Digital Photographer - UK (2020-01)

Pro advice

Joshua Jackson

reveals his expert

tips for a career as a

street photographer

Forget about the money (at the start)

Putting pressure on yourself early on to

earn money could force you into desperate

measures to make ends meet – accepting

poor pay or taking on photography work you

don’t enjoy. If you have a job that gives you

the freedom to pursue street photography in

your spare time, then stick with it until you

feel ready and able to make the transition.

Right

Get your style

Take the time to build your

portfolio with a distinctive style

that will lift you above the crowd

Below

Free to engage

Post your images online,

keep in contact with people

and build up a network to

spread word of your images

This relieves you of financial stress and also

gives you time to build up your skills, portfolio

and network.

Build up your portfolio

Work steadily towards a portfolio of work to

establish a visual identity. An identifiable style

will help you to stand out in a competitive

market. This can then be leveraged to build

a network of clients and customers who

connect with your work in some way.

Balance your risk

No single income stream listed above is likely

to sustain a full-time living. Instead, offer

services in a number of areas to boost your

earnings. This approach will spread the risk

and offer a greater variety of work to keep

you busy.

Spread awareness

It has never been easier for street

photographers to spread awareness of their

work. Build a personal website showcasing

your best work and optimise the SEO for

your target audience. Also, proactively

build audiences across a variety of social

media platforms by maintaining a regular

presence and engaging with others there –

it’s common for these people to become

customers and clients, either directly or

through word of mouth.

go pro

“Offer services

in a number of

areas to boost

your earnings”

Pro advice

JoshuaJackson

revealshisexpert

tipsforacareerasa

streetphotographer

Forgetaboutthemoney(atthestart)

Puttingpressureonyourselfearlyonto

earnmoneycouldforceyouintodesperate

measurestomakeendsmeet–accepting

poorpayortakingonphotographyworkyou

don’tenjoy.Ifyouhaveajobthatgivesyou

thefreedomtopursuestreetphotographyin

yoursparetime,thenstickwithituntilyou

feelreadyandabletomakethetransition.

Right

Getyourstyle

Takethetimetobuildyour

portfoliowithadistinctivestyle

thatwillliftyouabovethecrowd

Below

Freetoengage

Postyourimagesonline,

keepincontactwithpeople

andbuildupanetworkto

spreadwordofyourimages

Thisrelievesyouoffinancialstressandalso

givesyoutimetobuildupyourskills,portfolio

andnetwork.

Buildupyourportfolio

Worksteadilytowardsaportfolioofworkto

establishavisualidentity.Anidentifiablestyle

willhelpyoutostandoutinacompetitive

market.Thiscanthenbeleveragedtobuild

anetworkofclientsandcustomerswho

connectwithyourworkinsomeway.

Balanceyourrisk

Nosingleincomestreamlistedaboveislikely

tosustainafull-timeliving.Instead,offer

servicesinanumberofareastoboostyour

earnings.Thisapproachwillspreadtherisk

andofferagreatervarietyofworktokeep

youbusy.

Spreadawareness

Ithasneverbeeneasierforstreet

photographerstospreadawarenessoftheir

work.Buildapersonalwebsiteshowcasing

yourbestworkandoptimisetheSEOfor

yourtargetaudience.Also,proactively

buildaudiencesacrossavarietyofsocial

mediaplatformsbymaintainingaregular

presenceandengagingwithothersthere–

it’scommonforthesepeopletobecome

customersandclients,eitherdirectlyor

throughwordofmouth.

go pro

“Offer services

in anumberof

areastoboost

yourearnings”