Joey Wallace

When you first pick up a camera and take pictures, you might feel a little joy. Initially, you may be overwhelmed by the information, but it will be really easy if you put the camera on automatic and take pictures. Family pictures can be a lot of fun, but once you start becoming more proficient or professional with the camera, it can get very overwhelming. I think the best approach is to decide what you want to do first before you start exploring the ocean of options and styles out there. If you just want to have fun with it, just have fun with it. Don't worry about pictures other people take, as long as you like what you see and change what you don't.

There are many cameras that are easy to use, such as point-and-shoot models, which can still provide great quality images. Once you start going towards becoming a professional, it becomes very, very difficult and overwhelming. So, definitely search and research. Go to school, and look for resources. If you can, it'll be a lot easier if you just do one thing; don't try to do everything. You might say, “I'm going to do action pictures at the park, during the daytime, and I’ll do it for friends or family for practice.” Once you figure out what you want to do, then it will just be fun, fun, fun.

Once you start seeing people’s reactions after you take and show them the photos you took of them or their children or whoever, people will be very happy and then they will be wowed. And that's the biggest prize that you have. As a professional later on, you're going to make a lot of mistakes in the process. And you must learn from those mistakes. Don't be belligerent. Be flexible. Listen to your clients. See what they didn't like and improve. That's the best and only way to improve your photography or videography, really just listening to your client and subjects that you took photos or videos of, and seeing what they think. And based on that, you will improve. And once you reach that level of professionalism, then you just make a lot of money and you'll be happy.