3 best alternative careers to commercial photography

It's 2021 and humanity has attained achievements that our parents might not have ever dreamed of. Said that we are living in an era that is a blessing and a disguise.

Myself being in the industry of traditional photography as an advertising professional and coming from an era of analogue photography which gradually shifted to digital and beyond in the past 15 years now (keeping in mind I started my journey in 2006), have gained the needed knowledge to share it with you all.

Every month, I do receive emails and DMs over my social accounts where people are looking for internships (5 major reasons why your emails are not effective). This reminds me how famous and lucrative traditional photography does still sounds to many. The truth is, traditional photography as a mode of earning a living is a dying business adding to it there are way too many people competing for the same thing. Commercials involved are being slashed and the bitter truth is that less and fewer authorities are concerned with quality, it is more about meeting the target to help raise their sales, welcome to The World of Imagery Business!

Now the question that arises is what are the best substitutes to Photography or how to add value to your present skill keeping the former as a base and how to make a living out of your Passion!

TO NOTE: These are mere alternatives, not shortcuts, they all involve years of dedication and similar efforts to reach out to the right people, market themself in the right manner and make a living out of it and the mentioned below do applies in small and big scale commercial movies but due to my personal lack of exposure in that industry the article is restricted to Print campaigns and Television Commercials.

1.

PRODUCTION

Executive | Assistant

(ONLY Still shoots and TVC)

Role: To organize and execute commercial assignments ranging from pre-production to post-production (stills and Television Commercials).

Expected Salary: Ranging from 5000.00 INR to 1,00,000.00 INR an assignment | Day | Month (It varies depending on the quality and quantity of assignments, whether you are a freelancer or In-house and the kind of experience you carry with yourself)

Mode of learning: Internship or apply as a fresher. There are no schools as such in India that helps you get acquainted with the basics though joining a production house and digital or mainline marketing agency is what I will suggest you get started.

Responsibility: An experienced producer can make and break a deal for any visual artist be it a photographer, director or the client itself. He/She is responsible to get the needed team under one roof (it involves Talents like a model, an actor, a makeup artist, a stylist, hospitality services, procurement of digital equipment and lights, studio or outdoor space availability, assistants or spot boys, sanitization services, travelling, lodging if needed, post-production artist and more depending on the need of the creative), at times a photographer, director, cinematographer and negotiate respective fees keeping the budget in mind.

Unlike film producers, you are not asked to invest in any and number of days to complete the project may range between a week to a month.

Additional Perk: You get to travel and meet a lot of people, Networking! haha...

2.

PRODUCT, FOOD STYLIST |

ART, prop DIRECTOR

(ONLY Still shoots and TVC)

If your parents think those extracurricular activities you did in your schools like drawing, painting, origami, planet making projects, science experiment, cooking and more was a waste, I guess one has to rethink. Every high budget and demanding project queries I have received and came across demands an art director.

Role: A person with experience in and around setting up a product or food in an aesthetic manner for the photographer and the director.

Expected Salary: It can range between 10,000 INR or a little less to 1,00,000 INR a day | assignment. The quality and quantity of assignment will determine the above and it also depends on how experienced you are.

Mode of Learning:

Food styling: If you are planning to get into food styling as a stylist or a technician, a course in and around hospitality, hotel management or home science will come in very useful.

Product styling: As of now there are no courses available in India which can help you with the same. I will suggest involving yourself in small workshops and courses available in your city by the very underrated aunties, didi, bhaiya or even a carpenter and more.

Attending workshops in and around various craft related skill helps you get your base strong. It can range from paper art, interior styling, water-colour painting, tabletop styling, wall painting and whatever which move in and around space.

Giving yourself a project to run, a blog | vlog over various platforms helps you to learn and reach out to people at the same time. SKILLSHARE and YOUTUBE comes incredibly useful.

It is always a good way to assist someone or a production house (not an agency in this case) to gain access to the must need knowledge of how to deal with people and other business-related aspects.

It is always a great idea to keep visiting store and places which showcases and sells | rent it out props and more.

INSPIRATION: PINTEREST | INSTAGRAM | DECOR MAGAZINE | AMUSEMENT PARKS AND EVENTS.

Responsibility:

As I mentioned above in general an ambitious project always demands an art guy who helps me to bring the concepts into reality.

