10 Best Kept Secrets of a Professional Photographer: How to Win in the Industry



How does a professional photographer become successful in his field?

Professional photographers can make a living by doing something they love and actually enjoy, which is something a lot of people could only dream about. Nevertheless, it is hard work, and they still have their awesome days and days when they just want to give up–just like most of us.

Becoming a professional could take some time, but here are our tips to help quicken your pace.

Spectacular Images are Made, not Just Captured

A lot of stunning photos appear to perfectly shoot a moment in time that couldn’t be recreated again and leaves other professional photographers dreaming they also had that stroke of luck.



But have you ever noticed how amazingly lucky other professional photographers appear to get?

The truth is that those photographers aren’t any luckier than anybody else. Brilliant photographers do not just walk around wishing for the perfect scene to shoot – they make the perfect scene to shoot.



Choose in advance what you want to capture, work out the sequence of events needed to make it happen, and then set them in motion. You would be amazed at what people would agree to do if you ask them to.

You may not always end up with precisely what planned for, but that is exactly why photography is a form of art and not science. You would need to leave a bit of room for the delightfully unexpected.






Less is Still More

Every picture tells a story, so minimize any forms of distraction. Ask yourself before pressing that shutter button, “What is my goal for taking this photo?”

Your answer to this question would guide you in concentrating on the aspects of the scene that matter most.

Focus on those aspects and components that would make your photograph unforgettable, and ditch trying to put everything together into one shot.

You Can’t Fix a Bad Shot in Photoshop

“If only I could somehow rectify this shot.”
“If only I had captured this picture a second earlier.”
“If only he had not turned his head.”

If, unfortunately, you missed that golden shot, don’t try to fix everything during post-processing.

One of the most usual feelings that even professional photographers experience is regret. There are too many images out there where they have wasted time and effort trying to turn coal into a diamond. You just have to live with it and keep in mind the next rule.

A Lot of the Photos a Professional Photographer Takes Are Crap

Professional photographers shoot a lot of pictures and toss the majority of them away. They actually take so much more bad photographs than you do – because they shoot more photographs, period.

Keep in mind that photography is also a numbers game. The more photographs you capture, the more excellent image you would take. You do not have to tell or show anybody your bad shots.

The Best Way to Zoom is with Your Feet

Taking intriguing pictures is going to need you to travel to exciting locations. Just to be clear, however, by intriguing, I meant off the beaten track, into unconventional situations, and mostly out of your comfort zone. The prize would be obvious in the photographs you will end up with.




Brush Off Bad Days

It is a challenge to foresee when and where a memorable photo opportunity will happen. It is only by regularly going out with your camera would your chance of ‘keepers’ increases. Perfection is not the goal; it is doing your best that really counts.
Instead of settling for the conventional formula and routine, challenge yourself. You could try new techniques and approaches. Free yourself from the idea that professional photographers don’t experience lousy days or take bad pictures. It is all an important aspect of the artistic process.

Being Curious Pays

The way you see the world could impact how you shoot your photos. If you are experiencing trouble changing your vision, you could adjust your approach. Instead of thinking like a professional photographer, imagine yourself a visual detective.
This could compel you to study the space around it while still focusing your attention to details. Through our inquisitive and curious nature, we could discover moments in photographs that most photographers would just let pass by.

Let curiosity drive your compositions, and you’ll begin to see the world in a different light.



Question Everything

When you are first learning about photography, it is recommended to search for truth and facts. The internet has democratized learning with a myriad of information right at our fingertips.

Nevertheless, creating good art is usually more about the questions than it is about the answers. Overlook this, and you could end up going along a formulaic process, achieving only outcomes that look like everybody else’s results.

To create your personal visual signature, you need to see from the inside looking out.

What type of pictures do you view in your mind’s eye? Try to recreate that image. Use this method to direct your photographic efforts, and you will soon be creating pictures that go beyond your expectations.

Always Bring a Tripod

Although a lot of cameras nowadays feature stabilization controls, nothing substitutes for a stable tripod. As a matter of fact, this is arguably the first tip that any professional photographer would tell you.

Tripods are important when capturing subjects with lots of movement.

You could up your odds of taking good photographs with the help of a tripod because you avoid one of the reasons of crappy photography – your movements. Less shaky shots would give you more chances of achieving a crisp, clear image.

Professional Photographers Know Their Equipment Well

As tedious as it is to go over an instruction manual, you really need to know every single detail about the gear and equipment you are working with. Capturing with a $5,000 camera will not do you any good and your subject any justice if you do not know how to use it.

Becoming a professional photographer means that you will need to know what aperture is, what an f-stop is, and a hundred other technical terms and details. Moreover, professionals likewise know which camera captures best in low light, as well as which shoots best at a distance.

Professional photographers protect their online photos against theft. The best way to do that is with a watermark containing your logo, name, contact details. Being a professional photographer means loads of photos so the ability watermark unlimited photos online is perfect.

If your goal is to become a professional photographer, always keep these secrets in mind. Nonetheless, you should still keep things in perspective. Being a professional photographer takes time and calls for perseverance, and there is absolutely no shortcut for those.

Protecting your