Why you can choose this profession
Did you know that the entire world’s population comprises several billion and out of these billions population different people have their attention vested in different disciplines and interests? Some people are talented with what they enjoy most and definitely earn through their talents while others get to do what they love doing through a learned process. Becoming a car photographer, therefore, must be accompanied with justifications – that’s why choose this career? The following are some reasons why you choose it
- It’s more fun to take shots of every type and models of cars to be it new, modeled or modified.
- It can be a source of income to help you put food on the table
- It helps one improve on communication skills as one engages with car owners and manufactures
- It enables you to network with people across diverse cultures, religions, races, and classes which improves international relations
- There’s plenty of cars to be photographed and gradual expansion of the automobile industry will forever keep car photographers in the business
- Little capital is required for one to venture into such a profession
- Less skill is also required for one to become a professional car photographer
Car photographer opportunities
How to become a car photographer means diving deeply and touching a variety of cars, which are classified and categorized differently. Let’s exploit some areas of car photography which include the following
Commercial automotive photography
Have you ever wondered what commercial automotive photographers do? relax as you are at home and today is your day to rest your thoughts and questions. Commercial automotive photographers take photographs used for companies, associations, community or group magazines, websites, catalogs, printed flyers and for social media platforms with the greatest goal of promoting their products and brands.
Toy car photography
Model makers will forever require a toy car photographer to capture excellent scenes of their miniatures toy cars. These shots are used for promotional and advertisement purposes. Like as RC Crawler, short course truck etc.
Classic car photography
Are you stranded and mesmerized about those coolest photos of well-restored classic cars that dates back to several centuries ago? Or are you wondering who captures those attractive photos like that of 1939 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 owned by Benito Mussolini? Well, it’s the job of classic car photographers to take elegant and illustrative shots of these aged gems.
Pepper car photography
Do you wish to venture into a less common area of photographing rare care types and brands tagged with very huge sale prices that can only be afforded by extraordinary rich individuals? Then count yourself lucky as pepper car photography is for you and will eventually make you photograph one of the very few and rare automobiles such as Bugatti Veyron Super Sports Rembrandt given their number that they are only three in the whole world.
How to be a car photographer step by step
To become a car photographer must be accompanied by cleverly selected procedures that can be modified to suit your needs. The following are steps and tips that guide one in becoming a professional and renown car photographer
Setting out – There are various ways and helpful recommendations for one to begin his/her career in car photography and the best of all involve owning a vehicle or hiring one to enable you to practice the art of photography with it. It’s much advantageous if you happen to have friends and colleagues who can give you permission to take photos of their car, which gives you a wide perspective involving different cars.
Choosing the appropriate location – Great photos with amazing sceneries and settings cant be achieved without properly deciding and arranging the stage to get the best shots out of it. Great location has different meanings and themes. Coolest shots can only be obtained with proper location.
Taking shots in a natural setting – Try and select natural settings, which translate to shots surrounded or with God-given backgrounds. The natural setting means natural light sources such as the sun and moon, natural light, sky and its elements such as clouds and vegetation cant be left out in the photos. Natural settings may take place along a water body, in the park, driveway or on the roads. Sunrise and sunset can be covered at this juncture.
Shooting in unnatural setting – Taking shots in such a setting requires prior planning and deep thinking to avoid taking unreasonable and poor photos that will cost you in every way possible. Unnatural settings may include indoor spaces without sufficient lighting, which requires a high level of professionalism for one to obtain acceptable photos.
Consider lighting in the process of taking your photos – Lighting is a vital element for every photographer needing to produce impressive and touchy photos. Lighting in photography depends on the time of the day such as sunrise and sunset golden rays. Try and utilize these unmatched rays to produce unimaginably attractive photo shots.
Setting photo-shooting angles – With your car positioned in an appropriate location and proper lighting ready, it’s your turn to take different photos from different angles and trajectories. Avoid use of common angles that lead to ordinary photo shots instead focus on getting unique photo shots from cleverly and genuinely selected angles.
Focus on exterior details – Different types and brands of cars have what makes them special and distinct from each other. These distinct exterior features might be that Audi or Mercedes Benz logo, it can be the design of the doors and lights or front part of the car, which might be unique and is worth being brought out boldly. Try as far as you can to capture unique and distinct exterior features from different car brands.
Careful interior photo shots – A car interior can be well designed with genuine features but it takes keen professionals to bring out the beauty of every car interior. It’s a big challenge to photograph a small space inside a car, however; the challenge can be overcome through a careful setting of the camera taking into consideration you focus on the car interior. Vertical, horizontal and inclines interior photo shots with a few tweaks can lead to amazing photos desired by every eye.
Utilize panning technique – At this step, a car is captured while in motion as it drives off at a speed on a road track or racetrack, which brings out a stunning look of the car keeping it in focus and causing a blurring effect on its background.
Compare your shots with existing ones – Lastly, try and compare the shots that you’ve taken with existing ones in car magazines and websites and gauge your status. Even though what you obtain can’t be matched with the photos you see in advertisements, it’s a good start to keep you busy and practicing
How much do car photographers make?
Every job has its pay scale and car photographers are no exception. Different countries pay different amounts of taxes and have different modes of paying professionals for services renders to them. An example of earning method for car photographers in the USA according to www.payscale.com include the following all given per year
- a) Average salary $40,706
- b) Average additional compensation are;
- Commission $2,035
- Bonus $1,016
iii. Profit Sharing $1,024
Where can one find automotive photography internship opportunities?
All professionals do their daily tasks and render their services to different customers spread across different sectors of the economy. Professionals in the automobile photography may find job opportunities and internships in the following areas
- Automobile manufacturers
- Automobile wholesalers
iii. Automobile retailers
- Automobile promoting and advertising agencies
- Classic Automobile collectors
- Automobile magazine producing companies
In conclusion, how to become a car photographer is as easy taking a cup of tea, all you need is practice, practice, and practice.
