Our interview this week is with Nottingham based photographer, Jonathan Talks. He did my recent headshots and gets a thumbs up from me for putting me at ease during the shoot!
Who are you and what do you do?
I am Jonathan and I am a commercial photographer specialising in headshots, products and press photography.
What led you into freelancing?
With photography being very much an individual pursuit and working in the provinces one has to lend themselves to many avenues.
What three things do you wish you’d known before starting out?
- Work on your skills if you provide a service or trade. There is a real joy and pride in being “good” at what you do. Upskilling yourself in my opinion is “non negotiable” in importance in my opinion. If you have skills this will help you get work and get recommendations. If you are lucky enough you can hire specialists to do marketing, admin etc.
- Its a big learning curve but one that can give you a lot of development as a person in work and life. Maybe they can make a degree in freelancing! (Now there’s an idea… Nick)
- Don’t waste your money, get as much as you can for free and only spend when you can.
What three issues have you had since starting up?
- You are very much on your own, of course you can forge alliances and contacts but the truth is nobody cares about your practice or in my case my photography, they really don’t, so from this you have to work on your trade and your networking.
- Obtaining finance takes real skill in this era. Lots of organisations promise a lot but unless you are already established or have a business degree then obtaining finance for your business or practice is a challenge.
- Prioritising has been tricky, as a freelancer you have to wear many hats and being organised has been a learning curve for me as a creative. I’ve had to learn to be an all-rounder.
What’s the best thing about freelancing?
The challenge of delivering work beyond what you previously thought capable of. Working on new projects and delivering is a joy, one of the best parts of work.
How would you like to develop your freelance career in the future?
For me, the next steps is to gain new clients, develop skills and eventually have a top notch photography studio in Nottingham. In fact I am hell bent on this..
Anything else you’d like to tell anyone thinking of or currently freelancing?
I’m cautious on giving advice as it is such an individual decision, however I would say think carefully and then give it your all…
Jonathan Talks
@jonathantalksphotography