37 - too old to start?

I shall not risk to give advice. I shall tell only about myself. I have begun immersing in this business when my counter showed more than forty five. So your figure, the young man, does not make on me the big impression. Much more important your creative opportunities and presence of enthusiasm.

Travis -

Seems you're asking four or five questions here

1. On quitting you job and starting from scratch - Don't - unless you have a fairly significant savings built up. Especially if the competition in your area (and who's isn't) tough right now. Lately everyone who has a digital slr is a "wedding" photographer. In the most recent yellow pages there's over 500 ads for wedding photographers in my area. Draw up a plan with your partner and decide what's going to make you unique. Save every cent that you can - you'll need it until you get rolling.

2. I started my business at the plus side of 40. Age is a number. Keep in mind though that I have been doing photography since I was in High School. (ahh...the days in the darkroom and the smell of Dektol and D76)

3. Learning as a 2nd shooter or a backup is an excellent way to do it, especially if you don't have friends / family getting married where you can observe the hired photographer. Find someone near you that is willing to take on an inexperienced 2nd shooter.

4. Don't dive in without a plan. Decide what is going to separate you from the competition. Are you going to be high end? (think 3-5 thousand per wedding) Or Budget? - There's a market for both. Some brides automatically go high end others go budget. Neither is wrong... but don't try to be a budget shooter and charge high-end prices. Also, don't try to be high end and deliver budget quality.

5. Absolutely Not! If that's all the equipment you've got, you're woefully under equipped. The 5d is a great wedding camera (and that's coming from a Nikon shooter) but 1 is not enough. You need backups my friend. I shoot weddings with no fewer than 3 bodies. Two are on me at all times and a third is where I can get it quickly should 1 or both fail. Rule #1 of weddings - have at least 1 preferably 2 backups of everything. That includes camera, flash, batteries, lenses, etc.... It's not a cheap thing to dive into. As for the no flash - get two, see rule #1, now! or even better get two plus a portable studio lighting kit. The rational behind backups is this... You don't want to have to walk up to the bride and groom on their day and tell them..."Opps - My only camera just died and I don't have a backup, and I can't fix it now...So sorry - I'm not going to be able to finish your wedding." Not a pleasant moment. You really don't want that to happen.

If after reading all of this...you still decide to do it... Good Luck!

Shooting weddings is perhaps one of the biggest joys of being a photographer, but it's also stressful and costly to get set-up right.

Dave

"I have read some of the informative threads under this forum with regards to starting out from the experts but still am not sure......"

I would suggest that you start reading most of the old threads about first weddings.

I'd second everything David [Haas] says above. And I'm 47 myself. Age is a number. It does help to be in good physical shape, though, because capturing the wedding day is physically challenging and exhausting. As you get older, it doesn't get easier!

I'm waaaaay older than that. I started shooting weddings when I was waaaay older than that (8 years running so far, averaging 15 to 20 a year while holding down a demanding day job) ... and I do all my own post work and printing myself ... and make my own albums ... and carry a MF camera or dual frame pro DSLR that so many seem to weak to use ... and have a bad knee from a 30 year old sports injury : -)

If I can do it anyone can.

As you get older, you just happen to get more experienced ... and hopefully you get smarter ... so you waste less energy on useless movements and frenzied running around like a chicken with it's head cut off ... you get very efficient at picking your positions, and knowing what is coming next so you can anticipate and act without doing it in a nervous panic.

Best of luck!

There are many better qualified to talk equipment but I wouldn't have thought age would be problem, quite the opposite. When we were looking for a wedding photographer I'd probably have had more trouble adjusting to the idea one about the same age or younger than us (which was late 20s at the time). The implicit gravitas/responsibility of age I guess :-).

I started my own successful wedding business at the age of 65 out of a single unplanned wedding when the hired photgrapher dropped out at the last minute. It worked so well that age the age of 72 I quit because I was exhausted did not want to work that hard any more. But then, I had good MF and 35mm equipment, knew something about business and got along very well with my clients with a somewhat fatherly image. I would say at my advanced age that age is only a barrier if you make it so.

Yeah Dick, but you swim too: that keeps you young! Everyone should swim, IMO :)

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Travis:

37 is young, I started learning the piano at 40.

Where your head is at; enthusiasm; focus; attitude; and discipline are important elements.

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IMO it is correct to be concerned about the business side of things, in fact many (I believe) do not even recognize it is a business, and go blindly into it because they ``love photography and Aunt Mable said they were a good photographer``.

That said one 5D and two lenses is in no way a suitable amount of gear. In the very first case, what do you do if the 5D freezes? (MINE HAS).

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Being ``concerned about the business`` leads me to this . . . please take the following commentary as sincere and certainly quite serious, and with the intent of assisting you.

I cannot find words to write it any other way, but directly:

You are an hero here at Photonet, and have been around since 2001 or before, now I guess that means I can assume you know a bit about a bit . . . and have done a bit, and read a bit

So, with that assumed experience and knowledge it really worries me, in a question which is supposedly encompassing a change of one`s life structure one would ask:

``I have a 5D and a 35/50 combo. No flash. Good enough?``

This comment might have been a throw away statement, or just you method of asking, generally what gear is required . . .

But to my reading, I get a certain ``very casual feel`` to the whole question of staring up a business.

Professional Wedding Photography is a business, which has responsibilities to the client and, in some instances, more importantly, to oneself.

If you are to proceed, I suggest you very quickly get more business like, and business focussed and quite serious and professional in the planning stages.

The knowledge, experience, and common sense you already (should) possess and more importantly a business like attitude to the task, seems to not yet being displayed: that is not a good sign for a potential business venturer, IMO.

WW

Well first off, are people begging you to shoot their day?

If that answer is yes, then you have a starting point. If not, I would seek to second/assist someone first.

Your not too old IMO, in fact I think one could start this at age 50+ and be fine.

On the kit front, well you will likely be needing double that and then some + flashes.

Best, D.