Studio Ostendo operates in multiple creative fields including photography, design, and education.
In all stages of your photography business, you’ll want add images to your wedding photography portfolio that reflect your artistic goals and attract your target client. Whether you’re just beginning your wedding photography business or you’re a seasoned photographer with years of experience, you can utilize these tips for building up your photography portfolio!
Maybe you’re frustrated because the weddings you currently have booked are not at the kind of venues you want to photograph at in the future. Or maybe your style is evolving and your current portfolio doesn’t reflect that. Or maybe you're just getting started and need to build a portfolio of images from scratch.
While assisting other photographers doesn’t literally give you images to add to your portfolio, it can help you in other strategic ways. Assisting can give you opportunities to observe photographers you admire and learn from them. It gives you VIP access into another photographer’s process on a wedding day! Assisting other wedding photographers also means that you gain experience working at different venues and with different vendors. While you should not be promoting your own business day-of, it doesn’t hurt to introduce yourself and get to know others who are also working that wedding day.
Second shooting can help you gain experience and give you images to include in your wedding photography portfolio. Join a local referral group or ask another photographer if they have any second shooting opportunities! Second shooting before taking your own weddings and/or as a way to build your portfolio can help you gain valuable experience and practice. If you’d like to be able to use the images you take second shooting for your own portfolio, make sure the photographers you second shoot for allow that before taking the job and/or sharing any photographs you take.
If you’re looking to grow your wedding photography portfolio, try designing a free photo session that captures a location, style and aesthetic you’re going for! For example, you could reach out to a married couple (whose wedding attire you loved) to model for you and bring them a bouquet in a location you’ve always wanted to do couple portraits on a wedding day! Designing a free session strategically (and setting the parameters yourself) can allow you to focus on creating the exact shots you’re hoping for to supplement your portfolio!
As you try each of these ways to build your portfolio, don’t forget to take advantage of the networking and relational opportunities that come from each of them. The more you invest in the creative community around you, the stronger your work and business will become!
For more wedding photography tips, follow along @ostendo.academy!
In all stages of your photography business, you’ll want add images to your wedding photography portfolio that reflect your artistic goals and attract your target client.
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