How did you get your photography job?

[Forkie]

If you have one that is!!

Are you self employed/Freelance with a client base, working for a single company on a freelance contract, on a single company's payroll? Or any other type of photography employment?

Now, I'm by no means a professional photographer, I'd barely have the guts to call myself an amateur yet, so I was really lucky to get my job as a Product Photographer.

I went for an interview for my company for an administration job, and in the interview we happened to get chatting about photography because they spotted it on my CV as an interest. I didn't get the job I went for, but about 6 weeks later they called me asked if I would like to work for them as a product photographer.

After some pay negotiations I said "yes", and was given the choice of going on a freelance contract or being put on their payroll.

I chose to go on their payroll, basically because I can't be bothered to sort out my own taxes and it gives me more security whilst I build up some experience for a couple of years before looking for a more adventurous job in the field.

It's not the most creative or exciting area of photography, but at least when someone asks me what I do, I can say "I'm photographer, don'tya know!".

How did you start your photography career and where are you now?

 

[Formatted]

You would barely call yourself amateur, but you've taken a job as a "professional" photographer.

Right...

 

[Forkie]

You would barely call yourself amateur, but you've taken a job as a "professional" photographer.

Right...

What I mean by that is that my level of experience of photography as a hobby before getting this job would not be anywhere near enough to label myself as an accomplished amateur, let alone a professional. Before this job I was quite definitely a hobbyist, not an amateur photographer (which I think implies a higher degree of knowledge and experience).

I was lucky to get my job - particularly in a time where jobs are scarce, and hopefully this entry level job will provide the important experience needed to eventually become 'proper' professional.

 

[Formatted]

I was lucky to get my job - particularly in a time where jobs are scarce, and hopefully this entry level job will provide the important experience needed to eventually become 'proper' professional.

Well congrats

So I guess you'll be sorting out your public liability insurance, professional indemnity insurance, new cameras, new lenses and a new lighting rig then.

 

[Forkie]

I'm not sure I like your tone, but at some point in the future, yes. :meh:

 

[KmH]

I'm not sure how it works there, but here in the US by being on the payroll as a photographer, the company would own the copyright to all the photographs you make for them. Here it's called work-for-hire. You would need permissson from the copyright owner (the company paying you) to use the photos in any way, like a portfolio.

The flip side of that is that on a feelance contract basis you would retain copyright to all the photos you made and not only charge a creative fee for your time, but also license usage fees. As long as exclusive use was not needed by the licensee additional incom,e could be made selling the phots as stock.

In short here in the US, photographers on the payroll usually make considerably less money than do freelance shooters.

 

[Forkie]

That is correct. I don't hold the copyright for the images I take. However, a perk of the job is that I have free use of the studio whenever I like, so there would be no problem with me taking a few shots on my own time, with my own camera (the company provides a camera to prevent wear and tear on my own) for my portfolio.

The reason I chose to go on their payroll is because jobs are hard to come by in these recession times, and right now I prefer the security of being employed. And as this is my first photography job, I plan on staying for at least 2-3 years to get a reasonable amount of commercial experience under my belt before taking on the big cruel world on my own.

 

[Formatted]

That is correct. I don't hold the copyright for the images I take.

Why would you give away copyright?!

 

[Forkie]

That is correct. I don't hold the copyright for the images I take.

Why would you give away copyright?!

The copyright isn't mine in the first place. I am an in-house photographer taking photos of the stock for the company to place on their website. Before I arrived they sent most of the stock to a third party product photography company to take the photos - they didn't and don't have copyright either.

Whoever takes the photos for Argos, Ikea, B&Q, Boots, or whatever other company also don't own the copyright to the photos, the copyright is owned by the company.

The cameraman doesn't own the copyright to his camera work in a movie and neither does the designer of Coca Cola's logo own the copyright to that.

 

[Formatted]

I am an in-house photographer taking photos of the stock for the company to place on their website.

You'd be much much better off working as a third party, charging them stock prices rather than a set salary, you will be knocking out more photos for less money that way.

 

[spacefuzz]

good luck, I hope its a lot of fun!

Funny thing about owning your work. I am an aerospace engineer and I certaintly dont own the rights to the work I do for my company, so no reason to expect that if you are working as an in-house photographer you would own your own pics. In fact some NDA's and contracts I have signed pledged all of my thoughts and ideas (even on my own time) to the company.

Can you imagine the uproar here if companies started owning the rights to ALL of your photographic work while your employed by them?

 

[Cinka]

Figures a company would hire a civilian for a product photography job. They couldn't possibly hire a pro. No offense. It's why, you'll start to notice, how terrible product photography on the web is.

I did product photography for 3 years (100-150 images shot per day plus email blasts and marketing material). It was a thankless job and I was creatively stifled. When I departed, I went freelance. I now shoot weddings and portraits - couldn't be happier.

 

[Formatted]

Figures a company would hire a civilian for a product photography job. They couldn't possibly hire a pro.

Finally someone said what I was thinking.

 

[MichiganFarts]

I don't get why it's such a sin around here to not hire a pro, when that gets done in so many other professional fields too.

Heck, when I was 15 me and a buddy mowed lawns for local businesses who didn't want the cost of professional lawn maintenance. I never heard any local lawn care services balk about my piss poor work, and the customers were happy.

What's the problem if the end product pleases the customer?

Even here at my current job we have lower quality presses, and higher quality presses. Some customers demand the high quality, some don't care and just want to save money.

 

[y75stingray]

If you have one that is!!

Are you self employed/Freelance with a client base, working for a single company on a freelance contract, on a single company's payroll? Or any other type of photography employment?

Now, I'm by no means a professional photographer, I'd barely have the guts to call myself an amateur yet, so I was really lucky to get my job as a Product Photographer.

I went for an interview for my company for an administration job, and in the interview we happened to get chatting about photography because they spotted it on my CV as an interest. I didn't get the job I went for, but about 6 weeks later they called me asked if I would like to work for them as a product photographer.

After some pay negotiations I said "yes", and was given the choice of going on a freelance contract or being put on their payroll.

I chose to go on their payroll, basically because I can't be bothered to sort out my own taxes and it gives me more security whilst I build up some experience for a couple of years before looking for a more adventurous job in the field.

It's not the most creative or exciting area of photography, but at least when someone asks me what I do, I can say "I'm photographer, don'tya know!".

How did you start your photography career and where are you now?

Well you and I sir are one of the same! I too am a product photographer. When I started this position two years ago I literally knew nothing of photography. not even the basics but I knew some photoshop and B.S.ed my way through an interview and got the job. I then spent every moment of my freetime for the next three weeks in the bookstore researching photography "thank you Light Science and Magic" along with many other books. so now even though the company I work for owns most of my product shots I have a pretty impresive portfolio and can brag about all the magizines my images have been in to my friends!
Further more I get to use ALL of the photography equiptment for my personal use and projects and have learned a ton while getting paid! Gotta love it!