So you want to be a Car Photographer?

I often get asked "I want to do what you do, how did you do it?" "How did you get this job/client?" "How do I get into this event as a Car Photographer?"

So I decided to try and answer as many questions as I can to help others get started or move up a level. Im not claiming to know everything or have all the answers. Other Photographers may do it differently. This is how I did it, so as with anything in life, listen to the advice when its offered but essentially make your own choices on what feels right for you.

My Background

Photography has always been a hobby since I was a teenager. I just enjoyed taking photographs for fun. As a University Student(Studying Engineering) I bought my first DSLR camera and kit lens. Over the next year or so I bought a couple more lens's. I got into being a car photographer by attending a car event.  I bought myself a weekend ticket to Goodwood Festival of Speed. I shot some of my own stuff with not much of a plan. But I was hooked, I knew I wanted to do more of this.

Inspiration

There are a lot of automotive photographers and people that want to be car photographers so it is highly competitive. Many of the professional photographers will vary in their styles of shooting and editing. Search online, Google, Instagram and find car photographers that you like.

Listen, Read, Watch & Learn

Don't go in thinking you know it all. Most of the work is before you even take any photos. There are endless resources on how other car photographers are doing. Instagram and You Tube have loads of videos on automotive photography techniques. Learn how to use your camera and learn the photography basics, practice with the family car or traffic passing to learn panning etc. 

Practice & Make Mistakes

Now you have done a lot of research, put it into practice.  You won't get it right straight away, but this is all part of learning. For example, my first light painting attempt at night went fairly well(So I thought!). Got home to look at the images I had taken, when checking my layers has one for each part of the car but, I had missed putting on the car headlights for a shot! It was a simple mistake, but I learnt not to do it again. I find you learn more from making a mistake, working out why/what went wrong and not to do it again. 

Portfolio Build

To impress potential clients or blag your way in to events with press accreditation you will need to build a portfolio to show them your work. If you contact a company or event and say "Can I come along for free" without a set of images to show them. You answer will be a simple no! So before getting to that stage you must Build your Portfolio. Ideally you want a basic website but if not setup an instagram page of just your best shots. It's better to have 10 good shots than 100 average shots from a car meet. Take down your older work and replace it with your newest and best work. Always quality over quantity!! 

Planning & Research

Before you even get to the event do your research! Think about what it is you want to shoot most, what cars will be there, what days/times is it happening. Times & Days may change so always check again each day! 

Now you have researched other car photography styles, now look at what other photographers are shooting. If you want to be a car photographer for a particular automotive event, look at their instagram, website, magazine to see what images they are using. You should start to see a theme or similar style. This will give you an idea of what you are aiming for in terms of style and quality. 

Attend Events

A great way to get automotive photography shots is to go to car events. A lot of these are free to attend and almost ever car owner is usually more than happy to have photos of their car. It's a great way to start making a name for yourself, hand out cards with your website or instagram. You can upload your images to the event facebook page of share them on social media. Talk to other photographers, most of us are pretty friendly, you might pick up tips. Not having the money to go to ticketed events is not an excuse. If you are serious about being a photographer you need to make the effort and do what it takes.

Ask to Shoot

Generally at car meets the cars are too close together for a great shot, so often getting there early or waiting till the end when some leave can give you more space around the cars. Worst case go and ask the owner if they are happy to move it to a certain place or angle. But before you ask have a plan or place you want to move it to so you are not wasting any of there time. Maybe ask them if they have a shot they would like as this includes them and help the conversation flow. Remember, if you don't ask its not going to happen. Likewise, if they say no, just be polite, say thank you and move on.

Getting Clients

Getting your first client or paid work isn't that hard as long as you have done the work first!  You have a basic portfolio, get out there and show it off!  Lots of small companies will be happy to let you take photos of there business or cars.  Dealerships are a good starting place, you might not get paid for your first shoot for them. But treat it like a real job as if you are getting paid! Get in the habit of being professional always.  Ask them what they normally ask for in a shot list, shoot it in the time scale(don't overstay your welcome) and deliver it in a reasonable time. Make sure what you deliver is only the best shots. 20-30 good shots it better than 500 average ones. 

Ask them politely for honest feedback on your images. Even if you are not up to standard yet and just not good enough. Thats ok! Take the advice on board, go away and work on it. None of us got it right first time and we all have made mistakes, but we all learnt something that made us better.