If you have come across those mouth-watering food commercials and surreal spaces like Alice in wonderland, an art director or a stylist are the people involved in BTS

He/She will even be asked to set up composition as small as a plate on the table, to design a blank space into an ever-living guest bedroom. It can involve skills from procurement of props like cutlery, background, furniture, appliances and more.

You are also responsible to transport the needed and bring it back to the vendor.

3.

CREATIVE and DIGITAL MANIPULATION artist

(ONLY Still shoots and TVC)

There is a huge difference between photojournalism and commercial arts. They both fulfil the need to create an urge in the mind to do something both in the form of buying a service or product or influence one to make the world a better place to live.

Commercial business is the art of turning your dreams into reality, sadly the reality is far away from our imagination hence we all need to seek help from applications to stitch it all up for us. That is how and why professional retouchers and manipulation artist comes into the scene. If you have wondered about models flying in the air with many things around, fear not it is not any magic moment but a pure form of digital manipulation or if we come across a beauty campaign with skin so smooth and flawless that it is indeed not anywhere close to reality.

Role: He/She/It needs to be well versed with editing | manipulation applications like Photoshop, Illustrator, After effects, Final Cut Pro, Cinema 4D and many more photo, video editing software along with other CGI wonders. (3 best alternatives to your favourite and expensive graphic software)

Expected Salary: It is one of the most lucrative business to be in and the best way to enhance your photography skill. A person can expect to earn 1500 INR to 30,000 INR and more per image or concept.

On average, a person can deal with 10 images from a campaign to 100 images for a stock service.

Mode of Learning: To add there are no good institutes in India at present and the ones there are not valid from an educational point of view. Which will leave you to be a self-learner and in case your pocket permits you can opt for something abroad (a wise decision).

There are many quality online platforms available to gain access to the information needed at the comfort of your space. Please check the links below (they do provide both free and subscription-based membership)

PHLEARN, DOMESTIKA, LYNDA, BLENDER GURU and the best YOUTUBE (It is free and I personally feel there are so many talented people sharing the best of education)

It is better to invest in the best graphic system configuration like RAM, Graphic Card, SSD and a good graphic tablet if you can afford it (I personally own Wacom and iMac).

As like above, you are not needed to assist someone, though productive feedback is critical and takes you a long way. Social media platforms are the best place to share and promote your services.

To note: Always use images with complete rights to work with and sharing the before and after with your viewer helps you gain the much-needed brand trust.

Responsibility: It is one of the most stressful jobs to have besides it can be quite lucrative too. Timelines are very short and changes can be endless unless you don't charge for something more than agreed on. You can be involved in aspects as minor like correcting colour balance and removing minor details to beauty retouching, cleaning up and manipulation and creating a 3D environment to set the protagonist into it. The automobile is the most demanding sectors to be a part of.

Video editing is a vast industry that is just more than stitching the clips. It does range from sound editing, colour correction, rendering, graphic overlays and CGI | Greenscreens and more.

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As we come to the end of the article, a few heads up!

In all the above situations, there will always be a time constraint and having things confirmed in a pre-production meeting over a contract or mail leads to a minimum of confusion and changes if need on the day of the shoot. One is indeed responsible to be in touch with the head of the creative (agency, client, photographer, director) and the producer to be on the same page.

For all the Indian residents: Mumbai has been the epitome of the entertainment industry even before the independence and it is one of the best places to get your journey started, though never underestimate the other upcoming sectors like Tollywood, Trollywood and more. To add opportunities exist all over the world and if you have access to work overseas don't be scared to take a chance.

To sum up it all, they all require years of practice along with good presentation skills both online and offline, which will lead you to get connected to the right people. The above goes hand in hand if you are a photographer or planning to be one.

TO NOTE: If you are wondering in case I can share few details about production houses and agencies, sadly I cannot take any guarantee hence mentioning anything can be misleading. I will request you to kindly look over Google and connect them to know more about vacancies and opportunities. Good Luck!

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Hello,

I am Shovona Karmakar, an #advertising #commercial #photographer | #productstylist | #cinemagraph artist, presently based in #Mumbai, India. It has been a long long road to be where I am now and I sincerely feel it is very important to share whatever I have to offer. I have been fortunate to make a living out of my skill to be creative and have had worked with various national and international brands, corporates and agencies. Cadbury, TATA, Morningstar USA, Parachute, Future Generali to name a few.

Ping me for any work-related queries and will be happy to jump into the pool to make the much-needed party happen.

Thank you for reading!

