I’m coming to the end of my first year as an emerging wedding photographer and what a ride it’s been! From seeking my first wedding to building a brand identity and website; from running promotions to blogging for Current Photographer, it’s been non-stop all the way and I wouldn’t change a thing!

I’ve gained a huge amount of knowledge from first hand experience of running a business as well as the hundreds of hours spent learning, training and networking online.

And it’s that last point that I’d like to focus on in this post: the need to network.

For a lot of photographers and artists, it’s about being an individual and expressing their thoughts, feelings, passions. They’re happy to spend all day alone and even enjoy having a reputation for being a bit aloof. But when you make that excited decision to turn your hobby into a business you have to realise that, like it or not, it’s the business side that becomes a priority. Sure you can sit at home after shooting your first few weddings and expect that one day you’ll be discovered by a celebrity couple who are dying to have you shoot their six figure wedding. Good luck with that! The reality for the rest of us is that you have to get out there are make yourself known ‘cos bills don’t pay themselves!

Looking back on my first year there are three clear ways that I’ve made networking pay off for me and I’d like to share them with you.

1: Network with suppliers

Committing yourself to a life in the wedding industry means accepting that wedding gowns, hair styles, flowers and table decorations are going to feature a lot in your day to day conversations (in addition to “cheesecake” of course for me!). That means you need to gain the knowledge to speak intelligently to clients and peers as an informed wedding professional. And if you’re a guy this means you’re heading for one steep learning curve! So look out for regular supplier meet-ups in your area where you can get to know local celebrants, planners, stylists, florists, stationery designers and other photographers. Meet-ups are quite often organised by wedding planners as they have an intrinsic need to know suppliers who can be matched to their clients’ requirements. I go to the monthly Thursday Throwdowns in Sydney organised by Girl Friday Weddings which essentially involve catching up over a lot of red wine! But that’s the fun of networking; not only do you make useful contacts and learn loads about the various industry niches, but time builds trust and pretty soon you find yourself part of an invaluable referral system. And on top of that you also make awesome new friends who actually understand what you do! Read More→