5 answers
Jasmine
Student
Fredericksburg, Virginia
2
Questions
Asked
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How do you know which field of study you want to continue in Photography for?
I've been having trouble in finding which field of study fits me for photography, because I'm really good at landscape photography and portrait photography, but it's a little hard for me to choose just ONE field to commit to.
Any tips to minimize my wide variety? Has anyone just randomly picked one and stuck with it? Is it possible to just do all of them rather than just choosing one?
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5 answers
Andy Smith
Photographer / DP
4
Answers
Oakland, California
Updated
Andy’s Answer
Hi Jasmine, I agree with Liam's answer above. It's definitely good to explore as many different areas of photography as you can, to find out which you enjoy the most.
You mentioned landscape and portrait specifically. From a point of view of earning a living in the photo industry, portrait photography would definitely open up more opportunities than landscape photography will. So if your goal is to become a professional photographer, I would say lean more in to portrait than landscape. You can still shoot both of course.
Good luck with it,
Andy
You mentioned landscape and portrait specifically. From a point of view of earning a living in the photo industry, portrait photography would definitely open up more opportunities than landscape photography will. So if your goal is to become a professional photographer, I would say lean more in to portrait than landscape. You can still shoot both of course.
Good luck with it,
Andy
Thanks so much Andy! I'll definitely look into that more, it's been really confusing for me lately!
Jasmine
Jeff Kyler
Retired Commercial Photographer
3
Answers
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Updated
Jeff’s Answer
One of the fun things about photography is that you don't have to limit yourself to one particular field or style. That being said, I will say that if you are looking to do this as a profession, there are far more opportunities in doing portraits than in being a landscape photographer. I agree with Liam's answer to challenge yourself. In doing so you will probably find what you really like to do photograph and a bonus is in the act of pushing yourself creatively. We tend to get stuck and not "see" but act. I know when I was starting out, back in the film days, I would put one lens on, not use a light meter and walk around the city. I would do this on different days when the light was different. It taught me so much about seeing light and how my equipment worked. Then I challenged myself to not shoot anything from a standing eye level, to see things from different levels. This really came back as a great tool when shooting senior portraits.
The answer to your question comes down to what you find that you like to photograph. My wife and I have lived by the motto of "do what you love and the money will follow." So challenge yourself to find out what it is you love to do. The only way to do that is to go out and take pictures of a bunch of different things like Liam suggested.
The answer to your question comes down to what you find that you like to photograph. My wife and I have lived by the motto of "do what you love and the money will follow." So challenge yourself to find out what it is you love to do. The only way to do that is to go out and take pictures of a bunch of different things like Liam suggested.
Liam Rielly
Data Center Technician
195
Answers
Manassas, Virginia
Updated
Liam’s Answer
I would say don't have a field. Photograph everything you see. Get creative how you think and figure out how to frame what you see no matter what it is.
We are in the same area so I know you have access to:
Wildlife like birds, bugs, animals, forests, rivers, streams, trees, anything in a park near you.
Cityscapes like roads, bridges, buildings, construction sites, skylines, monuments (you are an hour from DC and some of the best ones are there!), architecture, substations, infrastructure, industrial complexes, anything man made you get close to and photograph!
Still life. Go to a thrift store with a $10 budget and buy a couple of things that would look good together and take some pictures of that. Lifehack -----> bring your camera to the store and just arrange the stuff on the shelf, take a picture, buy nothing, and put it back when you get the shot.
Families. Find a family that you know and just offer to take pictures of them for a holiday card. If you have OK equipment do some wedding photos and maybe charge for them.
Pets. Get someones pet and photograph them. Offer up some time at an animal shelter to help out with pet adoption photos.
Fashion. Put out in a blog post you want to work with someone and that you will work for free. There are a lot of designers in the area that are just trying to get their ideas out there and you can help them with that as well as get your work out there.
Do everything on this list and then force yourself to expand what you do. Start with one of these and then slowly build until you are happy with that style of photography. Spend the money on lights and lenses but don't become obsessed with equipment. If fact do the opposite.
