subject: Do you want to be a professional photographer? You can [print this page] Do you want to be a professional photographer? You can
Do you enjoy taking pictures and have you dreamed of becominga professional photographer? Are you the family member who is never in the photos because you are always behind the camera? And finally, have you ever seen a photo in a magazine or an addand said to yourself or to someone else "I can take better pictures than that". Most of us who answered yes to the first two questions, have surely answered yes to the last.
Well the person who took the picture for the magazine or the ad is a professional photographer. A professional photographer by definition is a person who gets paid to take pictures.
When most of us hear the term "professional photographer" we think of one working for a magazine, newspaper, or in a fancy studio with thousands of dollars in camera and photography equipment. The fact is however that with the ever increasing demand for quality images, most photos are now provided by photographers who work from home or small offices.
Today the incredible demand for quality images, makes it impossible for staff photographers to provide all or even a significant amount of all the images needed by publications or photo editors. As a result, photo editors, magazines and other publications have come to depend on stock photo agencies to obtain their images.
Photo stock agencies are image middle men who purchase or lease images (from anyone who provides quality images) and in turn sell them to photo editors or publications. The editors and publications pay the agencies who then pay the photographers.
The beauty of the system is that the photo agencies buy or lease images from anyone (you or me) who can provide quality images. These agencies don't care where the photographer lives, what equipment he owns, or anything else as long as the photos that they are buying are quality images.
Sounds easy right? It actually is. Guess what else? Once you sell your first image and get paid, by definition you become a "professional photographer".
The reality is that there are hundreds of photo stock agencies, and a number of other places to sell your photos. All you need to get started is a camera that takes quality images, a computer and internet connection.
