It recently came to my attention that exactly 10 years ago, almost to the day, I took my very first step into the world of photography. Fresh out of high school and with barely any guidance, I decided to follow the path of a traveling cultural photographer. This journey has taken me further than I ever expected, teaching me a great deal—not only as a photographer but also as a person.
One of the most important lessons I learned early on was the desire to share professional knowledge alongside the incredible stories of the cultures I visited. So, to commemorate this 10th anniversary, I find it only fitting to share my top 10 pieces of advice I wish I had known when I first started.
Whether you're an aspiring or full-time photographer, at some point you'll probably consider building a website to showcase your work. But before you commit and buy a template or hire a designer—wait a moment.
The biggest mistake creatives do is to not build a website with a clear goal, spend some time defining exactly what you want to achieve through your website before treating it as ‘just a digital portfolio’. If your sole aim is to create an online portfolio, social media platforms already do a great job of that—and for free! So, if you decide to invest in a website, make sure it offers more than just another gallery of photos and videos.
If you are not sure to begin, here is a useful question to guide you:
“When a future client of yours visits your website... what would you like them to do there?”
While I can’t recommend a specific camera model that will fit all your needs, here’s what I suggest: Don’t buy a camera that suits your current skill set—get one that aligns with the skills you hope to develop in the future. Even if it feels too advanced right now, buying a camera that will inspire you to focus on growing as a photographer without constantly revisiting the camera market is a very powerful and important investment in your future.
From my own experience, although I recently upgraded my camera body, my previous camera served me for almost eight years! Acting is my trusted ‘work horse’ throughout most of my military service and in all my photography projects up to my last trip to Ethiopia.
Having a proper camera that allows you to stop obsessing on every new camera model announcement and focus on your creative endeavours is a game changer for creatives - and this is all I’ll say about gear on this list.
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While stand-alone images have their place in the art of photography, the images that get the most recognition in our world today are often drawn out of long-term photography projects. If you want to get your work noticed and stand out, I highly recommend starting a long-term project of your own.
Before you start stressing out — no one’s asking you to travel halfway around the world! You can always start small. Just pick a subject matter that truly interests you and you’ll be happy to explore it with your camera. Working on your own long-term personal project won’t just improve your photography—it’ll also be one of the most rewarding experiences you’ll ever have.
When I first started, I thought that there wasn’t much to learn from photographers of the past. I believed that their ‘old school’ black-and-white style of photography was outdated in today’s competitive market and… I couldn’t have been more wrong!
A good mentor of mine once told me, “It’s funny how young photographers today think they’ve reinvented the wheel, while some of these ‘old masters’ were doing it even better 50 years ago.”
If you want a deeper understanding of photography, invest time in exploring the masters of old - you can learn a lot from their success and avoid a lot of their mistakes .
If you are not sure where to start, here are some of my favorites: Sebastião Salgado, Fan Ho and W Eugene Smith. They’re incredible!
One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned is that, in order to succeed in today’s market, photographers need to offer more than just captivating images. As a photographer, you need to find a way to add diversity to your own work and the way in which you share it with the world.
For example, while a big part of my personal income derive from photography assignments and film productions, in my early years I put a lot of efforts into offering lectures, workshops, prints of my work, and even guiding photography expeditions around the world.
If you’re just starting out as a photographer, I believe you should experiment with as many different genres of photography as you possibly can - you need to figure out what you is your ‘calling’ and there is no better way to figure that out.
However, once you’ve experimented with a few fields - stick with the one that fits you best. Specializing and growing na expertise in a particular genre will help you gain a deeper understanding, master your style and become a dominate force in your industry.
Remember - “Jack of all trades is the master of none.”
Many photographers dream of being hired by big magazines for photo assignments, getting flown all around the world and of course… getting paid for it! While I truly hope these things are waiting for you in the future - if you’re waiting for a magazine to approach you out of the blue based on your portfolio… I’m afraid you’ll be waiting a long time fir a train that might never arrive.
Don’t get me wrong, in our current market magazines do hire photographers for international assignments - but it’s very rare. The best way to get your work published is to produce your own projects that could later be licensed by magazines. In fact, making your own photography projects is the ‘back door’ for any photographer to get his work published and career started.
While many people consider photography to be the art of creating visuals, your job a creative is not to chase ‘cool photos.’ When you set out to the world looking for your next masterpiece, direct your attention to seek out unique characters and stories worth telling. Only once you find that, use your photography skills to bring those stories to life.
Remember, even a slightly out-of-focus image that tells a powerful and inspiring story will gain more interest in audiences than another technically perfect image with no story behind it.
Every one loves the iconic image of the ‘Afghan girl - and they are right to do so! However, simply recreating that classic ‘close-up’ portrait wherever you go can often become an ‘easy solution’—especially when playing with the powerful potential of exotic cultures of the world.
If you rely too heavily on this, you’ll miss out on creating a powerful images for your portfolio. Now, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy portraiture, but make sure to constantly challenge yourself to explore different compositions and framings.
This is probably the most important advice I can give—so listen closely! Whether you’re aware of it or not, you started your path into the art photography for a reason. It might have been so you could better express yourself, see the world in a new way, simply enjoy a lovely hobby or any thing else in the world..
But always remember: As you dive deeper into mastering this art, make sure to keep track of your reason. I have seen way too many photographers who get caught up in their pursuit of perfecting the technical side of things or ‘get the shot!’ that they forget why they started doing it in the first place. At the end of the day, whether it is your occupation or hobby, the art of photography should be a force for good in your life—don’t forget that.
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Before you leave, I’d love to ask you for a favor. I started this blog series because I believe ‘knowledge should be shared,’ so my request is simple—pass it forward and share this blog with someone who would appreciate it.
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