Stock Market, Stock Team, Stock Photography
Stock is actually my name and belongs to a family network spanning the U.S. and possibly distant lands in other continents. That family would be people I don’t know about and have never met. It’s not surprising, however. My father was one of 10 children (they called them 10 head of “Stock”) and this means I likely have cousins I have never met or haven’t seen in such a long time that I wouldn’t know them if I looked them straight in the face. In my family Stock takes on the meaning of whatever each Stock person does in life. Some build bridges, some sell things, some import & export, others are artists, photographers, promoters, entertainers–with hundreds of people, the list just goes on & on. At one time I launched the Stockteam.com website to try to bring the talents of so many family members together. But it became clear that they were too diverse, too busy to be involved in such a project and I’d have to go it alone on this venture. I developed Stockteam.com to reflect a local geographic area (California) and to focus on lifestyle and my professional photography. The site blossomed and grew its audience and even profited. In the back of mind, however, I always had the nagging feeling that it best reflected the stock market or something of that nature.

I saw recently that several Germans launched a stockteam site that appears to be a marketing/public relations product for their company. In German, the word stock supposedly means “stick” or “stone”. In English it can mean financial investments, inventory, or be used as a verb such as “take stock of your situation”.

Whatever you story is regarding your name, it’s especially fun if the words in your name are nouns representing physical things. You can take that name and turn it into a business idea, or simply go through life enjoying the various interpretations and things that people consider when they hear your name. They may not be thinking of you at all, but instead conjuring up images of other things the words represent. In my instance growing up, I will forever recall a family reunion of all my dad’s brothers, sisters and parents and the theme of the party–”10 head of stock and never a bum steer”. Someone actually painted small ceramic bulls gold and each family member received on like a memento or trophy.

This entry was posted in Uncategorized on February 20, 2013.
Debbie Stock Photography
Debbie Stock has worked as a professional photographer, receiving her first paid gig at the University of Kansas School of Journalism.

So you want to be a professional photographer? You can actually make a living doing what you love in a field where “riches” and wealth are defined by satisfaction for your trade. The easiest, best way to commercialize yourself is to begin taking the jobs that are available, such as wedddings, engagements, portraits and pet portraits. Oh, don’t forget about youth and adult sports photography, as well. The world is inundated with photos of varying quality, but exceptional work is needed when people invest time, money and emotions in major life events such as marrying, having kids, recognition for feats and accomplishments, and launching businesses. If you feel discouraged about entering the world of professional photographer, these are some of the places where you can look to make inroads either as an assistant, working for another photographer, or launching your own business.

Like any business, you should have a marketing plan and study what other photographers are doing to succeed. You can also survey the incomes of other photographers to project what you can expect and decide if it will be enough to live comfortably on.

When I graduated from college as a photojournalist the professors at my university kept emphasizing that not all of us would find jobs on newspapers. They kept urging us to look at trade publications as a potential source of work. Networking is important in finding photography jobs, and professional organizations can be helpful. In my particular instance I have been offered a few jobs through National Press Photographers Association (nppa.org).

Networking in your community or places where you’re most likely to get leads and find clients is also important, especially if you start at ground zero and you’re not getting the jobs to help you move the business along.

Photography can be a fantastic hobby and you can even turn it into a break-even proposition when you find niche markets for your work. But if you want to make a living taking pictures, do some homework, identify your audience, and begin marketing to those who will soon discover the quality of your product(s). Good luck!