Become A Wedding Photographer

I recently had this great idea to become a wedding photographer...probably something to do with my Adobe Photoshop class. How do I do this? Do I need a degree? How does one start with it...should I offer to take pictures of my friend's weddings? Do I need a dark room?

Any info from someone in the field would be appreciated.

You don't have to go to college to be a wedding photographer but you still have to learn photography. Plus you need the right camera equipment to shoot weddings be it film or digital. No you don't have to have a darkroom for this, let a professional lab do that work. My suggestion as others have mentioned do not do your friends wedding as the main photographer if something goes wrong she will not be very pleased with you.

If you have a passion for photography then start reading about the technical aspects of photography and then applying what you have learned and going out and shooting. Take notes learn from your mistakes and try not to make them again, ask a couple of professional photographers to look at your work and learn to take criticism good or bad.

To get your foot in the door you could start by getting a part time job with a photographer and being an assistant or / and working in a photo lab.

Hope this helps,
Kevin

2007-06-07 14:56:24 by Helen Scott

www.dombower.com This video i tell you the basic needs for a "wedding" photographer. from the type of camera and lenses to the attituded ...

Hey there,
I'm really interested in becoming a wedding photographer and i've done quite a bit of research into it. I know I'd need to good business skills because most are self employed and I need to know the camera inside and out in order to capture emotions. What hasn't been quite clear to me though is what I should take in college in order to align myself into this career. What should I do? Any insight is greatly appreciated!!

I am a professional wedding photographer employed by a small company and I'm about to start college as an art major with a focus in creative photography. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure many classes could really teach you too much about it. I've been working at the company for over a year now and there's so much on the job learning that I don't know could be taught in the classroom. As for skills that are quite necessary, I'd take classes that teach you about lighting (studio, as well as outdoor) and also learning how to compose images is helpful. Like you already said, definitely need to know how to work your camera and the whole relationship between shutter speed, f-stop and ISO works. It's honestly all about having the creative eye. You also need loads of patience, the wedding day seldom, if ever, is completely on time and you need to be able to go with the flow, while still being proactive about getting all of the shots that you need. Hope this helps, not sure if it will, haha.

2009-08-16 18:51:50 by gex1125

Price: $4.99

i like photography as a hobby but have no qualifications in the subject. I would like to become a freelance wedding photographer but am unsure of the best way to go about it. are online courses any good? and how long would it take to become a successful photographer?

thanks

Yeah free work is the best way to go for sure. Wedding photographers are really well trained, especially with people skills. To be honest that's my version of Hell, wedding photography. I wouldn't do it for a million bucks. You have so much pressure on your shoulders. Weddings are pretty crazy anyway, but that amount of pressure isn't for me.

Start slow, even do portraits of friends if you can. Because remember if anything goes wrong your career is so over.

2008-03-16 05:22:16 by Hannah K

Anyone have any tips on how you can start your own business as a wedding/portrait photog?

work as an assistant (2nd shooter) for an established wedding photographer for a year or two first then start out on your own when you have the necessary skills and experience.

2009-05-23 16:48:23 by luffjm34

and how many years?

To be honest, this is probably a career where experience will outweigh education.

There are many levels of schooling available: Community Ed courses that last a session or two, Community College certificate courses that will take just a few months, Community College degrees that take 2 years, and even Bachelor's degrees.

Your best bet is to learn as much as you feel you need to to take some good photos, start assisting an established photographer, then branch out on your own. Being a wedding photographer also means (for the most part) that you'll own your own business and work for yourself so be prepared for that.

2007-12-27 11:22:34 by suckss