly Beer:you some allowance to be able to do that. Also understand
Kimberly Beer:competition is a good thing. If there are a bunch of Equine
Kimberly Beer:photographers in your area, chances are there's a bunch of
Kimberly Beer:horses. So there's a lot of opportunity, when you see that
Kimberly Beer:when you see other photographers, knowing where you
Kimberly Beer:fit in, as Cara gave you that advice is absolutely key because
Kimberly Beer:it gives you a place to position yourself among the pack. Think
Kimberly Beer:of it like a herd of horses, there's always a hierarchy,
Kimberly Beer:everybody has a position, nobody's getting kicked out of
Kimberly Beer:the herd. But they all have a function within that herd. So
Kimberly Beer:make sure you know where your function is within the herd of
Kimberly Beer:photographers that are in your specific area. The last little
Kimberly Beer:thing I want to talk about is the part of photography. And
Kimberly Beer:being a professional photographer, that was probably
Kimberly Beer:one of the hardest parts for me. And it's a part that nobody
Kimberly Beer:really tells you it's like is that you are going to have a lot
Kimberly Beer:of people giving you creative direction. When you're a
Kimberly Beer:hobbyist, you get to make all of the decisions about your
Kimberly Beer:photography, you get to make the decisions about how you show up
Kimberly Beer:what you shoot, how you're going to go about shooting that when
Kimberly Beer:you start shooting for other people, especially if you're
Kimberly Beer:doing work like I do, which is commercial photography, you have
Kimberly Beer:a lot of other people with creative visions, and specific
Kimberly Beer:ideas that now you have to modify your vision for in order
Kimberly Beer:to create that for them. That can be a blow on your
Kimberly Beer:creativity, it becomes difficult because now you have to be
Kimberly Beer:creative on demand by somebody else's expectations. And those
Kimberly Beer:other people are going to critique you. So it's a very
Kimberly Beer:difficult thing to navigate and I think both ladies recommended
Kimberly Beer:that you have a mentor or that you get some somebody to help
Kimberly Beer:you. Having a another photographer is photographer is
Kimberly Beer:one of these rare industries where there's actually like a
Kimberly Beer:whole mentoring sort of system among photographers, not all
Kimberly Beer:business people have that. But I think it's important to have
Kimberly Beer:another photographer to help mentor you through some of that,
Kimberly Beer:because you can get disheartened really, really quickly. So first
Kimberly Beer:of all, no, it's not you. It's not you. It's not your work. It
Kimberly Beer:is just a hard transition to make. And it's one that's what
Kimberly Beer:worthy of making because I'm going to tell you something as a
Kimberly Beer:secret about it, it's going to make you a better photographer.
Kimberly Beer:And it's going to make you a better business person. But it
Kimberly Beer:can be a little rough. So be gentle with yourself and get
Kimberly Beer:someone to kind of help you through those things. We did an
Kimberly Beer:episode just I think it's the last episode we did on
Kimberly Beer:creativity. If you're struggling with that, go listen to that
Kimberly Beer:episode, that's a good place to get some help. But understand
Kimberly Beer:that you are going to have a lot of bosses, there is going to be
Kimberly Beer:a lot of what feels like critique, but it's really people
Kimberly Beer:just expressing themselves. So it's an important thing that you
Kimberly Beer:hang in there, and just learn how to work through that
Kimberly Beer:particular situation. I think that's my two cents on this
Kimberly Beer:subject. I hope that's added a level and depth to what we
Kimberly Beer:talked about with this. Because I think it's just so important
Kimberly Beer:that we keep bringing new photographers in with the right
Kimberly Beer:mindset. And with enough support so that they're able to be
Kimberly Beer:successful, and not get discouraged. I hate to think of
Kimberly Beer:all the people that have hit the barriers, going from hobby to
Kimberly Beer:pro and just gave up because it didn't feel like it was
Kimberly Beer:possible. It's completely possible. It's very doable. And
Kimberly Beer:we're here to support you through this podcast through our
Kimberly Beer:website through our events. This is one of the things that we all
Kimberly Beer:three have a big passion about
Cara Taylor Swift:beautifully said Kim beautifully said ditto
Cara Taylor Swift:to all that yeah, no, that was just so perfect. Okay, so we
Cara Taylor Swift:would love to have you guys join us sometime soon at one of our
Cara Taylor Swift:events, so head over to cowgirls with cameras.com hit our events
Cara Taylor Swift:tab and find the experience that is right for you. If you have
Cara Taylor Swift:any questions you can reach out to us anytime we are on social
Cara Taylor Swift:media at cowgirls with cameras on Instagram and Facebook. So
Cara Taylor Swift:many great things are happening over on our social media
Cara Taylor Swift:channels right now. I am doing my best to make sure that you
Cara Taylor Swift:are getting some of the just the best resources from Phyllis and
Cara Taylor Swift:Kim as they pulled them out. And just really good engaging
Cara Taylor Swift:content over there. We've got some really amazing
Cara Taylor Swift:photographers that are engaging regularly. So definitely join us
Cara Taylor Swift:over there as well. And I haven't forgotten about the CW
Cara Taylor Swift:see photo challenge. Thank you to everyone who has been
Cara Taylor Swift:participating with that in that on Instagram, to this week's
Cara Taylor Swift:challenge is sunrises and sunsets are sunrise and sunset.
Cara Taylor Swift:So we would love to see your sunrise and sunset images. Go
Cara Taylor Swift:ahead and post them and use #CWCphotochallenge. And when I
Cara Taylor Swift:go in and look for those, I'm happy to share them and share
Cara Taylor Swift:your photography with our audience. So we hope you guys
Cara Taylor Swift:are having a good day and you're out there shooting
Phyllis Burchett:and kudos to you Cara on doing an amazing job
Phyllis Burchett:with our social media.
Kimberly Beer:Yes ma'am. Yes ma'am.
Cara Taylor Swift:It's hit or miss. It's hit or miss. Thank
Cara Taylor Swift:you. All right. Well, everyone we hope you enjoyed this episode
Cara Taylor Swift:and we will see you next time.
Jaz:Thanks for listening to this episode of cowgirls with
Jaz:cameras. Don't let the laughter and learning stop here. Join our
Jaz:community on social media. And be sure to visit our website for
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