Recently, I had an opportunity to closely compare two different types of commercial photo assignments, both within the same day. On a Saturday morning, I was invited to tag along for a children’s baseball league photoshoot, and in the afternoon, I photographed a final game in the local (adult) rugby league. The first type of a gig has potential for much higher financial payoff, but the second one (rugby action) is more fun to shoot and generally requires a much more creative approach.
The children’s league photoshoot was an impressive example of super-efficient commercial photography. The photographer relied heavily on the assistants, who posed the teams and the individual children, and the actual shooting was done in a rapid-fire mode, so even the youngest kids (3-4 year old) did not have a chance to whine, which they typically do in a queue for a photo with Santa Claus at a local shopping mall, for example. The trade-off is that there was literally no time to interact with the models, and I am fairly certain that all 300 portraits will come out looking nearly identical. I did not think that it was possible, but this photoshoot made taking photos of children sitting on Santa’s lap look like a creative endeavor.
In contrast, shooting the rugby action in the afternoon had a very spontaneous feel to it. The energy of the players was contagious, and the opportunities for interesting shots were unpredictable. From the commercial standpoint, the financial payoff of the rugby game coverage was far from certain. Despite that, I was sure that even if not a single picture would sell, I would not regret shooting the game.
I read somewhere that starting a photo business is a sure way to ruin a perfectly good hobby. I do hope that there is a balance, though. Fortunately, at this point, I do not need to take assignments where photography is traded as a pure service, an exchange of the photographer’s time for money. Recently, time has become so precious that I would definitely choose a more interesting assignment over a better paying one.
