Let me know, Please

[Groves04]

Hello, I'm new to this and I really need some guidance. I just bought my Nikon d40 and have taken a few pictures that I consider good, Will you please tell me if I could (after I get some more pratice) become professional.
www.flickr.com/photos/creationsbykatie
Thank you

[Frog]

First let me welcome you to these forums.
Second it would be better to post indivdual photos here for critique. See critique guidlines.
Third, with a quick look, I see some pretty good compositions but for a detailed critique you'll need to post single shots here and you'll get a lot of feedback.
Professional??? I'll let one of our pros answer that.

[ishot3bucks]

Anyone can go pro...As long as someone pays you for a picture...you just went pro!! I have seen many "Pros" that really should try another field and I have also seen many photographers that shoot beautiful work, but don't want to do it for money...they love the art of it.

I did look at your pictures and see that you have an interest in photography, but as with many of us and me included...we have a lot to learn before we can even dream of making real money!! Yes, you could get a neighbor or cousin to pay you 50 bucks to shoot a set for them, but that is not making money.

After looking at your pictures, I would recommend that you really dedicate your time to learning about, lighting, composition and photo shop work! This is the key to standing out. Many of your pictures are nice, but typical snap shots. This is not a put down at all..they are nice, but to get paid and think about going "pro" you will need a couple of years of really studying photography and buying lenses that will really separate your work from the every day "Point and Shoot" camera.

My niece really wanted to get into the field, so she offered her services to local photographers for free (helps out on shoots and with software) and her work has improved greatly!! If you have the time and are fortunate to have someone take you along...this could save thousands of dollars in education and years of schooling!!

If there is one thing I would ask you to do, is to save these pictures in a file where you won't see them for 6 months to one year and then go back and see how much you have improved.

Good luck and I look forward to seeing your future shots!!

[jetrim]

As the others have said, the one thing that distinguises a "pro" from an amateur is that an amature must merely please themselves, a pro must please paying customers. The thing that has helped me a lot, is shooting TONS of photos, picking out what I feel to be the best few and working with those. Many times this means returning and reshooting even more photos until I believe I've achived what I set out to capture. On the photos I can't definatively say "THAT'S IT!" I come here and let others pickk them apart, photo by photo. I get a lot of great suggestion and feedback from other members here, and on the rare occasion I think I can help someone else out - I try to. This forum has helped make me aware of all those little things the "pro's" do as second nature, that I still have to make a concerted effort to remember each time I go out to shoot, but I'm getting better all the time and I know that because of the kinds of feedback I'm getting now vs just a few short months ago. That said, you do have a few shots that show promise (like play_19 for example) but remember...
The camera isn't as important as the glass (lenses)
and the glass isn't as important as the person looking through it.
Furthermore, photoshop can be a wonderful thing, but strive to get the shot right in the first place, so any corrections in photoshop are minimal.

just the 2 cents of a lowly amateur

[molaselake]

Hi! I think you've got some great shots in there compositionally, however, on camera flash can be your enemy. I just recently purchased an external flash unit and it is SO nice to be able to bounce your flash. Lighting in general makes an ENORMOUS difference. I think you just need to tackle the technical stuff. Working with a professional photographer would probably be a great way to learn. Oh, and it's all about marketing yourself and getting your name out there. Put yourself in the phonebook or create your own website. My stepmother has had no formal training and she constantly gets work due to her yellow pages listing.

Anyway, I'm going to go comment on some of your photos

[GB1]

Welcome . Your shots have some really nice points about them, specifically the lighting and cleanness. Hard to be specific when you don't list individual ones, but compositionally some need work - watch the background when shooting, specifically in # 2 where the horizon seems like it is coming out of the child's head. The depth of field is great in many of them, and seems to be a strong point. Some need a bit more negative space in my opinion.

I could not agree more with Jetrim - there's a world of difference between shooting for yourself on occasion when u feel like it and of subjects you want to shoot, and for someone else and on a timeline. I realized this fast when I took what i think is my only photo class ever and the instructor gave us assignments - Come back next class with shots of buildings, or sadness, or doors, or ... - sometimes you want to do that stuff, and sometimes you don't !

I would also agree with 3Bucks that if you shoot for someone and they pay you then you're essentially pro or at least freelance pro. Being a FT photographer is another step and I would have to assume that it's a tough field to enter given the intense competition.

But you never know unless you try, right?

GB