When we talk about how to start a photography business, we often talk about portfolios, skill-sets, clients, a business plan, business license and of course business name, and all the important aspects of getting yourself off the ground. One extremely important fact or that often gets overlooked is what photography equipment is needed to start a photography business. You can have all the skills in the world, dozens of digital cameras and lens filters, but if you can’t deliver the technical and aesthetic requirements of your client in a timely manner, you simply cannot run a sustainable full-time or part-time photography business.
When you get your first few jobs, it can be easy to fall into the trap of thinking that you can do this. Your first few jobs are not likely to be high-end clients. You’re likely working with friends, a small local business, a local magazine, or another minor outlet that might be willing to give you the benefit of the doubt and provide word of mouth marketing. You’ve thrilled them with your first set of images and now you’re feeling like you’re up to the task. But, there’s more to this than just delivering one job. In order to run a sustainable photography business, it is important to be able to deliver on time every time. Great customer service and a fancy DSLR camera aren’t going to cut it as a professional photographer.
Computer
Your computer is actually one of the most important pieces of equipment when starting your photography business. A good camera and camera lenses, of course, let you point and shoot. But, it is your computer that allows you to communicate with clients, process and deliver images, and get yourself an online social media presence. Spend the time to make sure this is a quality machine to save yourself time and money in the long-run.
Consider your potential client. Are you required to edit on site? Will you need to turn photos around quickly? How accurate does the color need to be in your images? Once you’ve looked into these things, you might find that you need a faster machine, a high-end laptop, or a new monitor with a calibration solution for better color reproduction and the use of editing software like lightroom or photoshop on the go. Even after all this, I cannot stress how important backup is. How are you going to keep your clients’ files safe? At a bare minimum, I recommend two physical copies. Keeping one of these in an off-site location is a great idea. On top of that, it may be prudent to look into cloud backup. There are plenty of services out there, so find one that’s right for your photography business and start getting your files into a third location.
Camera
There’s a lot of debate in online forums as to whether a professional can use this camera or that camera. Cameras are cameras. Whether you have an Olympus, Sony or Panasonic, they will all record images. When thinking about the equipment required to start your photography business, you need to consider your own needs. High-end commercial photographers might need a high-resolution medium-format system, but you might only need a small and light crop frame mirrorless camera.When choosing the best camera and camera gear for you, decide on your needs and the needs of your ideal potential clients. How fast does the autofocus need to be? How much high ISO power do you really need? Which camera feels good in your hands? Will you be able to carry it all day? Are the camera lenses you want to use available on that body? In the end, a high-resolution full-frame DSLR camera is a beautiful machine, but is it the best tool for you? Consider the type of photography you’ll be shooting — landscape photography vs. aerial photography — before you make a selection.
Lenses
Most likely, you started this full-time journey with one or two kit zoom camera lenses. These are a great tool for learning and will give you an idea for your preferences and requirements. There are a couple of ways to look into new camera lenses and make sure you’re buying the right ones. Camera lenses are expensive, but they are also the pieces of equipment that will stay with you. I recommend choosing them carefully and renting them before you buy if that is an option. This way you can test different types, like wide angle, before making a financial commitment on the right tools for you.
When thinking about which lenses to invest in first for your photography business, looking back is one great way to start. Using Adobe Lightroom, you can sort your entire catalog by focal length in the library module. This is useful because you might see that you actually use your kit 18-55mm lens zoomed in at 55mm most of the time. In this case, perhaps you might want to look into a 50mm f/1.8 prime lens. That will give you more options to control the depth of field.
Another way to look into camera lenses is to first decide the types of images you want to make. Then you can reverse engineer them and decide roughly what focal lengths you might need. Perhaps you only want to shoot tight portraits like headshots. You might want to invest in either an 85mm prime lens or a 70-200mm zoom lens. Maybe you’re looking to shoot more dramatic portraits like wedding photography that really bring your viewer close to the subject, perhaps a 24mm or 35mm would be more useful to you.
Lighting
Light is our raw material, and thus should certainly be included in your list of photography equipment for starting your successful photography business. Even if you’re not a studio photographer, you may need to invest in a speed light, light stand or a reflector. Unless you’ve been doing this for some time already, I do not recommend investing heavily into lighting right away. Rent it and grab in store pickup wherever possible until you know exactly the level of quality and power you will require. Those Profoto B1s are excellent lights, but you may not need three of them just yet.
Accessories
There are so many camera accessories that we need as photographers and they can quickly add up. As you are starting your photography business, it’s a good idea to invest in quality camera accessories.
Memory, for example, is what gets your images home safely. Investing in high-quality memory cards from reputable sources is key to making sure you don’t lose images. Also, make sure you have a few spare cards in case anything goes wrong during a shoot. Also, make sure you get a camera bag that is comfortable for the type and duration of shoots you’ll be doing.
Small things like cleaning supplies, straps, a tripod, and extra batteries can often be overlooked. It’s always good to make sure you have plenty of these things to keep your camera gear in good working order.
#ibrahimnawam #portraitphotography #photography
Blogs
