How'd you get started?

[danny]

Ok! I don't know how people are going to take this... but if you are a professional how did you get started? I don't have any current ambitions to quit my job and become a professional photographer it is just that I am curious. People are always posting questions about how to get into photography as a full time job and they are given advice from members and sometimes quick criticism about even wanting to in the first place. So to turn it around a little it would be great to hear from experienced and professional members about how they did it. Did they do courses, work at it for years before charging or just fall into it.

It would be great to hear

Cheers
Danny

[jasevk]

Well I'm only at the beginning of establishing a business... but basically I'm self taught over the past 5 years... I started out just shooting landscapes, and shooting portraits of friends and family for a few years. Wasn't until last year that I started shooting people other than family!

[rowdy23]

Well I'm only at the beginning of establishing a business... but basically I'm self taught over the past 5 years... I started out just shooting landscapes, and shooting portraits of friends and family for a few years. Wasn't until last year that I started shooting people other than family!



thats pretty much exactly my thoughts and hope to be ready to shoot ( for money ;) ) in that time frame.

i do alot of family stuff now and am learning all the time. so hopefully by then ill be ready to set up a website and a small online business to get my name out there.

[jasevk]

thats pretty much exactly my thoughts and hope to be ready to shoot ( for money ;) ) in that time frame.

i do alot of family stuff now and am learning all the time. so hopefully by then ill be ready to set up a website and a small online business to get my name out there.

Yeah totally.... It's alot of work and I found that there was a time where I completely thought I was ready.... But I soon realized I was wrong! Strangely enough though, when I started getting alot of interest from other people... that's was when I doubted myself the most....

[campo]

My About Me page tells my story:

http://www.bycampo.com/Other/About/4701534_BeFqZ/

In regards to education etc, I'm predominantly self taught using various resources including books, magazines, web, education materials, dvd/videos. I've also attended various workshops along the way and actively participate in activities with other photographers. I also find Ausphotography to be a great little resource too :)

[Redgum]

There are a thousand stories out there. Often people get to where they are by accident or opportunity. Sometimes there is an element of try it before you buy it. Some are encouraged by friends and others are deterred. My two key elements were/are focus and opportunity, together they create luck.
I started out in business when I was 22 and joined the Navy Reserve. I loved movie cameras so they bought me one and made me official filmmaker. Told them I loved photography as well and they bought me a Pentax. Made the Navy four half hour docos which the ABC bought. My real employer, the Commonwealth Bank, thought that was great so they put me in Marketing and made me editor/photographer for their internal magazine. I also wrote for magazines and newspapers whilst working in the bank. I repaid them by resigning when a wealthy bank client suggested I should build a TV studio and run it with his money. I did just that and Redgum Television Productions was created. I made lots of docos and lots of money and travelled the world.
I did a doco in central Australia and National Geographic asked me to take a pro-tog on the expedition but he didn't turn up. So I did the photographic work myself (and the filmwork) and have worked for National Geographic (contract) ever since. They introduced me to Discovery Channel and I made a lot more docos and took more photos. Other magazines saw my photographic work and asked me to do magazine work (Photojournalist). The magazines saw my photojournalist work and asked me to do product shots which got me more writing gigs and so it goes on.
Over 43 years of professional work (part and full time) I now pick and choose what I want to do. Academically I have a Commerce degree (mid-60's) Sales & Marketing Diploma, CertIV in Training & Assessment and Advanced Diploma of Screen and Media. I've been to 209 countries (some briefly), got a huge business network (most valuable asset) and I'm determined to die on the job. Absolutely love what I'm doing and just finished a series of five travel docos called Robert Lovett, Traveller and Artist which netted $3.2 million (3.5 years work for five of us). Might get another series in before kicking the bucket. Oh! I'm starting a new doco shortly called Beyond the Bridge - Hornibrook - The Demolition (History) which is absolutely fascinating. Should be on the 7 Network. :)

[danny]

Regum thank you for telling your story. That is exactly the type of thing I was interested ni hearing about. For me it is truly fascinating to hear the wonderful experiences that others have had.


Cheers
Danny

[Steve Axford]

I've been to 209 countries (some briefly), :)

Now that's pretty good going since there are only 195 countries currently listed. Still, some have gone belly up, so it is possible. Did you include Hut River? :)

[ricktas]

I have been to 54 countries..so far!

Not a Pro, but I do sell some stuff and take photos on a 'professional' basis if asked to do so.

