A little help please

[blondievp]

Hi

I am an amateur photographer in need of help. I have been interested in photography for as long as I can remember and got into it seriously last year. My pictures are slowly improving as I manage to master the settings on my Nikon D60 to get the results that I want.

I want to one day make a name for myself within the photography industry but I am not sure were to start. I have no qualifications or any training with regards to photography and I am unable to afford a course which I think that I will benefit from. I would like to make money from my pictures if possible to be able to fund a course. I don’t know where to start or what to do to get people to take notice of my pictures.

I currently have a smugmug page where all of my pictures are uploaded to, (Victoria Paxton's Photos) I have a blog which I update regularly (although I am unsure how many people see it), (Victoria Paxton Photography) I have a facebook group where I upload pictures to (Log In | Facebook) and have created a facebook profile just for my pictures, I am also on twitter where I post links to all of the above. So that people have a chance to see the above I have created a stumble-on account and linked it to different pages.

I’m not sure what else to do to get people to see my pictures, I would like people to see my pictures and get their opinions on to what they think would make the picture better.

I really don’t want to be stuck in an office job for the rest of my life. any ideas are greatly welcomed.

[FONT=&quot]Thanks VP[/FONT]

 

[Aayria]

If you're looking for opinions about your photography, I think you would get a better response if you picked a few of your favorite shots and posted them directly into here for people to see without having to click an outside link.

I didn't look, because I hesitate to click on a random link to photographs from someone with 1 post on here, this being the internet and all.

 

[myfotoguy]

Hello, my suggestion would be to post some specific photos in the galleries section on this forum (Photo Galleries - The Photo Forum - Photography Discussion Forum) and also read existing posts. That will give you feedback and suggestions on your images.

I took a qucik look at your images, sorry didn't have time right now to dig deeper. Generally, I saw some really great, creative shots. Good stuff!

 

[KmH]

VP about 600 people a day decide they want to sell their photographs and upload to Smugmug, Photobucket, Flickr and others.

Many of them have blogs, Tweet, and have a Facebook presence. That's what you're competing with, unless you're able to get some local word of mouth advertising going.

The bottom line is that 85% of the images that sell, have people in them.

Quickly looking at your Smugmug I don't see very many people images.

If picked on of your images at random to see what it would cost if I wanted to buy it.

$1.99 for an 8x10. Cost, no profit.

 

[pbelarge]

Victoria
You may not like what I will post, but it is for your own good, and I will anyway.

Photo salesmen are a 'dime a dozen' these days. The photos you have posted are not out of the ordinary, and 85% of the people shooting photos today can duplicate what you have.

Your blog is boring, and the grammar is off. The style of your blog is ordinary.

None of the above will draw people to your blog and even less will purchase.

So, what to do???



There is hope, especially since you are young.:thumbup:

-Clean up, and redesign your blog.
-Pick a theme or themes you want to shoot.
-Crawl out of your protective shell and stretch your wings...like a caterpillar becomes a butterfly.

This will not occur overnight. Time is your ally, as it gives you time to learn and create.

The "6 P's"
Proper preparation prevents piss poor performance.

The "3 P's"
Persistance, perseverance and performance.



There is so much free information and training online, it is scary. When I was your age, we went to the library and took books out. There was not one photography magazine available in my area... Today, it is at your fingertips.


The P's are not the only thing to remember.

Hard work, effort, focus, commitment, 3P's and more hard work, effort, focus and commitment.

Did you know the average millionaire has failed in their previous endeavors at least 6 times prior to success.

Formulate a plan/goals - short term, middle term and long term. Develop what your definition of success is. It can be unique to you.


Some people are naturally gifted with the necessary talent and know where they are headed.
You on the otherhand do not seem to be naturally gifted. You are going to have to do all the above and more to succeed. It is possible, it all depends on how much you want it, and how much effort you are willing to put in.

Sorry for the length, I could actually go on...
Good Luck and keep your chin up!

Remember one more item.

PMA - Positive Mental Attitude. Once developed, it will exude from you and attracts good people to you.

 

[SrBiscuit]

wow...excellent post and advice pbelarge. :thumbup:

 

[JenLavazza]

It's post like yours pblarge that keep me coming to TPF. Well said advice!

 

[FattyMcJ]

I didn't look, because I hesitate to click on a random link to photographs from someone with 1 post on here, this being the internet and all.

I was like you, but discovered Mozilla Firefox + NoScript (addon..free) = safe browsing. NoScript stops funky things like popups and auto scripts from running. It's not 100% fool proof, but it's much better than being paranoid like I was. lol

Anyway, back on topic..

Pbelarge nailed it right on the head. I don't fault you for trying to make a buck, but listen to him :thumbup: