As a photography lecturer on the Photography Apprenticeship, I always get asked what genres do you enjoy shooting the most? Do you prefer to capture stunning architecture shots, capture beautiful fashion models as they walk down the runway, or photograph couples as they exchange their vows in front of all their friends and family? No matter what your favourite genre is, it’s important to be knowledgeable about the basics of photography so that you can create amazing images that everyone will love. So, whether you’re a seasoned pro or just getting started in photography, which genre should you choose?
During my career I have owned 3 photography studios:
- Family Portrait studio
- Boudoir Studio
- Commercial studio
Each studio was exciting and we worked on so many different types of photography shoots. It was a perfect place for photography apprenticeships, as every day produced new learning experiences. In simple terms, every day was different and every day we worked with so many different types of people.
Over the 16 years, I photographed over 200 weddings and I loved working with so many amazing people. Every wedding was different and in many ways I was using every style of photography all in one day.
I trained with one of the best UK wedding photographers, Peter Constable, and he showed me that you have to be technical plus have a creative eye. If I could give any photography apprentice a tip it would be to go and learn how to be a wedding photographer.
You have to take great building shots, food shots, fashion shots and massive group shots, all without getting stressed and whilst dealing with demanding customers. I loved every single minute.
So, which was my favourite genre? Well, I personally loved the challenge of Architecture Photography.
To be honest it was a bit like a holiday. I travelled all over the UK and internationally and would turn up to an amazing location and have to judge the environment and look for the wow factor composition. Yes folks, I didn’t take a 1000 images and hope for the best, I would actually only take about 20 – 30 pics all day.
I simply had my trademark bottle of coke in one hand and was looking for the sun to light my location. I would look for the position of the paving and building. Sorry I forgot to say, I photographed paving for one of the UK’s best paving suppliers.
Exciting, some would say not, but folks, I loved every minute.
So in simple terms, I enjoyed every genre because I loved the challenge of creating images that would sing. When you create an image and you say wow, I did that. Then it’s a great day and I tried to do that every day.
So let me ask you the future Photography apprentice a question, do you enjoy taking photographs of architecture, fashion or weddings? If so, which genre do you find the most enjoyable? Some photographers prefer to stick to one genre, while others enjoy photographing a range of different subjects. I think I would have been bored just working on 1 genre every day. I needed my quiet days photographing paving and speeding up north to a new location and then I loved photographing models in my commercial studio when we had a big team for the magazine shoots. Yes folks I loved being bossy.
While it may be difficult to choose just one favourite genre of photography, we would love to help you explore these genres further by having you join our Photography Apprenticeship and let our tutors guide you.
1 great tip for all young photographers, get out and take as many pictures as you can. You will learn from the experiences you gain.