I have an advanced diploma of business which really has been very useful from the business viewpoint. Not the diploma itself, but the knowledge acquired from doing it. It gave me a greater understanding of record keeping, marketing, customer relations etc, which is really the key to a successful business.

So whilst learning your gear and improving your photography, look at doing some courses that will benefit you in the years to come. Start small (unless you have lots of money) with friends, family, and get your portfolio together. Only present your very best work! Get a business branding, logo, motto etc, get some business cards printed, and give them to family and friends. Marketing is really the keystone. No one will know you exist unless you get your name to them.

I started taking photos in the 1970's. During the early 80's I sold a few prints (film), but never really considered photography as a job. It was my hobby! As the years have progressed, I find I am getting asked more and more to take photos for people, all of this is by word of mouth (your best advertisement..and it is free). So always act professionally, cause people will talk about you, if you present in a good manner.

How people get there will differ for every story. But behind their story is generally a drive to succeed, quality product and good business knowledge and ethics.

[Redgum]

Hey Rick, "word of mouth" is only "free" in Tasmania. Everywhere else you have to pay, coffee, lunch, whatever. :)
Great one Steve, actually there are currently 245 countries of which 192 belong to the UN. My son, who's a Customs officer, counted the stamps in my passports. So, okay, perhaps I went to a couple of countries twice over thirty years. I travelled east/west across the old soviet union and went through one country on the way out (Urbackistan? I think it was) and when I came back three weeks later it had gone. Maybe there's a business opportunity there? :D

[Steve Axford]

Anyone want to buy Urbackistan? I can't even find that one on Google (does that mean it never existed or just not in "the world according to Google"?)

[Aussie Battler]

Redgum, you always have something inspiring to say. Good onya!!! And congratulations on your success. Need an assistant??

[doastler]

I offered free session and my business grew from there and now it just works with word of mouth.
David

[simonw]

word of mouth is so important, especially when you are starting out without a big marketing budget. Recently, a photographer did a free portrait shoot for a family who had a terminally ill family member. They were so impressed with his professionalism and quality of work that that family booked him for 2 weddings in the following 12 months, and he has been booked for atleast 2 more from people who have seen those shots, all from doing a few hours of voluntary work

[wilto]

Wow guys
Some of the stories are amazing great to read them all, and redgum i think you would be unbelievable person to have yarn with, i dont think there would a quiet moment there would ?'s coming from everywhere thanks again guys

[achee]

Hi Redgum!


Made the Navy four half hour docos which the ABC bought.

:wd:

It sounds like this was at about the start of your video career - What level of skills and/or experience did you have? I guess you must have come up with broadcast-quality work, how'd you do that with (I'm assuming) little experience? Did you do courses, read a lot, have a really close working relationship with an established professional...?

I guess what I'm wondering is how long did it take you to begin confidently producing high quality work, and how did you do it?

[Redgum]

Thanks Achee. :)
It was a long time ago, before video in fact. These docos were shot on 16mmm film and edited with a razor blade and glue so the skill has to be in the shooting. There was no post production photoshop type work in those days. I'd been an amateur filmmaker for a number of years before doing that.
Apart from the amateur/enthusiast background everything was learned from practice. The advantage I had was I could lay my hands on film stock (through the Navy) and so the cost was reduced.
Those four docos led almost immediately to me getting part time work filming the Harold Park trots for Channel 9 and telecine work at Channel 7 a little later.
Reading books was just about the only way to learn in those days (no Internet) and filmmakers were far and few between. There were no TAFE courses. Pioneering I guess, but that still is what filmmakers and photographers should try to achieve now. Copying others only makes you the same, not better and if you copy the wrong person you get nowhere.

[tauer]

Great thread, It has been very enlightening. Especially as I am contemplating my options for the new year out of school myself. To do a bachelor degree, or to do a diploma? I understand it is much about the opportunities that arise during the education phase, especially with the people you meet and the new found confidence you receive in your medium, but I am still not sure on it all. It is quite a big step, 2-3 years is a lot of money and time lost at a critical stage of life.

[Redgum]

My personal opinion having done both. A diploma is more practical and the opportunity to work at the same time is greater. :)

[Longshots]

While I'd agree with RG, and you could work during the process, as you said its an expensive exercise, and my = main concern is that not all educational courses keep pace with the changing photographic industry.

[Redgum]

Evolution. Education is an investment in the future and never wasted. If you find half way through that you're not reaching your goal, change.