Right now there are photoblogs dedicated to using low fidelity or niche/ vintage cameras for artistic works. One example is the hashtag #****tycamerachallenge (figure out the **** for yourself) where photographers use cheap digital cameras, old commercial vintage cameras, or security/ webcams/ toys in order to make photos. Another one is lomography where I think the cameras do a portrait photo using 1/2 of a 35mm film frame. Granted, don't try to do wedding photography showing up with a toy camera from aliexpress and charge them for photos claiming this is artistic. Same, don't show up to someone's fashion expo with an iphone and say its for artistic flair.
Challenge yourself, photograph everything.
https://www.lomography.com
https://www.aliexpress.us/w/wholesale-instant-camera.html
https://pixelfed.social/dansup
We are in the same area so I know you have access to:
Wildlife like birds, bugs, animals, forests, rivers, streams, trees, anything in a park near you.
Cityscapes like roads, bridges, buildings, construction sites, skylines, monuments (you are an hour from DC and some of the best ones are there!), architecture, substations, infrastructure, industrial complexes, anything man made you get close to and photograph!
Still life. Go to a thrift store with a $10 budget and buy a couple of things that would look good together and take some pictures of that. Lifehack -----> bring your camera to the store and just arrange the stuff on the shelf, take a picture, buy nothing, and put it back when you get the shot.
Families. Find a family that you know and just offer to take pictures of them for a holiday card. If you have OK equipment do some wedding photos and maybe charge for them.
Pets. Get someones pet and photograph them. Offer up some time at an animal shelter to help out with pet adoption photos.
Fashion. Put out in a blog post you want to work with someone and that you will work for free. There are a lot of designers in the area that are just trying to get their ideas out there and you can help them with that as well as get your work out there.
Do everything on this list and then force yourself to expand what you do. Start with one of these and then slowly build until you are happy with that style of photography. Spend the money on lights and lenses but don't become obsessed with equipment. If fact do the opposite.
Right now there are photoblogs dedicated to using low fidelity or niche/ vintage cameras for artistic works. One example is the hashtag #****tycamerachallenge (figure out the **** for yourself) where photographers use cheap digital cameras, old commercial vintage cameras, or security/ webcams/ toys in order to make photos. Another one is lomography where I think the cameras do a portrait photo using 1/2 of a 35mm film frame. Granted, don't try to do wedding photography showing up with a toy camera from aliexpress and charge them for photos claiming this is artistic. Same, don't show up to someone's fashion expo with an iphone and say its for artistic flair.
Challenge yourself, photograph everything.
Liam recommends the following next steps:
Louise Barnsley
Photojournalist
1
Answer
Los Angeles, California
Updated
Louise’s Answer
Hi Jasmine!
Have you considered looking into working as a news or agency photographer? If you would like to keep your photography varied, this is a certainly a career in which to explore that. One day you could be shooting a portrait, and the next you could be covering protests or an event with a red carpet. It truly does test you and your skills on a daily basis and also, as you progress through your career, it can teach you more about what you would like to specialize in going forward. You might find yourself becoming known for the portraits you do, and therefore being sent on more of those kinds of jobs.
If it is just a choice between landscape and portrait, I would agree with previous posters that there will be more opportunities for work in portraiture. But always, always, continue taking pictures for the sheer joy of it. So even if you move into portraits professionally, keep shooting the things you love.
Have you considered looking into working as a news or agency photographer? If you would like to keep your photography varied, this is a certainly a career in which to explore that. One day you could be shooting a portrait, and the next you could be covering protests or an event with a red carpet. It truly does test you and your skills on a daily basis and also, as you progress through your career, it can teach you more about what you would like to specialize in going forward. You might find yourself becoming known for the portraits you do, and therefore being sent on more of those kinds of jobs.
If it is just a choice between landscape and portrait, I would agree with previous posters that there will be more opportunities for work in portraiture. But always, always, continue taking pictures for the sheer joy of it. So even if you move into portraits professionally, keep shooting the things you love.
Yes, I have been thinking about becoming and agency photographer, especially with the recent events happening, it's definitely inspired me to go out and film protests and take pictures of other events happening around my community.
Jasmine
Mohan Krishna
Analyst
15
Answers
Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
Updated
Mohan’s Answer
You figure out which photography field to pursue by exploring different styles, noticing what you enjoy most and consistently return to, and paying attention to where your skills and interest naturally grow over time.