Why Building A Fashion Photography Career Takes Time

Recently I've been thinking a lot about how long it actually takes to build a career as a fashion photographer. Now, I'm not saying this to put you off, or to fill you with dread, or to make you feel inadequate. Quite the opposite - it's to remind you that this is a tough industry! 

I've been "shooting" for 11 years. I first began to take pictures at 16, and I'm not 27. I'm STILL learning something new all the time. Be it about photography itself, about business, or about who I am as a person. And even though I've had a camera in my hand for 11 years, I genuinely still feel like a beginner most of the time. Then again, I'm not sure that feeling ever goes away. 

Don't put so much pressure on yourself to think that you need to be good at everything super fast. Don't even expect yourself to be a master after a decade. When you see the people at the top of their game, they're rarely super young. Sure, with the internet, Instagram, Youtube, etc, the doors to fashion photography have opened up earlier (we saw that with Tyler Mitchell shooting Beyonce for Vogue USA at age 18!) but that really is the exception to the rule. Most everyone else you see at the top of their games are in their late thirties to mid forties and over! They've spent years and years building their connections, learning about the industry, mastering their craft and honing their eye.

I don't know about you but that thought gives me comfort. Let's me "off the hook" for not yet having been published in a Vogue or Harpers Bazaar magazine. It puts into perspective that this career is a long term game, not to give up, to keep pushing, and to know that good things come to those who wait. 

So if you take anything away from this post today, be it this: where you are is exactly where you're supposed to be. Don't rush things. Let yourself go at your pace. Keep learning, keep pushing forward and keep your ultimate goals in mind.