Philotography

I'm an amateur photographer, but I'd like to become a pro and I've been giving some intensely serious thought to it.

How do I get started? What will I need to do, exactly?

I have a camera, but it isn't professional quality, so I need a new one. And some other stuff too.

Of course, my real value is my eye and sense of appreciation for what makes a good photograph. I don't know what art is, but I know what I like! (Nick Nolte says that in some movie, I forget which) Suffice it to say that I think I have what it takes to succeed.

I have a huge stock of photographs, mostly at lower resolutions, from my recent travels and from the few years before I began traveling. Can I use this stock as the basis for a professional portfolio? Can I start some small income streams by selling this stuff through stock photo houses and by publishing my various image collections in the form of postcards, notecards, greeting cards, posters, calendars, coffe-table books, gallery exhibits, etc?

Despite the goldmine I'm already sitting on (hah!), it'll be what I do now and in the future that will matter most.

What sort of work should I go after? Do I have to specialize? Should I enroll in some courses somewhere?

Its a lot to consider. Kind of overwhelming, but kind of exciting and much more appealing than going back to the kind of jobs I've had in the past.

So I'm sitting here thinking and researching and sorting and sifting through my pile of photographs.

Boy, there sure are a lot of photography magazines out there.

Uh-oh... there are a LOT of photographers out there too!

So much to consider. So much competition. So many risks. So much fun!

Why did I call it philotography? Cuz I was a Philosophy major and I try to get at the truth of the matter whenever I can. Combining philosophy with photography, for me... is philotography, but its not REALLY a word.

I like the list of items the dictionary comes up with as suggestions for philotography ...

1. phonography
2. phonographic
3. phonographies
4. phonographs
5. forethoughtfully
6. phonographer
7. phyllotaxies
8. full-timer
9. flatirons
10. phyllotaxis

Don't you think that pornographer should be on the list as well?