[tauer]

Wise words guys :) Thanks for sharing your views. I know i will be kicking myself if i didn't address the itch for doing the course anyway. Even if this does not lead to a future in full time work in the field, I will still be happy and content and optimistic for further education in the real world and in the class. And it can apply to anything I want in future. Plus, i suck at painting so it's a nice way to direct my bottled creativity.

Thanks for the info, shall be stalking the forums to absorb more knowledge. :)

[sambob]

It is now ten years since I started down the road of pro-photography and it can be a struggle at time but you just have to stick with it... and the long journey down the road makes the photographer (like any artist... you have to pay your dues!)

I have done all from catalogue, fashion, wedding, product, firefighters calendars, outdoor theatre, babies, and extensive travel and tourism... but what I love most is landscape/cityscape (for exhibition and sales as prints)

Recently I was offered a position as photographer with a publishing company (travel & lifestyle) and I love that fact of not having to chase clients (for work and payment) but the trade-off is that someone else owns what I do. But is is a nice change and I get to see a lot of this country (north-south-east-west... hence not being around here very much of late :cool:

So there are good jobs out there , just need to be at the right place at the right time.

[MajickStudio]

Thanks for both the question & answers ... there are lots of good points here
I don't yet consider myself a Pro Tog, as I am always learning new an fascinating things ... and I'm sure I will always have much more to learn ... but I have a corporate business background which has helped greatly.


Evolution. Education is an investment in the future and never wasted. If you find half way through that you're not reaching your goal, change.

Thanks Redgum ....... This is so very true, any education is never a waste time ~ I find that I'm impatient or easily bored (something like that) and as soon as I have learned something & done it myself successfully, I'm looking for the next challenge
My point is that what will work for you...... really depends on the way you learn ... once you figure this out there's no stopping you if you really want to make it.
for me I've found the self taught method & lots of research is the best for me.

PS. Redgum ....:umm: Did u mean Uzbekistan ?? https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/uz.html (this is just the first result google gave me)
I'm quite curious now

[Redgum]

for me I've found the self taught method & lots of research is the best for me.

Add to that add "don't take anything for granted" and "always be positive"


PS. Redgum ....:umm: Did u mean Uzbekistan ?? https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/uz.html (this is just the first result google gave me)
I'm quite curious now
I'm sure that's it. Long time ago and too many other countries in the meantime. The point being that life changes quickly - don't lose an opportunity.

[sapook]

Redgum - please take me with me next time you go somewhere! :)

As for me, I've been shooting for a little while now now. Initially it was a hobby, pretty much leeching off a friend who had the money to buy the gear so i'd use his whenever we'd so happen to be at some sorta event together. Finally justified the cost of getting stuff myself, was lucky enough to connect with local full-time photogs who allowed me to tag along with them as second shooter, and now slowly building my business on a part time basis.

Not letting go of my day job just yet, but absolutely loving the opportunity to shoot when i can :)

[Redgum]

Redgum - please take me with me next time you go somewhere! :)
Funny you should say that. Nat Geo have a contract open entitled "City Wildlife". I thought I might do a spread on Pitt St, Sydney between 7.30 and 8.30am on a Monday. Good idea? :D
Unfortunately our lenses are not compatible... :)

[ricktas]

Another thing to consider. Being a photographer doesn't mean you have to be a photographer full time. There are other industry related options that can be quite lucrative. Printer, framemaker, framer, photographic store owner, album manufacturer, web site owner (think cheap chips, quality camera etc). Being involved as a photographer does not mean your main income has to come from you taking photos. Yes you can still be a photographer, but there are other options that can be worthwhile to consider within the photographic industry as a whole.

Just don't start a photography forum, you won't make lots of money...hehe..and I have that market covered!

[kiwi]

I need a well paid mon-fri job so I can lose enough money from photography to make it worthwhile:)

[Redgum]

Just don't start a photography forum, you won't make lots of money...hehe..and I have that market covered!

Food for thought? Maybe no money but wow!, what a tax deduction. Hey Rick, reckon $50k would get me started? :D

[sapook]

Funny you should say that. Nat Geo have a contract open entitled "City Wildlife". I thought I might do a spread on Pitt St, Sydney between 7.30 and 8.30am on a Monday. Good idea? :D
Unfortunately our lenses are not compatible... :)

Sounds fun! Though I'm trying to work out what wildlife you're talking about.. human beings? ;)

[Redgum]

Humans are of course the most destructive animal on this planet. We kill, maim or injure for no reason at all so I think it's fair to call "people" wildlife. Cityscapes are the humans most predominant hunting ground and the place for the greatest destruction outside the carnage on our roads. Surely the major city wildlife.

