021 — Find a Niche
Often heard, never felt
I’m a photographer who focuses on authentic advertising, lifestyle, and portraiture. This newsletter is my outlet to let go and share thoughts, photographs, experiences and behind the scenes. If you are curious and have not subscribed yet, you can do now. It means the world to me! :)
For quite some time I struggled with whether I as a creative need to find and focus on a specific niche in order to be successful (if success means being able to live from the income as a creative). Although this was never the reason I started collaborating with others and exchanging money for creativity and creative problem-solving, I felt that my ambitions were raised and with them the urge to grow.
One way I get inspired is by listening to people in different creative fields talk about their journeys, challenges and experiences, whether on podcasts or reading their interviews. On one podcast specifically, I listened to a photographer who also runs a large production company. In order to find photographers who are capable to bring their costumers visions to life, he has to do a lot of research.
“99% of photographers have bad portfolios”
According to him, one take away from his research in particular was the following.
“99% of photographers have bad portfolios. Not because their work is not good, but because they sell themselves as someone who can do it all. Wedding photography, food photography, portrait photography, documentary photography and if a client has a requirement for car photography, then car photography too.”
I was a little shocked when I heard this. Not because I see myself as one of this 99%, but because I’m someone who is generally very curious and likes to try out different types and niches of photography. Being able to collaborating with different brands in various fields is probably the main reason I aim to work as a freelancer.
Ask for advice
After some days/weeks of thinking if I should agree to this statement and “find” my niche, I asked photographers whom I look up to. Not only was I interested in their opinion and their approach but also their advice for me and my interests.
To be honest, I was surprised. Not about the answers I got, but how kind and willing to help the people were. Two out of four did not only reply to my mail, they grabbed their phone, called me and gave me 15 minutes of their time.
These calls were so valuable and energizing! I never ever expected this when I first thought about reaching out to them.
Follow your interests, but keep coming back to the niches you are expert in
This concludes the calls and mails the best. Wow, it felt so good to hear that.
Have an area of expertise, but generally go where your inner flow takes you. Develop a visual style and apply it to all the different types and niches you can and want to serve.
How do you feel about that? I’m curious to know, so feel free to leave a comment. :)
Extra takeaway
To wrap this up, I’ll share one extra takeaway from the conversations I had.
My portfolio as a freelancer should present the future and not the past.
And this makes so much sense. Why should I show a type of work if I do not want to do it again? Trying new fields does not mean I will enjoy it. Why should I then show the results, even tho I like how it turned out?
Thank you being here! Next issue will be full of analog memories from the past years (just got back 21 developed rolls from the lab)!
Cheers,
Fabian
The best place to see my work is my website. Other places to find me are Instagram and LinkedIn.
Written Thoughts is a newsletter dedicated to creativity and discovering oneself as a photographer and as a person. I'll be sharing experiences, projects, work updates, behind the scenes, my workflow and inspiration. You'll also get small photo bites in a new format called More Photos.
This newsletter is and will always be free to everyone. However, in order to pursue my creative career and continue writing this newsletter, I'll be forever grateful for your support.
THANK YOU!