Campus Finder
Online degree guide
Get a FREE online
degree guide now!
Featured Universities
Professional Photographers Career
Why Choose a Career as a Professional Photographer?
There are some arts or talents that start as a passion and given the right opportunity have the potential to make great career paths. A Professional Photographers career is one of those. Those who innately possess this art of creative self-expression can hone this unique talent into a profitable profession by developing the right technical expertise. The recent growth in the field of advertising, media and fashion industry has given Professional Photography and digital photography careers a boost. Professional Photography is a profession invested with great commercial value since both print and electronic media require Professional Photographers.
Professional Photographers Career Requirements
The primary requirement to qualify as a Professional Photographer is to have a natural flair for the art that will spell certain success with formal training. All professionals who have made a mark in the field have been creative individuals with the instinctive ability to think and communicate in visual terms. They are adept at translating ideas into appropriate images that meet the client’s needs. As such, one can say that some essentials when considering photography as a career option include the following:
- a keen, observant eye that absorbs details as well as the bigger picture, and an intelligent, curious and perceptive mind
- fully versed in the available variety of cameras, lights and props, and all kinds of photographic techniques
- an innate sense of light and shade and the magic of colors
- demonstrated track record of creativity, determination and powers of observation
- Diligence and work ethic to work quickly under pressure, in difficult conditions and keeping irregular hours.
Online Degrees for Professional Photographers
Bachelors, associates degrees and certifications are available for qualifying as a Professional Photographer.
The degree program in photography is spread over four semesters in which both technical and aesthetic photography skills are taught. Coursework includes 2-dimensional design, color photography, commercial photography, digital photography, fundamentals of advertising, sensitometry and small business entrepreneurship, landscape photography and alternative processes as well as art history and issues in contemporary art.
A Certificate in Photography takes less time and teaches the technical skills used in commercial photography with an emphasis on visual communications. Coursework includes portrait photography, color photography and photo graphics. Hands-on training in camera operation, digital editing and design is part of the course.
A Certificate in Photography and Digital Imaging Certificate provides courses in commercial fields, sensitometry, color photography and digital photography. Additionally, elective courses are available in topics like photographing artwork, portraiture or black and white photography.
Full-time courses in photography require a high school diploma as a minimum academic requirement. Some aspirants may choose to learn photography from a part-time course, along with their college degree obtained in an online school or not. Some colleges offer Photography as an optional subject for a bachelor's degree in Fine arts; others offer full fledged B.A courses in photography, mostly of a three year duration.
Whatever course or degree that may be opted for, a background in computers or electronics, related work experience and training provide an edge for making an impact in the field.
Professional Photographers Career Fields
A large variety of jobs are available in the field of Photography; these include the highly specialized, technical work as well as those that need only creativity and Visual literacy. For all jobs, the first step in the ladder is that of an assistant to a senior or professional photographer. Once the nuances of the job are ingrained, many doors open up, both for self-employment and job profiles. Places of employment include news papers, magazines, advertising agencies, government agencies, industrial houses, fashion houses, designers, fashion journals, and so many others depending on specialization and forte. Some career options are listed below:
- Press photographers: also known as photojournalists, click pictures that are used by the national and local press. A keen sense of what makes newsworthy picture is necessary; writing apt captions, interacting with reporters, and working under difficult conditions are a given.
- Feature Photographers: tell a story in pictures, hence knowledge of the subject is essential. The work may involve photographing people at home, in foreign parts, or at work, or any place or thing that makes a story.
- Editorial Photographers: are employed by magazines and periodicals. Mostly freelancers, their job is to provide pictures that complement an article or report.
- Commercial / Industrial photographers: click pictures of merchandise, exteriors and interiors of factories, and machinery to be used to develop company brochures, annual reports, and in advertising and selling. They may be employed by a single company or firm or work on assignment basis.
- Portrait / wedding photographers: Those who specialize in portraits and group photos are called upon to capture events like weddings, birthday parties, graduations, and other functions. Portrait photographers may be self-employed or work for a studio.
- Advertising photographs: Photographic departments of advertising agencies, photographic studios, or freelance photographers employ them to undertake catalogue work, such as photos for a 'mail order.' While instructions may be provided regarding the product to be photographed, new angles may be suggested. This niche market is highly remunerative and therefore, most competitive.
- Fashion photography: A well paid profession that requires working in a specialist studio; freelancers may be commissioned by fashion houses or advertising agencies to work under the direction of a fashion expert.
- Fine arts photographers: With the right artistic talent and creativity, photographs can be sold as fine artwork.
- Digital photographers: A digital camera is used to capture images on a disk, floppy or directly on to the computer. It is used largely in the media for being easy to store and transfer over long distances.
- Nature and Wildlife Photographers: They specialize in photography of animals, birds, plants and landscapes. Photos of rare species are in great demand.
- Forensic Photography: Recording a crime scene through a series of photographs taken from every angle to show detail like size and distance of objects clearly is the work that finds ready employment with law enforcement agencies, police, legal system and in the investigative services of the government and also private detective agencies.
- Freelancing: This is the most common career choice among photographers who have business management skills, good communication, problem solving skills, and are able to work independently.