[deloceano]

Thanks everyone for all your stories and thoughts on this thread. Ive'been shooting for about 12 years, done a couple of weddings, a couple of solo exhibitions,two fashion shoots for a friend who launched a design label, lots of music stuff for local papers... It seems like I'll never actually bea ble to do this thing I love as a living, but its encouraging to hear people's stories of just building up slowly in the jobs that you do. And of course always keeping your eyes and mind open to opportunities that may present themselves.

I think the area I struggle with is in marketing myself - I'm interested in how others have overcome this or started with the promo journey?

[warhammer]

i have been a jeweller for a fare amount of time, and when i went out on my own marketing myself and ensuring i had the capacity to get work through the door was a great concern.
i am currently studying human resources too and intend to do marketing next year, soon after starting this course i realized how much all this extra information can help with every thing business, some thing i wish i had learnt a lot earlier in my working life, not to say my business has not worked for me but there is a lot of extra stuff behind the actual product we see and buy that is very useful for some one starting up business.
My plan is to keep at the photography and build my portfolio up, and one day enter the photography slog part time, see were it takes me and maybe one day drop the jewellery tools down.
either way i will have back up plans.
and i will keep enjoying photography.

[GoldenOrb]

Wow, there are some really inspiring stories and wealth of knowledge. Its actually humbling to be in the presence of such people and experience!! (not meaning to brown nose... but it is....)

I think someone has already said it... I need a full time job just to blow it all on photo gear.... thats me! just ask the Mrs and the Visa-card hehehe!

[Redgum]

They're all part of the mix, Sienna. It can be like doing a degree or diploma course for any profession, it's more relevant at the beginning until you pick up the practical experience. Work experience is always going to be your greatest asset.
Again, like most professions, your technical experience in photography forms only a small part of your overall ability, maybe 20%. Dealing with people, promotion, business management and finance all play a huge part in the bigger picture of success.
Being self taught, learning from experience is a great quality and I believe essential for a good outcome.

[GoldenOrb]

They're all part of the mix, Sienna. It can be like doing a degree or diploma course for any profession, it's more relevant at the beginning until you pick up the practical experience. Work experience is always going to be your greatest asset.
Again, like most professions, your technical experience in photography forms only a small part of your overall ability, maybe 20%. Dealing with people, promotion, business management and finance all play a huge part in the bigger picture of success.
Being self taught, learning from experience is a great quality and I believe essential for a good outcome.

I whole heartedly agree with this after having done 1.5 trades. My current occupation (govt slave) , I constantly see people being employed with book sense, but no actual common sense. (No offence to those that have studied). It must just be the people the boss employes (look at me for example). Experience counts for so much now a days.

Everything that I have ever learn regarding the photography industry is self taught/ learnt or failed/ succeeded in.

Ironically the job Im in now is what started my passion for photography and also save my life once. With the high stresses of my job, I am more then happy to just sit and watch things go by waiting for that right moment with everything pans out for that perfect shot.

Would I like to be a pro...mmm maybe. I get paid to take photos and sell my prints now, but I dont consider myself one yet. I have a long way to go before I even think of that word.

Even the guys that have been doing my job for 20-30 years still can learn something every day.

Having a savvy head for business sense is really important and knowing what your cliental base wants, how you can promote it and make some coin at the same time. have all that figured out and youll be off to a good start

[Longshots]

Ok! I don't know how people are going to take this... but if you are a professional how did you get started? I don't have any current ambitions to quit my job and become a professional photographer it is just that I am curious. People are always posting questions about how to get into photography as a full time job and they are given advice from members and sometimes quick criticism about even wanting to in the first place. So to turn it around a little it would be great to hear from experienced and professional members about how they did it. Did they do courses, work at it for years before charging or just fall into it.

It would be great to hear

Cheers
Danny

I thought I would repeat your entire question as I thought it might help to serve as a reminder what you're actually asking ?


if you are a professional how did you get started?

First of all - I'm totally self taught.

So - how did I get started ?


When I left one performing arts company, and joined another when I was 17, I bought a camera with the holiday pay the previous company owed me. I immediately started to photograph other dancers. And because I was a dancer, I understood the positions that I should try and capture. Few photographers seemed to understand that they needed to know what was a good position and what was a bad one.

