Start Up a Travel Photography Business
Too many people have the idea that being paid to take
photographs of exotic places is the ideal job. It may take years
of effort to be paid by magazines such as the National
Geographic, but are there better ways to become a travel
photographer. As most people have more leisure time, more
holiday time, and more disposable income, the demand for travel
photographs has increased dramatically. Not only are they in
demand for travel brochures, but they're also used extensively
in other advertising copy.
Images necessary for sale and publication require rather more
skill than those applied to standard holiday snaps. "The real
voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but
in having new eyes." Was a quote by the French novelist Marcel
Proust, and it appears to be of particular use to the travel
photographer.
Investigate the possibilities of becoming a contracted
photographer at Lonely Planet Images. Lonely Planet Images is a
digital library of travel photography. They have submission
guidelines available for download at their website. They are a
subsidiary of what used to known as the Lonely Planet Guide, and
currently have 400 photographers on contract. You can also
increase your chances of breaking into the very lucrative travel
market, by entering competitions such as the Travel photographer
of the Year . There closing date for submissions is September
5th 2005.
A camera is merely a box, that captures light, and in a studio,
it is very easy to manipulate light. The reality of location
photography is that it is generally expensive; you have the
expenses of air tickets, hotels and meals on top of normal
expenses. At the end of the day you are at the mercy of