# Photography is an expensive hobby...



## Raydar (Jan 6, 2013)

I am a hobbyist photographer and photography in general. Currently, i'm in college and actually majoring in Biology and going the Pre-Medicine route. With that said, i'm a broke ass college student during the school year, but during the summer, I work my ass off to get ###. I actually worked about two months to get me a new camera and gear. 
Now, i'm really contemplating about taking my skill and knowledge about ​photograph and using it to give me some spare change for school. What i'm asking is how the hell do I see some photographers carrying two 5DMII with 24-105 L and 24-70 L attached. I know some photographers get into the market of weddings and stuff. I want to know how to get the people to hire your for that job


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## CowgirlMama (Jan 6, 2013)

The photographers carrying expensive gear like that have worked, practiced and studied to gain expertise in their area. You say you're a hobbyist. I haven't seen your work, but my guess would be you aren't wedding material just yet. If your siggy includes all your gear, I'd say you definitely are not. You need a lot of practice before you do weddings. I know that I wouldn't do one now. I wouldn't turn out good enough photos to satisfy myself, much less the couple I'm shooting for. Honestly, I wouldn't expect photography to earn you much in the way of spare change. If you're lucky, you might sell a shot or two, but that's about the best you can hope when you're trying to fit it around school and with little training.


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## tirediron (Jan 6, 2013)

Owning a camera and a couple of lenses does NOT give you a ticket to free money.  It's absolutely no different than say going to Wal-mart and buying a set of socket wrenches and pliers and thinking you can make money as a mechanic.  There is a significant investment in gear, time and knowledge.  As an example.  I don't shoot many weddings, but when I do, I arrive with 10-15K worth of gear.  That includes two high-end bodies, multiple speedlights, and fast, pro-level glass from super-wide out to 200mm.

You can do what many have done:  Set up a facebook page and sell $50/million images on a CD senior's portrait packages and such, but you're not going to make any money that way, and you're not really going to be a photographer. If you want to make money for your studies, get a job delivering packages, bussing tables, or one of the thousand other unskilled positions that won't interfere with your studies.

Think about it along the lines of priorities:  Let's say that you do decide to 'hang out your shingle'...  you book a wedding for three months down the road.  You take a $1500 retainer and of course, you need the money for text-books, gear, whatever...  so you spend it.  Now, something happens to your school schedule because an instructor has taken ill or something, and oh look, there's an exam scheduled for the Monday morning after this Sunday wedding.  Study or shoot?  Making money at photography not only takes a big investment in money, it takes a big investment in time!  A typical eight hour wedding will likely require 60 hours of prep, shooting, post, client-meetings, etc.  A two-hour senior portrait session might run 6-8 hours total....


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## pixmedic (Jan 6, 2013)

people work some other job as well and save their money. 
maybe they have rich parents, or married someone wealthy. 
some people start out with lesser equipment, do really good work, and get hired based off their portfolio and put money away for better equipment. you don't have to have top of the line gear to take good pictures. but you SHOULD have appropriate equipment to get the job done under varying circumstances and working conditions.  If  you don't have two bodies and backups of your lenses and flashes  you shouldn't be doing weddings, in my opinion.


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## amolitor (Jan 6, 2013)

The VAST majority of people with big black cameras paid for them by working at something other than photography.


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## tirediron (Jan 6, 2013)

Can't remember who, but someone here has a sig-line quote, "The only sure way to make money with a camera is to sell it!"  Truer words were never spoken.


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## Josh66 (Jan 6, 2013)

There are certainly _many_ more expensive hobbies you could have...

To get people to hire you, you need a good portfolio.  People aren't going to care much what gear you use as long as you deliver a product they're willing to pay for.

If photography were my sole source of income, I would never be able to afford most of the stuff I have...


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## rexbobcat (Jan 6, 2013)

Three words.

Formula. One. Racing.

At least with photography you can be relatively poor and still be able to break into the hobby. Lol


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## Josh66 (Jan 6, 2013)

rexbobcat said:


> Three words.
> 
> Formula. One. Racing.
> 
> At least with photography you can be relatively poor and still be able to break into the hobby. Lol



Yeah, a lot of the guys I work with build race cars and fly planes for their hobbies - and they work like 100 hours a week to pay for it...