I learnt as I went along.
Remember - no internet, no instant assessment, no outside help. I spent a serious amount of money and time on buying books, and experimenting with film and printing. I knew that life was telling me something when the large Victorian house I was renting a small room in Glasgow, had this vacant cupboard on the stairs. When I asked my landlord if I could rent the cupboard, and turn it into a darkroom, to my amazement (and their pleasure), it had been already converted into a darkroom - with running water etc, 20 years previous, and the landlord was so happy that someone wanted to use it as a darkroom again - they gave me the use of it without cost :)

And within 5th roll of film and prints, my colleagues were offering me money to buy my prints. So I quite happily sold the prints to them. And really it went from there, to being commissioned by the company after a couple of years to shoot the next production. And within a relatively short time, I was selling my work at the "going rate", and reinvesting my photo income into equipment and the photo business; while still maintaining my dance career. A series of what some might call good luck, and others would recognise as desire to succeed, I then started to shoot for other performing arts companies in the UK and Europe. It was only a back injury by the time I was 32 that forced me to retire the initial career, and then I had to rely on the photography (and other areas) to earn a "living income". By that point, I'd been recognised as one of the UK's top dance photographers, a leading performing arts photographer, shooting in Europe, America, Asia, and had been commissioned for everything from weddings, portraits, advertising and tourism campaigns. I once kept a listing of the performing arts companies, Opera, Dance, Orchestras, Theatre, and the list of regular and semi regular/one off clients, was in the region of 225 companies. Unfortunately I lost that list :(



Moving to Australia in the 90's meant a more concentration of where I sought work from, which is how I shoot what I do now.

I'm still proud of one of the first shots I ever took 35 years ago. And all of this was accomplished without the luxury of a formal education in photography. Yes I would in some cases, say go for the formal education. And I would always say that if you have the drive and ambition, then go for it - but be aware that 4 decades on, the industry is very different; and what you cannot lack these days is some basic skills and talent.

The final piece of advice is be informed and even passionate about the type of thing you want to photograph (for a business), because that's going to give you that point of difference. One of the "least likely to succeed" students, that I assisted with a bit of mentoring; she was in terms of her marks within the class, at the bottom of the list. She asked me what direction she should head for. I asked her what she was passionate about, her hobbies, and she launched into telling me of her horses. I thought the answer was then obvious and told her that. Its nice to know she's one of the few students earning a living from photography in the (yet again, very competitive) area of equestrian photography :)

[Tony B]

I fell into it like many others. I did a New York Institute of Photography course in the 70's that covered most things as they were in the days of film. My first jobs were taking photographs for the legal profession in support of their cases. For many years I chose the security & earnings power of the accounting profession. Over the last 20 years more of my time has been devoted to photography as earnings are not as significant as they previously were.

[GoldenOrb]

Ive only really been taking proper photos for the last 18 months, so really a newby to it. Ive owned a photo business for about 4 odd years as well, but nothing to do with actually taking the shot iykwim.

Ive been taking photos of various things with work, but thats mainly to plot things or record things... none of them were ever to display beauty or the such
What really interested me was the power that a photo has and the way that people interpret it.

[pawparazzi]

I was doing it as a hobbie while helping out husband with his business. It has being really slow going for me because I have a servere learning disability. I had a private tutor help me but it got really expencive. Its taken a long time but I now can sell them to people but still have heaps to learn and what I think is great, others think is average. You can do gradually in your free time to start with.

[andrewwebster]

Some good advice here. go and get some qualifications and then approach people for some experience. which institutions do people recommend?

[NatB]

I too would like to know how to bridge that gap from quitting my job to taking on full time photography. I'd love to get into wedding photography but it's so hard as there are so many out there. It's got to the point where I think I might just do a formal course and see if that helps get experience.

[Redgum]

Whatever your chosen (dream) profession there will always be thousands of others wanting to take that direction. Only about 5% of us do the work we really love and succeed. The "profession" has little to do with it, it's all the other elements. Like Rick often says you need the basics of business under your belt but you also need qualities that let you deal with people, networking, sales, public relations, in huge quantities. And you will never start a business without at least a small pot of gold ($50k is a good start) and it needs to be unencumbered.
After all these things are in place you can look at the technical side, qualifications and if you have your head screwed on properly you will only buy the absolute basic supply of equipment and lease the rest in case you go bottoms up or simply don't like what you see on the other side of the fence. A great majority of people often realise their chosen profession is not what they really want when they get there.
Get rid of all the hype out of your brain, it is after all work, and if you are serious your life will depend on it (to eat anyway). When you do make it you'll know it - it's fun. :)

[LVL]

What a great thread. Thanks for asking the question Danny. That question is pretty much how I kicked my photography off again mid last year after a long break where I was working full time and also studying part time with the aim of "when I finish uni, I will buy a DSLR and take it up again".

