Yesterday, I emailed a person on flickr that comments occasionally on my photos. I don't know him very well at all but read his profile and saw that he has quite a lengthy background as a professional photographer and a long list of degrees, publishings, awards etc., etc., etc. So, I asked him his opinion of my shots. He was kind enough to reply and gave me very in-depth valuable feedback, constructive criticism and advice. It gave me much food for thought yesterday and today about my photography!

Due to the changes in unemployment comp, mine runs out in a few months so I either could A) sell all my equipment as a temporary fix or B) Have my equipment make any amount of $ possible for as long as possible.

So, I finally placed my first ad today as a photographer!!

http://racine.craigslist.org/crs/3117399818.html

I changed the poster from my previous "Pet Photography" ad I never placed awhile back. I know the prices are low compared to others that have ads in my area but I am new to it and don't feel I can charge any more than that right now. I really probably should be doing this for free until I build a portfolio but I can't afford to do that either!

As suggested by my flickr pal, I will be going mostly for outdoor natural light shots. He told me to buy reflectors but I can't spend a cent until I make a cent so it is the first thing on my list to buy as soon as possible!

So, wish me luck and please leave any comments or advice. You may mention details or a scenerio that I haven't thought of! I tend to not think things through sometimes ...LOL!

Also, I have a question for everyone. I see many offer CD's and DVD's of the photos taken from the session for around $20. I really don't want to do this but is it pretty standard to offer this now? I would prefer to just put a gallery up on my website for them to view and purchase the photos they want and have them printed professionally.