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## gsgary (Jan 6, 2013)

Some photographers carry their cameras as if it were jewellery, i have a saying about some of these photographers "All the gear no idea"


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## KmH (Jan 6, 2013)

rexbobcat said:


> Three words.
> 
> Formula. One. Racing.


F1 is pretty rarefied. The low budget teams are spending $75 to $100 million USD to be back markers. Top teams spend around $400 million per season.

How about something much more common, like kart racing. 

A 15 race weekend season at the national level runs $35,000 to $75,000 depending on the class(s) run. (Plus the tow vehicle, trailer, tools, spare parts, driver safety gear, etc)

New, 125 cc, single gear, water cooled race prepared engines (TAG) are $1600 - $2800, get rebuilt every 20 hours of use ($600 - $800 per rebuild), and the chassis runs about $5500. You need at least 2 engines (1 spare) and having at least 3 is better.
A set of racing tires are competitive for 25-30 miles and costs $250 a set. Front running karts will usually use 2 or more sets of tires per race weekend.
A front runner will use up 4 - 6 seats a season at $275 a seat. 

The next step up - Formula Ford  (1.6L, no wings) - a new car runs about $75,000 and a full season cost approx. $200,000.
The Cooper Tires US F2000 (2L) National championship (Formula Ford, wings, diffuser) runs approx. $300,000 a season. The champion gets a $375,000 scholarship towards the next step up - Star Mazda.

Star Mazda is approx. $400,000 - $500,000 a season since they starting using the carbon fiber chassis a few years ago.

An new Dallara Indy Car roller (no engine) new approx. $350,000 or so. Engine leases run something like $2,000,000 a year per car. $10 million per car, per season.
Dallara Automobili


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## pixmedic (Jan 6, 2013)

sheesh...and I thought my 30 foot boat was expensive to maintain.


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## rexbobcat (Jan 6, 2013)

KmH said:
			
		

> F1 is pretty rarefied. The low budget teams are spending $75 to $100 million USD to be back markers. Top teams spend around $400 million per season.
> 
> How about something much more common, like kart racing.
> 
> ...



I was just giving a ridiculously expensive example.  

I know a guy who races dirt tracks in Australia and he's constantly almost broke because it is stupid-expensive over there compared to the states, which is why he's trying to emigrate over here lol.

Another hobby that's just as, if not more expensive is personal airplane ownership. Aviation gas and jet fuel are upwards of $7.00 per gallon compared to about $3.00 for automotive gasoline.

Not to mention that 50 year old airplanes still cost $40k


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## Raydar (Jan 6, 2013)

rexbobcat said:


> KmH said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Gezz, i'll stick with photography. It's a hobby that's actually in my budget range. lol

Thanks for the input. Idk if i mentioned, but during the summer, I work in a factory. It pays well and is one of the reasons how I got my camera. 
Now that i'm on winter break from school, i've been trying to get a few shoots before i leave for college.


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## Tony S (Jan 7, 2013)

Wait till you get married, then photography gets even more expensive.  Everytime I buy a camera or lens it costs me just as much money for jewelry for my wife to get her to quit bitchin.  

  Most finish school, get jobs and buy camera equipment as a hobby.  Some get lucky and can make $$ off of it, but the majority don't.  More and more at events I shoot at I see parents carrying high end gear.  You think a couple of 5Ds are impressive, it's amazing to see someone with a pair of 1Dx and new version II telephoto L lenses just to get pictures of Johnny running on the field, nearly 30K of equipment just as a hobby.  There are a lot of people out there with some expendible cash in their pockets helping to stimulate the economy.


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## thetrue (Jan 7, 2013)

Tony S said:


> Wait till you get married, then photography gets even more expensive.  Everytime I buy a camera or lens it costs me just as much money for jewelry for my wife to get her to quit bitchin.


Ain't that the truth!!!


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## theshortwhiteguy (Jan 8, 2013)

90% of what we do as professional fotog's is business, the other 10% might resemble something called photography.  

It took a degree in photography from R.I.T., almost 10 years out of photography learning sales and business, and the last 12 years as a pro to finally realize the 90/10 rule when I have to drop x amount of $ every 18 months for new glass, bodies, computers, etc.


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## jwbryson1 (Jan 8, 2013)

Raydar said:


> Currently, i'm in college and actually majoring in Biology and going the Pre-Medicine route.




Get your MD, get through your residency, open shop and THEN buy the big fat camera.


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