Professional landscape photography
With hard work and dedication, professional landscape photography can be a very satisfying career
By Steve Gosling
There are many times when I’m out in the landscape, walking and taking photographs that I remind myself of just how lucky I really am. In spite of the demands of early starts, late finishes and the frustrations of coping with a sometimes uncooperative climate, life as a professional landscape photographer is one rightly envied by many. After all it beats working for a living!But in reality that’s exactly what it is – hard work. For a start landscape an incredibly competitive area. In addition to established pros there are lots of very good amateurs and emerging freelancers all looking to get their work published. Some of those are happy to sell work for a minimal fee, egos swollen with a byline and this unfortunately undermines the market for everyone.
Getting rich quick?
My advice to any budding freelancer is don’t become a professional landscape photographer to secure fame and fortune. It never has been a ‘get rich quick’ scheme and in my experience profit margins can be low. Today everyone wants something for nothing. The widespread availability of landscape images on the web means that competition is fierce. I recently had a company offer me £15 for unlimited use of one of my images as a fine-art print to be sold through a large retail chain. When I refused (politely of course!) they told me this was the price they had been quoted for an image from the web. Similarly rates for editorial work have fallen in recent years as budgets have been cut to protect publishing companies’ profit margins. Unfortunately the photographer is at the bottom of the food chain.
I think all professionals should try to resist the general erosion of fees by refusing to supply work to those unwilling to pay for our unique skills and expertise. In my experience there are (fortunately) still customers out there who acknowledge that they get what they pay for and are prepared to pay for it.
Many years ago I was advised that to get a living out of landscape photography I would have to ‘make my images work hard for me’. It was good advice then and is even more important now. Each image has to be sold several times over to cover the costs of its production. A week long trip to a distant UK location costs me a four figure sum when time, film and processing, petrol, food and accommodation are all taken into account. These costs have to be recouped before I start making a profit and, given the low fees paid, every image has to achieve repeat sales to maximise income.
Landscapes in the digital age
Digital photography has helped in this respect. When sending transparencies to clients I was limited to the number of originals I had or the number of high quality dupes I could afford. Now I can send copies on CD or via email to as many clients as I choose anywhere in the world in minutes. This all helps my profitability.
But the digital age has its downsides – the widespread availability of landscape images via the web has been mentioned. Talking to other professional scenic photographers it’s clear that clients have also raised their expectations of what the photographer will do (at no additional cost to them of course!). Frequently I’m asked to do work that would have previously been commissioned from a repro house. But I feel we should all take a strong line on this by insisting on payment for this use of our time – not to do so feels like another slide on the slippery slope towards an even greater reduction in fees.
I’m sometimes asked if, given the challenges involved, I regret becoming a professional landscape photographer. Not at all! With commitment, dedication and a lot of hard work it is possible to make a living. And whilst it may not be the most profitable area of photography it’s a positive life choice – I much prefer my time out in the countryside than working in a studio or, heaven forbid, doing a real job!
To see Contact details go to the Directory
