As I mentioned in an earlier post on specialization, although some degree of focus is probably beneficial for photographers, actual selection of the niche can be difficult.
I believe the most important factors in selecting the area of specialization are
- What you enjoy doing/shooting.
- What you are good at.
Also relevant, but somewhat less important question is whether a lot of expensive equipment would be required (and whether you already have some of it).
Some business experts also suggest considering how competitive the prospective niche is and how well would it pay. I would argue that for someone, who is not looking to immediately make photography his/her main career by abandoning the current way of making a living, these considerations are a poor place to start. Personally, I would not want to trade the enjoyment of photography for potential financial returns, although I find the commercial aspects of photography (as any applied art, for that matter) fascinating.
I started doing travel and stock photography, because it allowed me to add focus to family vacations, and it had a potential for very passive income from repeat sales. Presently, I think that stock photography has two main drawbacks. From financial perspective, the income is very low, and a very large portfolio is needed before any money starts trickling in at all. Perhaps more importantly, from creative standpoint, my stock photos that have been most successful are rather cliché. Taking those kind of photos requires looking at the subject not through my own eyes, but rather through the eyes of a corporate client (which is an average of about all possible clients one can imagine). It can be a fun exercise, but it is not something I would do all the time.
Having said this, travel photography is still tremendously interesting to me. Fundamentally, what I like about it is probably what makes most people pick up a camera in the first place – ability to capture the moment and re-live it later while looking at the photo. Nowadays, when I take photos while travelling, I like to think about what aspects of the experience I want to capture and convey. More and more often, it involves people, whom I meet during the trips.
