Starting a Career in Wedding Photography

A career in wedding photography can be a rather profitable one if you set it up correctly. A lot of wedding photographers will do other photography work on the side, like taking class pictures or setting up family portraits. Some devote their entire lives to capturing wedding memories, so you just have to figure out what you want to do. A career in this field may not be for everyone, but that doesn't mean it's not right for you. Let's take a look at what you could do to setup your own business in wedding photography.

Understand Your Duties

You need to get a sense of what you will have to do as a wedding photographer before you actually start a career in this industry. Some of your duties may include:

• Taking engagement pictures before a wedding
• Filming the wedding as it occurs
• Taking action pictures during the wedding
• Taking formal pictures after the wedding
• Taking fun pictures at the reception

You are going to be there to document everything that happens on a couple's big day, and that isn't always easy to do. You have to come up with the right settings and the right lighting to get the best pictures possible for a wedding. You only get once chance at this because the couple will only have one wedding. Thus you have to take on the responsibility of capturing that moment with as much grace and professionalism as possible.

Do a Wedding for Free

It may be a good idea to do one or two weddings for free when you first start your business so you can get the hang of what to do. That way if the pictures don't turn out ideal, you can at least get the experience you need to do better next time. If a friend of yours is getting married soon, you may take that opportunity to get some work experience and help your friend at the same time. Then you can have work to show your other clients in the future.

Create a Website

Think about creating a website for your business that will show clients what you can do. You can pay a small amount of money to get a domain and hosting on GoDaddy.com, and then you can download a free template to use for your gallery. You can go about other methods to do this as well, but that may allow you to spend the least amount of money to get your name out there. If you can create a website with your portfolio in it, you will have the best chance at drawing traffic to your business.

Spread the Word

When you think you have enough experience to actually work for a client, you need to get your name out there. Talk to local wedding planners and see if any of them may recommend your work to their customers. You could also try to go through an internet marketing campaign to get people in your area to see your site. You may offer to take pictures of the dresses in a bridal shop for free if the shop promotes your work in return. There are tons of ways to market your business, and any one of them could lead you to a long list of clients to pull from. If you're tired of working as a corporate paralegal and you want something more out of life, being a wedding photographer may be perfect for you. You just have to give it a try and see what you think.