I signed up for a class that starts in two weeks.

There were a few interesting jobs out there, probably none of which earn much money, but the variety appeals to me. One was for photographing projects steps for a do it yourself website. Another was to photograph houses for a vacation rental website. Then there were multiple positions for school photographers. While I don’t think there’s a salaried position out there, they may be enough to piece together a supplemental living in addition to my pension.

Also, I have an opportunity to enter a piece at the Meadowlands for next spring’s exhibit, but I have to have something by next month. I should get on that! 8 months ago

I am getting paid for my real estate shoot. The lady estimated it at 150-200 dollars. It was only an hour plus editing on top of that. But I am happy she was pleased with the results! 10 months ago

this Saturday. I’m assisting R. but it’s still a great learning opportunity. I have a list of ideas to try already. 12 months ago

Yesterday my club had a gallery opening (boy, that sounds so cultured! :) I had 2 prints for sale and I sold one for 80 dollars! My first cash earned with photography… now my grandma can be happy (she is always asking me WHEN?) The funny thing was it was the only print sold at all yesterday. My friend stopped by to say hello which was so very nice of her. There was wine, cheese, people chatting and I felt happy, not scared. I want to buy a small present for my husband with this money :) 12 months ago

My photo was picked to represent our club (among 5 others) at a local black & white photography competition. I got an email that I received the double amount of votes of any other entry. That’s so exciting! I have to prepare my print though and I have no idea how to deal with mats, etc. Will be googling it tomorrow. The funny thing is that the photo was taken by my old point and shoot camera :) That just proves that equipment is not everything in photography. 13 months ago

I’d like to add a few things I’ve done recently in order to accomplish this goal.
1. The wedding on March 3rd went very well and I got invited by the same photographer to assist her on another 3 weddings (next one being in May)
2. I’m invited to photograph an event on May 1st. I’m going to set up a photo booth and just have fun (need to buy some props)
3. I applied to volunteer for MOSAIC (organization that helps newcomers) and they want me to photograph their volunteer appreciation party on April 19th (they will call me for an interview hopefully soon)
4. Our club will have a gallery rented and we are going to exhibit our work. That’s the most exciting one for me! We would be able to sell prints too (I don’t have hopes set too high though)
5. A photo date this week where I can practice outdoor portraiture and to use a reflector
6. I will have 2 opportunities to photograph weddings while in Minsk this year (my sister already talked to her pro photographer and he accepted me as his second shooter – hooray!) Another wedding is my cousin’s. Those photos will be in my portfolio and I can put my name on them, finally.

I realized I need an external flash. Had a talk with husband and we are getting it. Wish it didn’t cost an arm and leg, but there’s nothing we can do about it. I’m also looking in online courses… But that’s another story and another goal. 13 months ago

I got a small grant from a government to help me establish myself in Canada. It can only be used for classes in my case and shouldn’t take more than a year. Of course, it happens when I am reconsidering the whole school thing. 15 months ago

I took photos of a masquerade organized by friends and it went really well. I used built-in flash but custom settings and the photos came out nicely. Of course, it was for free, but it made a good practice and was great for networking. I think there were at least a 100 people at the party and I got mentioned on fb page of the event as a photographer. But going to complete strangers and asking them if they wanted a photo wasn’t really easy… I was super anxious. 15 months ago

Well since I last wrote a lot has happened.

My Husband bought me my first camera. I didn’t end up getting an Olympus, I ended up getting a Canon 550d which was absolutely the right choice and it has served me well.

I also completed a year long course in Photography at college. I finished in July 2011. The first half of the course was great, it taught me about increasing my awareness of different types of photography but above all it, it taught me the importance of getting out there and just doing it.

I completed a few paid photography job last year which included…

- A 1 year old’s christening/birthday party

- An English wedding in a hotel

- A Muslim Asian wedding

- An Asian Engagement party

I also covered a few other events.

I read that to be considered professional you have to earn 100% of your income from photography. In which case I would say I’m semi-professional. So technically I’m half way there, but I feel like there is still loads to learn and that there will always be new stuff to learn.

I have now also upgraded to a Canon 5d mark II which is used a lot of filming in the industry. I have actually done a bit of filming with it myself. I think in the future, this is something I want to do a bit more of.

My goal now is to get some experience with a professional photographer just to see how other people work and pick up some more tips. 16 months ago