After graduating uni I did actually buy a camera and having gone to a few live music events, watched photographers at work and wondering how, I actually just approached one and asked the question. How did they get started and were they a pro. An hour or so later - I had all sorts of useful advice and an invite to attend some upcoming gigs with the photographer in question.

Six months later I have been to a about 8 gigs of a variety of different bands, including Grinspoon, Shihad and a friend's brother who is just starting out. I have also photographed a charity event for a friend as well as some photo outings with that original photographer who has become a really good friend, and I am having an absolute ball.

I haven't made any money as yet but have started the process of setting up a photography business (i.e. register name, obtain ABN, register domain name for a future website). I am still maintaining my full time job which is totally unrelated to photography (I work in the legal industry) and am really enjoying both the contrast between the two industries and the freedom that having an unrelated full time job gives me to pursue my photographic whims. I think not being dependent on earning income initially really takes that pressure off to allow me to concentrate on improving my skills and at the same time gradually getting my work out there through friends, family, facebook, flickr and forum such as Australian Photography. I may never be a full time professional photographer but I think that is okay too as long as the balance works for me and I can provide quality work within a reasonable timeframe. I am also sure that it will come in handy being able to read and draft my own contracts.

Redgum - I have to say that I have always been envious of National Geographic photographers and the amazing experiences you must have had. Do you get to propose assignments or are you given strict parameters in which you need to work to get the shot?

[Redgum]

LVL, the key to working with major organisations, publishers etc., is not (in this case) photography. You need to be a storyteller, a writer, a creator if you like. Assignments are contractual and offers are made by the publication for specific stories and these are usually themed. It can work one of two ways, taking photographs for a particular story or taking a photojournalistic approach. The risk is high, you meet the costs and trust the work is good enough to be published. If not, you don't get paid. A lot of skills needed other than photography. I'm lucky in the sense that my work often comes through filmmaking (documentary production) and the combination of both professions helps me contain costs particularly if you're in a foreign country for six or eight weeks at a time. This also gives me other outlets like "Discovery" and a spin off to local media. But you're right, the experience, the opportunity to see and do what others (photographers) can only imagine is really special.

[LVL]

Thanks Redgum. It is certainly a lot different to the glamorous ideal I thought it would be (I guess similar to the image of a tv travel presenter). I presume those one off experiences and amazing images for your own personal collection would be some compensation if you were not successful in getting published.
I hope you don't mind my asking, but have you had yourself, or just heard of, many occasions where photographers didn't have work published? Or is it a fairly rare occurence, though the risk is always there? I guess one way of looking at it is extra incentive to go on a holiday you may not have otherwise considered. Do you have any recent Nat Geo work I could look up?

[Redgum]

My wife thinks my whole life is a holiday and if I take her somewhere, that's work. It's a complex industry, photography can be very lonely (like a pro tennis player) and filmmaking is the opposite (like a cricket team). I've had five photographic gigs (NG) since 1984, all with six digit outcomes plus, so it makes it worthwhile. When you consider that all those were done in conjunction with docos with budgets up to thirty fold, there is a good living to be made. And I got my first gig quite by accident when I was shooting a doco in central Australia called "CentrePoint". The assigned NG shooter didn't turn up for the expedition so I did both. High end magazine work is pretty much a closed shop and you don't get invites. You need to look. We, at least I have never got to keep any published work, that's part of the deal but there is some pre-shoot and seconds on our website http://www.redgumtv.com.au (http://www.redgumtv.com.au/)
Have a look through the video and photo montage to get an idea of where we go. Does anyone not get paid? Sure, but usually you're looking for just half a dozen specific frames and you stay put until you get them. I was part of the "water" story in Israel and needed to sit around for over twelve weeks waiting for opportunity. That's where journalism and filmmaking comes in handy. Something productive to do. :)

[LVL]

Thanks Redgum.

I will have a look at your site. Sounds like you have got it all sorted though with your expertise in the different mediums. It would certainly make your workload more efficient than most photographers and allow you to maximise your earning potential from each assignment. Congratulations. I only hope I will be able to be that organised down the track.