Why we never stop evolving

Evolution is an important aspect of we as being humans. Charle's theory of the survival of the best leads to evolution and there is something which keeps hitting me back since my high school we "Discover" we don't "Invent". My high school English teacher once narrated the theory behind and it is just deep-rooted in my brain since then.

The article is not about the fight between discovering and invent, I just thought to clarify my side but both participate equally in the ongoing process of moving the life ahead. I was chatting with one of my acquaintances over Facebook and realized how people have a strong belief in life that will move on may whatever be the circumstances. I am writing this article as the lockdown is ongoing and myself sitting in my studio apartment thinking very hard what to do next?

This article is going to be self-centric and I hope it gives you enough ideas to do what you can do. I am a freelance commercial photographer, a cinemagraph artist, and a product stylist and I guess I have enough roles now to play and earn around it. To add I have always had an interest in being a model cum actor but every audition came with a disappointment and I eventually realized my appearance is not exactly Indian market-centric or else, well whatever may be the reason I was always displaced and canned at the last moment. I eventually stopped giving any in front of the camera changes and stuck to being behind and It has helped me a lot to survive and lead a life I wished. "The dip" by Seth Godin later helped me to understand that hitting the wall is not worth it if it's not even creating a crack. Anyway, moving on to my evolution, I started as an editorial photographer for an online magazine which later leads me to have a full-fledged portfolio of portrait and people and eventually got hold of more and finally an advertising campaign setting my foot into the advertising world.

I before proceeding to my so-called brief journey want to state the realistic aspect that all the factors came into space due to the lack of options, scarcity lead me to take chances and evolve.

As I got more product-related assignments, lack of budget and the client being open to ideas I tried my hand over product styling and lead me to act as one and helped me to earn a little extra on the side.

As a cinemagraph artist, I did a few potential campaigns but market was very skeptical hence it never became a big hit for myself.

I tried, and I still try to give a try to every opportunity and however I am hesitant to things I have never tried before I personally believe there is always a start.

I have picked up some of the bestselling self-help books and every book teaches us an aspect of hanging on and prolonging the desire we wish to be, some taught me to leave things the way they are and not to commercialize every aspect of my existence.

I love to dance and I love working out but I have never thought to earn from it cause they are the source of my happiness and personal development and a way to let people know what I am apart from my work. Cooking is my other way of self de-stressing and something I have found deep disappointment is dating someone. Every initial conversation does start with something promising but ended up on an abrupt note and it eventually pushed me to seek therapy. I recently loved the fact that I came out with my issue of depression and depressive episodes and my intellectual sessions have helped me to understand that I need to break free the norms I thought will not be acceptable by the society, in-fact opening up the way I am in person and on a subconscious way has helped me to connect more to people and portray the aspect of being more approachable.

Seeking therapy is not making me cuckoo but I guess we all need and seek some kind of non-judgemental guidance to evolve and evolve for ourselves.

Evolution is not just self-centered but even when we wish to fill a gap or curious or just there is a scarcity which needs to be met, the very present time is one of the epitomai of times in the history which is in the making if and when we find a way to fight the very Corona. When we don't know but I know things will not be the same globally and evolution will be on its peak to seek a solution for any future mishap if any on the way.

As an artist, as a human, as a loved one to one and as whoever we are and we are everything at ones, to be honest, we all seek to improve ourselves.

We will not stop or pause because it is not in the DNA and it is too easy to say sitting in my cozy apartment but with due living a life of 30 years I know what I am talking. I have not stopped seeking a way to evolve in my work and my thought process and it will not end as long as I am alive. We all are seeking a better tomorrow and we all are seeing to be in a better place.

We cannot escape evolution even if we seek minimalism and we will deter to be better in it day after day.

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Hii, I am shovona, a freelance commercial photographer who resides in the economic hub of India, Mumbai. As an artist, I undergo the above almost every day and I am here to support others to let them feel cool about anything happening in life.

Feel free to contact me for any portrait, corporate, food, product photography related queries or just drop a hi! at

shovonakar@gmail.com

#commercialphotographer #portraitphotographer #productstylist

Future is You...

When we call self an artist, the very image of being starving and always broke is something comes in a lay man's mind. We, most of you in this case are from metro cities far more reached and far more open to opportunities which were considered neoconservative/unsafe.

Past few years we have seen a steep boom of photographers, graphic designers. UI, CGI artist, animators, illustrators and more of its kind of story tellers, enough to have a very unhealthy competition of supply and demand and price cut hence it is still considered one hell of an occupation to be.

