How do you get your first photography job?

Too many videos and blog posts exist on the how and why of this. Frankly, they’ve gotten old. I’m choosing, instead, to talk about my first big shoot that lead to many more offers even though I didn’t get paid for it.

The fact of the matter is that you probably won’t land your dream job, with your dream subject, in your dream location, your first time. When I decided to go to the next level in my photography, I asked around to my friends if they had any connections that would allow me to take pictures in a more professional setting and beef up my portfolio. Sure enough, a good friend of mine was working at a local car dealership and said he’d talk to the manager and see if they’d mind me doing some shots of the cars that they could have for free and I could use in my personal marketing material. They said yes and I was beyond excited. Keep in mind that prior to this I had done brand stuff through Instagram on a small level with a few companies, but this felt different; it felt real. They were arranging for me to shoot Corvettes, pickups and a new Camaro. One of the employees even asked if we could shoot his personal Corvette, to which I immediately responded, “hell yes!”. My friend told me to come prepared, but I wasn’t sure what to expect. I even asked my brother to join as an assistant. I really wanted to make this opportunity count.

The Day of the Shoot

Still unsure of what to expect, I had been practicing with my own vehicle all week and consuming any content I could on car photography. I’d always been obsessed with anything that has an engine, but this was more complex than just admiration; I needed to know my stuff!

We went to the gym around 6am to get in the right mindset. Fueled by visions of creating the types of images people share and comment the most flattering things, we chased our pump. Protein shakes in hand, we headed to the dealership around 8:30am. I parked right out front and walked in with my camera in hand. I had assumed that since we’d be dealing with cars that cost around 100k that we’d probably be with one of the employees and mainly directing and snapping pics. Boy, was I surprised! We were greeted and shown a pile of keys and basically told to, “Have fun! Let us know if you need an x-plate.”. We kind of looked at each other and smiled. Then we saw the cars. Outside, freshly detailed, was a lineup of shinning Chevy’s and hulking GMC's.

Trying to be a Pro Photographer

We went out and began awkwardly taking pics of the cars where they sat. I guess we were “warming up”. In hindsight, I think we looked like total amateurs. I had told my brother that we would shoot all the cars on the lot and not go ask for an x-plate. I think I wanted to make sure they knew I was there to work and not play with expensive cars, though if I would have broken from my inexperience, I probably would have gotten better pictures.

I’ll tell you a few things I learned on this very sunny day in June.

Always pack sunscreen for outdoor shoots. Honestly, just have a bottle in a baggy in your camera kit at all times.
Smoke bombs can damage car paint if you don’t plan for gusts of wind.
Reflections is a topic not enough Youtubers cover. I could have saved days of editing if I’d have been more deliberate with my car placement. This also worked as a learning experience that taught me the fine art of reworking paint reflections in Photoshop. I can’t complain about the experience.
Take more time setting up than shooting.

When we finally headed out for the day it was 4pm. We both looked like lobsters, but our smiles were ear-to-ear. After all, we had just spent the day putting around the lot in Corvettes(I was so naïve).

Reality Hits

I’ve always loved the post production phase of creating. Sitting at my laptop with an ice-cold pop and cranking up some music that will carry me through hours of editing.

“Wait…why is the grille blurry?” I say to myself.

“Oh, it must have just been a bad shot. Wait… why is there so much gravel all over the ground there?”

I won’t continue with this sad conversation I had with myself as I sifted through 1200 pictures, but 90% of the issues I face could have been solved at the shoot! Gravel all over the ground? Grab a broom. Grille blurry? Adjust focus plane or aperture. Too much distractions in the paint? Angle the damn car differently. My inexperience and attempt at LOOKING professional caused me to completely forget basic principles and most of the tips I had studied leading up to the shoot. I spent days trying to compensate for all of the mistakes I made. It was a learning experience and I am happy to have gone through it. Looking back, I’d even venture to say the shots weren’t that bad for my first large, organized shoot. However, if I can drill one concept into your head, it’s never to think you’re great. Be prepared. Dare to think you’re good. Don’t ever think you can be great without putting in the blood, sweat and tears.

Happy Ending

You didn’t think I’d leave you on such a borderline negative tone, did you? This particular shoot could have gone so much better, but it could have gone SOOOOOO much worse as well. I managed to get a lot of great shots for a newcomer’s portfolio and the dealership loved the images which were certainly more appealing than a simple cellphone snap.

The best part? These pictures got me attention in online spaces. They got shared around, and soon enough, they got me another job. That job helped get me to the next job. Before you know it, the shoots are getting easier and you’re making less mistakes. I’ll tell you one thing, failure really does teach you better than success ever will. You can’t walk into a creative venue an expert, but you can leave a fool if you’re not able to control your own artistic ego(I’ll have to do a post on this soon). You need to pay your dues, just as I did that sunny, summer day in June(and for 4 days after as I slathered my burnt body in aloe).