“ Why try to fit in when you are a standout” A quote from whom I consider to be only one of the best rappers of all time, none other than Joe Budden. Beginning your journey on how to stand out in a saturated market thanks to Instagram, of photographers you are probably curious to know how you can stand out.That’s a good question and it is an important question. Let's say a client is looking for some people to help them go through some photographic process. They are looking through hundreds or maybe even thousands of Instagram accounts. How do you stand out? How do you become the person that they hire? Welp, that's what this section is all about.
First pieces of advice, explore your own unique vision. You see the world differently from anyone else so don't be afraid to show that. That's what makes you unique, that's what's going to make you stand out from the crowd. I'm a little bit weird, I post anime, things I find funny, music, inspirational quotes and investing templates on my Instagram story to kind of show people I am more than a photographer. I also like to shoot fashion and editorial which totally goes against the grain living in Miami where their market is swimwear and commercial market. That's what makes me stand out of the crowd. If you are into shooting weddings, babies, blood and gore, guts, and death metal stuff. Go for it there is a market for that as well. It's your own unique vision, thats what is going to make you stand out as a photographer.
Produce as much work as you possibly can. Have a good idea of what you would want to do someday. Let's say in 5 to 10 years you want to shoot for Nike. That doesn't mean if you can't shoot for Nike tomorrow that you shouldn't shoot at all. You should be shooting all the time. You should get out there and try to shoot the work that you one day want to be paid for. So if you are not doing the work then you are not meeting those clients, well how do they know that you can do the job? They don't, so they will probably go with someone else whos doing those things.
Don't follow trends but be aware of what's going on in your industry. Always be on the lookout for new work that's out but that doesn't mean you have to try to replicate trends that are already happening because that actually puts you behind. What you should be doing is putting in your energy and passion into something you are into and focus on moving foward. Trends happen when someone is doing something really cool and everyone tries to copy it. You should ultimately try to do something that you really enjoy and if people copy it and it becomes a trend then sure thats awesome, but don't focus on trying to start a new trend. Push to be great and there will be people that would want to be just like you.