How i got into Photography
Hey Guys, so clients ask me how i got started in photography while i'm with them. I thought let me write about it and tell everyone my story...
So Lets rewind about 6 years, so after i dropped out of college after the first year i decided to just get to working, and i got my first job in retail, in Clinton Cards. Whilst working there for 8-9 months i got a tax rebate for £540. Being so young you can imagine what i wanted to spend my money on, partying, but instead despite the urge to do that, my friend had a bridge camera and everyone wanted a picture to be taken. Me being me i wanted to have something better, which is where the tax rebate come into it, so i went online and i found the next best thing up from that which happened to be a Nikon 3100 within budget. This was the day that changed my entire life and i didnt even know it.
Now i had the best camera out of my friends it was my time so shine, i was taking photos of everything that moved and making videos with my friends. The thing that changed everything was my friends 21st birthday, she asked me to take some photos at her party which went terribly wrong and the batteries died on everything so i barely got 200 photos (opps). Another 21st birthday came and this time i was more prepared and i completed the 'job' completely. From this i got a 40th birthday party which was way out of my league and i was terrified but i did it. When i got home i sat down and thought i loved this i wonder whether i can make a living from this. To my surprise you could make a living and it was a moderately comfortable average salary.
Now it was time after a few jobs to upgrade the camera, and got the all mighty D7000, Which i still have to this day, and it was another level of quality to me and i was blown away. Now i was set to start my career what do i do next? What i did was go on to the internet and found a popular website called YouTube. I Search and Search and watch hours and hours of footage and information and the learning curve saw no limit. the more i learnt the more i wanted to learn. After every video i went out and set up my own shoots to practice what i just learned. I became very comfortable with my camera and my settings and was using it everyday!!
After a while it felt like i plateaued and i wasn't learning any more so i look a night class to learn more. it was a seven week course and to my surprise i actually knew 90% of what they taught on that course and found my self getting bored yet the passion was still there inside me, i felt like college/uni killed my passion for photography. I was confused so i looked into going straight into university to get a degree in photography. After speaking to some tutors they told me that my photos was not up to the uni standard but my knowledge was good enough. I felt really down, then they said i could do the BTEC course, however, i didn't want to be around 16yo's as i would of got distracted. I made the executive decision to do it the hard way on my own.
I did what ever it took to get jobs and get my work out there i worked for free i worked for 16 hrs a day to get some kind of stability and client base. I was still unsuccessful and i didn't know how to change it. One day i got a call from one of my friends saying that a cinematographer wanted to have a photographer on his team and work together as a formidable force. I went for a meeting and i took the job offer. I was very excited that i manage to land a job on my own just through pure passion for what i love to do!
3 years later here i am, with gear i could of only dreamt about i now own. There are things i still dream off and i have only started my journey. I hope that everyone will follow me on my journey and support me with referrals.
That is my story...
...and this is just the beginning
Why It's a Good Thing to Have a Bad Day Sometimes...
Everyday is different and many things can affect our mood, for example i love music i listen to it as much as i can. I listen to quite a wide spectrum of genres too, and the reason is that it changes my mood, but it all inspires me to be better by the time the song has finished.
Now why i say its a good thing to have a bad day sometimes, is purely because it means that you are still growing. Just 2 days ago i felt like why aren't i satisfied with a recent shoot i was at and i felt quite down about it as i take a great pride in what i do as it is what i love to do. I was in a very negative mood and i found it hard to concentrate til i found answers to why i was feeling this way. I know how to fix my self when I'm in this mood now and that is to quite simply get inspired again. Just like when i listen to music to change my mood, photography does to same to me and i have a craving to better and get more creative and try new things. Now, whilst in my most recent one i felt like i had reach a point where my photo was all looking the same, which is a good thing. Don't get me wrong i love consistency, but i wanted to have a signature style something to say " That's a GaryAskew photo" which got me googling photographers i look up to that are world class. I studied their work for a few hours and tried to work out how they produce the result they do and how i can put my own twist onto it. Then suddenly as if by magic it came to me!
I knew what i needed to buy in order to switch things up a little bit to feed my craving. I took to Amazon to order 3 things to make a small difference in my work, which i will update this blog once the items have arrived with some example pictures of how i may use them. They are very cheap items and wont break the bank to buy to experiment.
I challenge everyone that will or wont read this... TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT... there are more than one way to do things so no matter what industry you are in, try something different, be brave. Stand out in your market!
What Gear I Think You Should Always Have On You...
5 things i find to be essential to a photographer.
Today someone asked me what gear do i have, and instead of telling them what i had, i started telling them the essentials, in my own experience. I found some thing to be essential to have in my bag. They are a 24-70, battery grip, speed light, memory card read and finally lens cleaning kit. I'm going to write this in no particular order, as i believe them all to be just as valuable to have on you at any given time during a shoot, so lets get into it.
A Memory card reader, preferably USB 3.0, you know when you want to transfer something but you can't find the lead. That is the reason you need to always have a memory card reader with you. I've had this happen a few times and that would of solved everything.
Battery Grip. This has changed the way i shoot and makes a world of difference whilst on a job. I have the Nikon grip as i had a number of third party ones which all failed on me one way or another. The main reason i like grips is because of the vertical shooting position i am in. It feels so much better when shooting in the portrait position and looks more professional too. You elbow isn't swinging around and hitting people and you are less likely to get knocked while trying to get the crucial shot at a wedding.
24-70...now i know this may seem stupid to some people but having a medium zoom lens in your bag would get you through most situations. It doesn't have to be Nikon or Canon glass either, any third party 24-70 will work as effectively despite the slower focusing and other things that come with third party lens. This is probably by far my most used lens, it was the last one that i purchased for some reason, i bought the 14-24 and 70-200 before this and honestly i don't know how i managed. It such a versatile and sharp lens, definitely my 'go-to' lens.
Len's Cleaning, sometimes you find yourself climbing into bushes or laying down or or a beach. Then if you shoot above F4 the you can see the dirt in your photos... yeah SOO annoying, i have at least one cloth in every bag of mine. You can just get any microfiber cloth and it'll do a great job.
LIGHT!...You have to have at least one speed light in your kit, no matter you shooting style it has many uses. From just filling in some shadows, and quickly and simply setting up a dramatic portrait. You can also use it to balance light which in my opinion makes separates the photographers from the picture takers. Again it doesn't have to be the manufacturers light you can pick up yungnuo very cheap. ( i have recently bought one)