92 DigitalSLR PhotographyMa y 2019
herandherstyleofworkextracredibility
andstatus.However,whereclientsare
concerned,Paulinainsistsawardsdonear
tonothingforherbusiness.“Myclients
don’tlookatmyawards;photographers
do– oftenit’snotuntilclientsturnuptoa
sessionandnoticetheawardsonmywall
thattheycomment,butsometimesnoteven
then.Winningphotographycontestsarenot
importantatall– I doit asa personalrace
withmyself.I entertheconteststoproveto
myselfthatI amgoodenoughtocharge
clients,thatI amworthy,andI getbetter
andbetterwitheachcompetition.
“The awardsthatmatterthemostare
usuallytheimagesthatarethemostpersonal
tome,suchasportraitsofmydaughteror
photographscreatedwiththeinvolvementof
myfamily.They’realsothepicturesthattend
towin.I nevercreateimagesfora
competition,though,it’squitetheopposite.
Normallyjudgessayyoushouldnevershow
animageonlinethatyouwanttoenterintoa
competitionasit dullstheimpactandcan
affectitsscore.I, however,showmypictures
everywhereandthenmaybehalfa yearlater
if a contestcomesupthatI thinksuitsa
portrait,I’llenterit.If a picturehasimpact
thenI thinkit willhavethatimpactforever.
If I’mluckyI win;if I don’tI tryagain.”
Manynewportraitphotographersstarting
a businessbeginshootingforfreetobuilda
portfolio, then start charging nominal
amounts,takinga longtimetoreacha
financiallevelwheretheirpastimeis actually
makingmoremoneythanit’scostingthem.
Paulinahasa similarstory,buthowhasshe
gonefromearning£100a sessiontocharging
£1,000soquickly?“Itwasmyfriendsand
familywhopushedmeto‘upmygame’.In
October2014,aftermyfirst£50session,I set
upmybusinessbankingandmyhusband
saidwecouldn’taffordtopayforthehobby
soI’dneededtostartmakingdecentmoney.
Sincethen,everythreemonthsI changemy
pricingasmyclientelechangesandit’s
slowlybuiltup.It’sbeena process.”
Beforeestablishingherhigh-streetstudio,
Paulinausedtooffereverygenreofportrait
photography,fromnewbornsandcake
smashestomaternityandboudoir.“Itfelt
likeeveryonewastellingmeI hadtoshoot
it allinordertohavea prosperousbusiness;
I hadnoideaI couldgotheotherway.The
only time I was happy was when I wasphotographingchildrenandfamilies– I never
likedshootingtheothergenres. Havingthree
ofmyownchildren,I knowhowtogetthe
bestfromthem[youngpeople]andI know
whatparentswantfromtheirpictures.When
I poseclients,I dosoknowingit’showI
wouldphotographmyownchildrenorwant
myfamilyposed.
“AssoonasI shutalltheothergatesbesides
childrenandfamilies,everythingexploded
andI wasn’tcompetingwitheveryother
photographeranymore.I wasalsoconfident
thatI couldprovideclientswitha consistently
highlevelofquality,whichI couldn'tbesure
ofwithmyotherwork.The youngestclientI
nowphotographis a ‘sitter’(babieswhocan
situnaided)astheycanengagewithparents
andI knowthatthey'reoldenoughformeto
maintainmystandards,”saysPaulina.
Fine-arthasbeensubjectiveforcenturies,
a matteroftasteanddistinctivestylewith
manyartistsstrugglingtogainthetraction
theyneedtomakea careerfromit.Butone
thingis clearfromspeakingtoPaulina,to
makeit asa portraitphotographeryouneedto
bebraveandtruetoyourstyle.Todisbandany
beliefsthatyouneedtobea ‘jackofallgenres’
andbecomea masterofone.Tofindyour
niche,yourvisualvoiceand– if you’relucky
andskilledenough– it maybesomethingthat
otherpeoplewantontheirwalls.
ToseemoreofPaulina’sworkortocontactherfor a
workshop, visit: http://www.paulinaduczman.comIt feltlikeeveryone
wastellingmeI hadtoshootit allinorderto
havea prosperous
business;I hadnoideaIcould go the other way