You can see my work here ; https://rmsphoto.mystrikingly.com/
Hi, I’m a Car Photographer, and I’ve done quite a few shoots in the past, some free some paid, with some amazing cars, for example I shot a lamborghini tour in the Yorkshire dales and an M5 & X7 for a car dealership. I’ve probably made about £300 in total from photography. I’ve emailed about 10-15 Companies around me asking if they would be interested in my photography, social media management & developing videography skills, with quite professional sounding emails. I’ve not told any of the company’s the price or the fact I’m 14, but haven’t got any responses at all even though I genuinely think I could help companies- I’m stuck on what to do. Any advice is appreciated or critique on my photos. I have a free photoshoot this Sunday of a Porsche 356, as I know the owner quite well (who also has a 992 GT3) but nothing after. Thanks so much
+1 for only showing your very best work.
While I’ve done some paid work, including photojournalism in the early 80s, I decided early on that it was better for me to not pursue a career in photojournalism/photography. Keeping it as a mostly a hobby has served me well. I had a career in tech, and that has allowed me to shoot what I want with really nice gear :-) Making a living with photography is very challenging, but it can be done. Not trying to discourage, but just sharing my approach.
I like your work, and as others have mentioned, you have good eye, so here’s my thoughts for you:
Develop your technical skills. Really understand the fundamentals of photography and optics. Understand how digital imaging and sensors work. Get really good with Lightroom and Photoshop etc. I don’t know what the cool kids are using for web design these days, but whatever it is, get really good with it. Artistic competence is the price of admission and everyone you’re competing with should have that. If you also have technical skills, that gives you a competitive edge.
Organize and catalog your work. Be sure to have a good backup strategy for all your images.
Have a physical portfolio as well as digital. There’s something really special about holding a photograph in your hands versus seeing it on a screen.
Learn about good design, style, and other visual art skills, and how to apply them to your photo/video work. Go to museums, take a film appreciation class. Checkout photography books at the library.
Be an expert on automotive design, trends, history etc. Specialized subject matter expertise is another competitive advantage.
Taking accounting and business classes helped me a lot in my career as it made it a lot easier to talk to business owners/managers etc. “Accounting is the language of business” my accounting prof was fond of saying. And it was true! Also, if you end up working for yourself, business skills will help you be successful as a business owner/contractor.
I guess what I’m trying to say is the more well-rounded you are as a person, the more likely it is that you can have the creative career that you want.
Best of luck to you!
My advice is to keep shooting and do your thing. You already ahead of most of us at 14 RE photography.
Patience is huge. You have some great shots in there. Sunrise and sunset are your friends. If at all possible shoot then. Study others to see what they’re doing. http://www.roephoto.com/ https://www.rochephoto.com/ https://www.imageaj.com/ https://trahanphoto.com/
Car to car is tough to do and dangerous. Wear a harness. A gimble or a gyro will help a ton.
For still shots get a good tripod and use it. A lot of the beautiful images you see of cars are a composite of multiple images and some have long shutter speeds because you’re shooting in lower light at f/16-ish.
For panning shots shoot about 20 more than you think you need. Play with shutter speeds to achieve the background blur you want.
Study the car your shooting to see how the manufacturer wanted it shot.
Did I mention patience? Remember that.
Good luck you’re doing really well so far. It’s great you’re taking advantage the access to some amazing cars.
There are places you could look like Upwork or Fiver for photo gigs or join a lot of photo groups and expand on social media. I see people looking for photographers all the time. I’d also ask prior clients to write a blurb for your site. You know a review with their name and date. You can also register your site with search engines and ask the same people to leave you a review there, like Google has. See if another local photographer will mentor you. They might be able to help get your name out there or at least teach you how to market yourself. Good luck, photography is so much fun and I hope you succeed!
looks like you already have the understanding of not just doing 90 degree photos from from or side, so excellent start. I’d try to explore more variety still of angles, high, low, and straight on (which will still be you kneeling for most cars). Also I’ve really enjoyed doing some detail pictures like the ones you did of the tail-lights. I bet you could explore that area a bit more.