Freelancing is new trend for many to live a lifestyle with so many ill-practices and myths one lives by but on the other hand its a new and more healthy way to cope with unemployment. Recently the budget passed by the govt of India is more inclined towards freelancing and is its a good news? Only time will tell but its all about believe we need to live with.

Now coming back to the statement I have made above in the heading, what exactly is the future of Imagery business and the answer is simple Conceptually Versatile.

MIX MEDIA IS ON THE RISE

Photography has been a craze past 15 years and so with the boom of digital cameras and how easy and affordable they are, but as time passed we saw a trend of bending realities and motion graphics adding an edge to it. Its indeed a clear indication that things are moving faster than before and if you wish to be in the competition you need to step up your game. Sadly the market craving for such is still very niche specially in India and as per my experience with national and international clients things are better outdoors. People still considering self an old school master should not loose hope but one who desires to join the upcoming market should initiate thinking little out of the box.

Investment in an upgraded system may sound pricey to you at the present point of time but you will surely thank yourself in coming times.

Present market is looking for people who have concepts more connected to people as it has more power to move them. We are far more reached via social media and other mediums and hence people are either sensitive or not so sensitive at all. The overall agenda is to find ways to grab the attention span a little more than given by them and let them know the message we have in mind. Your concept needs to be a little more than either still or moving, it needs to be engaging unbiased of the fact it can be as stupid and as funny as possible.

MORE CONCEPT BASED IDEAS

Following with the above, we have seen a change in advertisement where either the technology is giving an edge and above all the story is making the overall difference. Television commercials are more home made and hand stitched taking us back to the days when things were more practically worth living peacefully.

Raw is the new form of visual treatment where we can see ourselves and effect is far more outgoing. There is no denial of the over the top commercials and pictures which are purely meant for entertainment purposes.

MORE PSYCHOLOGY BASED PROFESSION

Freelancing and any profession per say takes a toll on our mental health in a long run if and when ignored. Recently I met a professor teaching in a design college and loved the passion he has for a better design future for his students. This puts me to the thinking if teaching is a profession where one can help shape one with a better mindset. The more late back and minute the job was been considered back in 90s and 80s the more important aspect they tend to play at the present point of time. Basics aka foundation needs a solid brush stroke.

Sharing the knowledge what you have gained is a new way to counsel people known and unknown and is very much a trend we are gonna see in future. Quality education is either gonna be free or more reachable is something time will say but with the kind of chaotic market it is many bloggers are flexible to give away in a more pocket friendly subscription.

If I need to be frank the quality of design school in India still has a long way to go but keeping hope is never a bad thing.

The line between Photo, film and CGI

Visual creative business has far gone than we can expect and reaching the skill is only beholden by few largely due to the raw material needed, funds and above all the interest and patience one require to be there.

If you think you have the moral and financial support to hang on and surpass more of the mental hurdles to acquire the skill of mastermind, its the best investment you can ever have. If you start today for sure in coming years market is gonna lean more towards its demands.

Artificial Intelligence is controversial

We tend to not so like the artificial intelligence which may or may not have the potential to replace us in the coming future, the competition is very unclear but they indeed have proved from time to time the authority they may have on us. Living in fear is not an option has its more towards economical growth at present but scientist are due trying to imbibe the capabilities for them to take few independent creative calls.

Lets face it, phones and computers are far more advanced than before yet we are calling the calls and trust me it will take a lot for a client to hire them than us so relax.

Coming back to the basics of any freelancing or job, certain things don't change as evolution takes years to come to practical. Supporting yourself with the expensive deal you will have to face will make the life hard to live and will take toll on your mind, as there is nothing easy, even baking a cake has its calculations to follow.

Clients will tend to be ignorant of your struggle and they will continue to push you down from time to time, as long as you hang on you will prove your worth to them.

Visual imagery is not a business of money it is pure passion and pure sheer to master your skill to give back something worth getting inspired and move the mind within. Money will follow, quality clients will come to you and you will carter things to a brighter side eventually.

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Hello, myself Shovona, a freelance commercial photographer, product stylist and a cinemagraph artist presently based out of India. Freelancing is an accident I am living a happy life with and looking forward to more opportunities to explore the unexplored side of mine.

#dailyblogger #photographer #womanphotographer #productstylist #mumbaiphotographer