How I Became a Full-Time Photographer

For Photographers

Aug 18

*Image credit: Nicole Marie Photography*

The transition from leaving my salaried job into entrepreneurship was one of the hardest, yet most fulfilling, things I’ve ever done. Now, almost two years later, I’m still pinching myself that I get to do this every day. I know that there are others, like me, who dream of being able to pursue their passion full-time, too. It hasn’t always been easy, but I’m sharing my story in hopes that it inspires you to continue writing yours.

I graduated with majors in photojournalism but the reality was, I would have to temporarily get another job in order to make ends meet. After graduating, and moving back to Saskatchewan, I worked part-time while growing my photography business on the side. One of the biggest challenges I faced was building a clientele in a city where I knew no one. That winter, after working part-time for 8 months, I was laid-off without work, and knew that my photography alone couldn’t support me. In the spring, I accepted a full-time salaried position, knowing that my photography would suffer from the lack of time that I was able to give it.

The goal was always to work for myself full-time, but there were a few hoops that I would need to jump through in order to make that happen.

I was devastated that my photography alone couldn’t support me, and that it would take a back seat to my new job, but I wasn’t ready to throw in the towel quite yet. At the time, I was working 40+ hours a week, and shooting on evenings and weekends. I was in full-burnout mode and my mental health was suffering.

I knew that something had to give, and I didn’t want it to be the business that I was working so hard to create. While working my 9-5, I was still getting steady bookings, and booking well into the following year! I was able to save some money as a result of my regular pay checks.

I’ll be the first to admit, my biggest fear was failing. I knew that if I couldn’t make a living with photography, that I would need to find another job and that would have been my worst case scenario. By the end of summer, I was ready to go all or nothing, so I quit my job to go full-time. I still remember the feeling of walking out of my downtown office and feeling more relief than I ever thought possible.

I would have never anticipated that I could have scaled my photography business so fast. If you’ve been considering taking the plunge and pursuing photography full-time, here are some of the things that I did to help me get there:

1. Shoot as much and as often as you can.

I’ve heard it too many times where other photographers tell you to niche down, and only shoot work that you’re passionate about. When you’re starting out, and building your clientele, it’s okay to shoot a variety of things, especially when you’re trying to hone in on what’s most important to you. For me, it was hard to pass up additional income that came from photography outside of weddings, couples and families. On top of doing paid work for clients, I was also frequently asking people to model for me. It was a lot to be doing that much free work, but it helped me form a steady client base. Not only does shooting often help to grow your portfolio, but I can honestly say that I became a better photographer after every single session. In addition to shooting so often, it’s SO important to give an amazing experience, even if the photos are for free. The goal should always be to underpromise and over deliver. If you give an amazing experience to your clients, they are way more likely to refer you to their friends and family too!

2. Post your work constantly.

When I went full-time, I had a website up and running, a solid social media presence, along with a marketing plan in place. After every session, I was constantly posting images from the session onto social media. Full disclosure: a lot of the sessions that I did in the beginning weren’t paid shoots, which wasn’t feasible, however; I almost always booked clients after posting a session. So, it went like this: 1 free session = 1 paid session, and that was how I grew. I didn’t always have new work to post so I was often using different photos from sessions and changing the captions on them. I just kept posting and posting in hopes that it was reaching the right people. One of the biggest lessons I learned was that you don’t need 100 people to believe in you to start something, you just need one. I shot my first wedding with zero experience in the industry, but because of that one couple who trusted me to capture their day, the following year my calendar was filled with couples who wanted to work with me.

3. Ensure that you have savings.

When I went full-time, I had work lined up for about 6 months so I knew that even if I wasn’t able to book more work, I would have some income to pay my living expenses. Having a salaried job allowed me to put some money away so that I had something to fall back on if things didn’t work out. Having that reassurance made it easier for me to leave my job, rather than wait for a pay check to come in. I’m not entirely sure if I had a back-up plan when it came to leaving my job, but I was hell-bent on doing absolutely everything I could to never work a desk job again. I told myself that I would try so hard to make it work that there wouldn’t be another option. My backup plan would have been to inevitably get another job, but I knew that for half a year, I was going to be okay.

4. Make small, temporary, sacrifices.

I was working 9-5 while also shooting in the evenings and on weekends. I had to make small sacrifices like not seeing friends, and working a whole lot of hours. I felt the burn-out in full force, especially during the summer with feeling the need to be in so many places at once. I knew that this wasn’t going to be my life forever, but it was a struggle to want something so badly and to work so hard for it. Working hard temporarily was a small sacrifice that I would make to someday be my own boss. I was tired of checking in and out on someone else’s time and doing work that I had no lost interest in. Everyday, while I worked that job, I just wanted to be at home behind my desk, working on my own business.

5. Don’t undervalue yourself.

Starting out in a new industry is hard, especially when there are so many people who are doing the same thing as you. It took me a long time to realize that there’s room at the table for everyone. You are going to attract an entirely different clientele than someone next to you. I’m a firm believer that there’s a photographer out there for everyone. I wish I would have told myself sooner to stop worrying about what everyone is doing and to put my head down and stay in my own lane. I’ll be the first to admit, it’s hard to charge what you think you’re worth right off the hop. Even with my education behind me, I still felt like an imposter. With that being said, it’s okay to start small because you can always move up from there. Figure out a good starting point that works for you and then gradually move up from there.

The reality is, things don’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t matter how long it takes you to get there, it just matters that you do. I worked hard for a year so that I wouldn’t have to work for someone else anymore. I believe that if you truly want something, you’ll work for it. Don’t spend another minute thinking about how you’re going to get there, just get in the car and start driving. The hustle doesn’t stop there, but that’s the reality of being a creative entrepreneur. It’s always a hustle because if you don’t work, you don’t get paid. Lucky for me, I love what I do, so it never truly feels like a “job.”