Ten years as a professional photographer and 10 business lessons I have learnt in that time.

A reflection on a decade as a wedding and portrait photographer.

In 2012 I made my passion official and started my business as a professional wedding photographer. In March this year it was ten years – how time has flown!

I think it is fair to say that at the beginning I was only loosely running my business, but as the years have gone on, I have become a bit of a business junkie and spent a lot more time working on the business, rather than in the business.

I have been thinking a lot about what I learned in those ten years and what lessons can be shared, so here we go.

1. Being self-employed is a lot harder than I thought. I also love it a lot more than I ever expected! I have the best boss I have ever had, but all responsibility is on me and sometimes that’s a bit scary.

2. You are your business and your voice is your brand. If you look left and right at what your colleagues are doing, it will only confuse you. Over the years I have learned what is important to me and therefore what my values and morals are as a professional wedding photographer. These have become part of my brand and my unique selling point, my voice is authentic and it helps me find my dream clients quicker.

3. You never stop learning. Actually my thirst for learning and improving my business has only become stronger over the years.

4. I have developed the courage to say no to jobs that I know are not right for me. Not every client, venue or job is a match and it is better to recognise this earlier rather than later, not only for your sake, but also for your client’s sake.

5. I get incredibly excited to shoot at new venues. After ten years and over 160 weddings which mainly took place in the South West of the UK, I am always excited when I have an inquiry for a wedding venue that I have never shot at before. I actually have a bucket list of venues that I am dreaming to shoot a wedding at so wish me luck!

6. A camera is just a tool. So is a laptop and editing software. I’m guilty of buying equipment in the past and thinking that it will improve my photography skills. What actually has improved my skills is training, online learning and socialising with other photographers!

7. Know your goals. How can you steer your business when you don’t know what you are aiming for? I have set a variety of business and personal goals that I can break down and monitor. This helps me decide which areas of my business need attention and what work needs to be completed when.

8. Stop looking left and right. Comparing yourself to your colleagues can sometimes do more harm than good, particularly to your mental health. Try and analyse what your particular likes/dislikes and strengths/weaknesses are. What is your unique selling point? These can be very powerful in finding your voice and developing your brand.

9. Other photographers are an incredible source of knowledge and reassurance. Let’s face it, we all have a technical hiccup from time to time or an emotional wobble. Being part of a group of like-minded professional photographers can be immensely reassuring and help you solve day to day problems that you face when you work for yourself.

10. Onwards and upwards. In May 2020, about eight weeks into the first Lockdown, I suffered from a mental breakdown. The stress and despair got to me and I did not know how to continue. I often compare that moment to feeling like I had fallen flat onto my face on hard concrete. What happened in the weeks following this incident was sudden growth, like new green shoots coming through the cracks of my broken self. This growth sparked a lot of business development, making long overdue tough decisions on quitting some areas of work and instead starting up new areas. I can safely say I have done more business development in the last two years than in the eight years before. The lesson is: feeling hardship can be stimulating and help you grow.

I hope you found this article useful! Please leave me a comment with any thoughts or with your own business lessons!

For those of you who are interested, here a link to my Brand and Portrait Photography website.

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