I've been a full time photographer for the last 10 years, and it's not the easiest way to get rich. Knowing the technical side of photography is the easy part. It's a given that you have to know your camera inside and out, be the master of light, and the algebra of photography (inverse square law, exposure calculations, blah blah). And of course if you don't know Photoshop too well, you could get killed on the back end by working way more hours than you should be. This is where a lot of newbies burn out because they realize that they're working for less than minimum wage. Especially if they're competing on price because their work isn't up to par.
But like I said, that's the easy part. There's the business aspect of it, sales, marketing, bookkeeping, taxes, website. Sales and marketing are the most difficult thing for me because I don't have a business background.
And then there's working with the public. It seems that everybody that you photograph these days is way overly critical of themselves. "I hate all of photos of me!" I can't tell you how many times I've heard that at the beginning of a session. Learning to interact with and pose people properly to get the expressions you want and able to twist and stretch them into flattering positions that look natural takes some doing. You need to be a part-time psychologist too.
Weddings are not easy. They are a ton of work. You have to work super fast under pressure. You don't have time to think about camera settings, you gotta know that shit. And the chaos, oh my. Angry mother-in-laws, drunk groomsmen, everything is late, the bride is upset, and you're right in the middle of everything attempting to create magazine worthy images that the bride is paying you for. If you don't create what seem to be miracles, your online reputation will could get trashed by one bridezilla.
So I guess what I'm saying is, it might look easy, but it ain't. And at the same time, I do love my job!
