Have you ever wondered if photography is a dying career or a viable profession in today’s digital age?
With the rise of smartphone cameras and the availability of affordable digital cameras, many people believe that the photography industry has become saturated, making it hard to make a living. On the other hand, some still argue that photography is a viable profession, with many opportunities to make a successful career out of it.
If you’re passionate about photography and are considering pursuing it as a profession or are a current professional, it’s crucial to understand the current state of the industry and the challenges and opportunities it presents.
In this article, we’ll explore the question “Is photography a dying career or a viable profession?”, examining the current trends and future projections of the photography industry.
If you prefer a video, be sure to check out the video I made discussing whether photography is a good career or a dying profession:
The current demand for photographers in the job market
The demand for photographers in the job market is continuously evolving, and if you’re considering photography as a career, comprehending the current demand is crucial.
Let’s analyze both the demand for conventional photography professions and nontraditional ones.
Conventional photographer demand
Overall, when considering photography as a whole, the employment of photographers is anticipated to grow by 9 percent from 2021 to 2031, which is quicker than the average for all jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Since photography comprises numerous specialties, I’ll be focusing on the most popular ones, such as portrait photography (encompassing headshots), wedding photography, and product photography.
Portrait photography
To gauge the trend and demand for portrait photographers, one approach is to analyze Google Trends:
Upon examining the trend chart for the search term “portrait photographer,” it becomes apparent that the search frequency has either remained steady or even experienced a slight increase over the past five years.
Wedding photography
Let’s now take a look at the trend chart for wedding photographers:
Just like the trend chart for “portrait photographer,” a comparison of the search demand for wedding photographers reveals that it has been on the rise in the past five years.
Product photography
Lastly, let’s take a look at the demand for product photographers:
Likewise, the chart for product photographers has only indicated a growth in demand. This can be attributed to the surge of e-commerce businesses. An increasing number of entrepreneurs require premium-quality product brand photos to enhance their brand image and boost product sales.
Demand for Non-Conventional Photographers
As demonstrated, traditional photography careers like wedding, portrait, or product photography have an established demand. Still, there is an increase in nontraditional photography careers like content creation.
In reality, according to Supply Gem’s Creator Economy Statistics, content creators in the Photography domain are among the most monetized.
From my personal experience, this isn’t surprising because photography gear tends to be high-priced. As such, creators have the potential to earn more. Additionally, there is always a group of people seeking to enhance their photography skills.
As a content creator, I’ve discovered numerous monetization possibilities available. This is especially with the expanding demand for visual content across several sectors. These opportunities include affiliate programs, brand sponsorships, ad revenue, product creation, and courses.
What I appreciate most about content creation is that your income is determined by the effort and value you bring to your product or service. Although you need to have some marketing skills, your career rests in your hands, without any office politics or annual raises to hinder your progress.
Traditional photography careers may offer more established job opportunities. However, content creation presents a more diverse and unique opportunity that can even improve your prospects in a conventional photography field. Suppose you become a popular photographer creator. In that case, it could help you secure more traditional photography assignments because you have established your brand name.
Regardless of your preferred niche as a traditional photographer or content creator, staying informed about industry trends and demands is essential to take advantage of opportunities.
In my area (Nassau County New York) photography of all types seems to be dying. Most studios have gone out of business. Photography associations have also closed up and are no longer available to join and learn from. Cell phones seem to have taken over the photography business. Although the photos that people take with them are not very good, they seem to be as people say “they are good enough”. That is sad. So, to sum up I would say if you live around here find another profession to go into if you want to make a living.
As a retired photographer with over 50 years of professional experience and supporting my family through the sale of photography, I am glad I don’t have to rely on it for my total income any longer. The market I once knew has changed considerably. I find that cell phones and digital image creation in general has put an image that is “sufficient” within the reach of almost anyone. When I started our studio (my wife and I have worked together) sincer 1970 the only way a consumer could be sure of getting an image was to hire a professional photographer.… Read more »
As someone who recently launched a photographer career, I couldn’t be more happier to be a full-time photographer. Any photographer with; great work, great work ethics, and can adapt, will be fine. Yes the market is more saturated now, yes cellphones are incredible devices to use in lieu of a SLR or DSLR ( in some cases). But what set each photographer apart from one another is their unique vision. 5 great photographers in a room will all produce a different image, unique to their style. There will be a demand for not just content, but high quality, premium content.… Read more »
In all seriousness – could someone offer a definition of “content creator”? We can’t all just watch each others’ videos on YouTube. Where is this supposedly leading?
Interesting comment! Yes I think this is where the shift now may come from, the far out concept breaking and new theory making photographers. Although I see photography moving away from pure camera capture and more towards Generative AI modes of creations, I think there has to be some sort of radical change in the fundamental process and concept, it’s high time for photography to have a real rebirth … but I haven’t yet imagined what that would look like. Currently I’m here in Atlanta and starting to gather current professionals together to simple discuss this over saturated environment that’s… Read more »
At some point, the only thing photographers will have left to offer is authenticity.
I have still plenty of job as a wedding photographer and I hope it will continue like that for the next years. Probably it will be more difficult for product photography that can be done somehow automatically