Most photographers will also shoot other areas of photography such as weddings, parties, whatever from what their website shows or they started out photographing what ever pays them and gets them experience. Then later on they move into automotive photography or only advertise that on their website. It doesn't matter if you have to do some less exciting work if it gets you experience or helps you buy new kit, buy your website etc. 

If you stick to this method of always improving your portfolio and always learning you will have a few sets of images to use to show potential clients. 

What to charge

There are lots of websites that will give day rates and what to charge for photography. Day rates will vary massively between photographers and this will be dependant on many things such as the type of photography, location, but most of all their skill and experience!!

When I started out I in 2007 was paid £100 a day or evening for Christmas or Birthday parties. As the standards of my work and my experience went up so did the day rate. My first commercial client was another Photographer paying me £350 a day. But understand I did ALOT of work for free, I listened, I worked hard and absorbed as much information as I could. Do NOT under estimate the value of another Photographer giving you free advice or being a mentor even if you have to work for free to gain that experience.  If you did a course you would have to pay for that advice.

You can also talk to companies direct, PR Agency's etc and ask them what they are paying as an average day rate for other photographers. 

Managing Clients

The main thing with managing clients is managing their expectations. Clients will often say the shoot is 1, 2, 3. You quote them for 1, 2, 3 and then after the agreed day rate they add 4 & 5 or on the shoot day they will ask for lots more than agreed or the day becomes longer. So early in the conversation get as much detail as possible to save you any surprises. Email them a quote with a detailed description or list of what you are going to provide. Date, Location, Start & Finish Time, Shoot Description, Travel, Lunch, Hotel, etc. Ask what their images are going to be used for, social media might want be portrait, website will need to be wide landscape. Also ask how quickly they need the images.

Try and be flexible with the client and let them be a part of the shoot, show them the back of your camera, get some feedback. You dont want to reel of a load of images and then the client says, oh can they be more... or oh we need them to be wider for our website banner.

Clients can also be overly fussy or take the Mick by asking for loads more than agreed or over running on time etc. Going a little over or doing a few extra shots is fine and part of the job. But Im talking maybe 30 minutes over. Any more than that then you need  stop and address that I can do the extra but there will be a charge. So either a percentage of the day rate eg £400 a day for 8 hours = £50 per hour. 1 extra hour = and £50 you charge them. If all agreed then carry on.  

You will end up doing a job or two for less money or the client will knock your price down. The shoot will be a nightmare one and the client might be overly fussy or even rude etc. These jobs are just part of the learning curve. Once you have a bit of experience and a few clients all paying you a similar day rate, don't get in a habit of dropping your price for every client that try's to knocks you down. Remember they are paying for more than just some photographs, you have had to buy all your kit and your experience has taken your time and effort. But always be polite because from there business point of view they are only trying to save money. There are a lot photographers out there that are very good photographers but clients won't work with them again because they are rude or have a massive ego problem, word gets around quickly.

Money or Portfolio?

Not all the shoots you photograph have to be paid. If you are asked or have the opportunity to shoot a car or event. Ask yourself the simple question. What is the benefit for me? Is it paid? Is it going to benefit my portfolio? Worst case, is it going to be fun?

Making It!

You will find if you work hard enough and you are dedicated to it you will make the choice to upgrade your gear, maybe give up your day job and work will start coming to you more easily. Clients will start emailing you and you will have them repeatedly booking you as you have proved you are good and reliable.

Edit Style

There are lots of different styles out there and it will probably take a bit of time to find your style. But generally in the research stage and getting inspiration from other automotive photographers you will see one that you like more than others. I have found your style will evolve over time as you get better. A lot of photographer will claim others are ripping of their style which is stupid as you can't own an edit style.

Camera Kit

We have all obsessed over kit!! Don't worry about it. Just buy the best you can afford at the time. As the work comes in you can upgrade later. I was running 1 entry level DSLR camera for years, this got me my starter portfolio and 1 of my first Big Clients, Goodwood, whom I still photograph for today. Eventually I upgraded and got 2 professional cameras and I have been running those same cameras for over 5 years. They are battered and I can't get parts to repair them anymore. But they still do the job, clients still like my photos and still pay me for my work. The best camera wont make you a better photographer. 

To Sum it Up!

Practice, Work Hard, Research, Learn, Work Harder, Build a Portfolio, Work Even Harder, Get Experience, Keep Working, Make it Happen!!

Any Questions?

This is a work in progress advice page so if you have any questions please email me or message me via instagram and I will try and add the answer into the post above.