With photography, you need 10,000 hours to master lighting, 10,000 more for composition, and the same goes for other major aspects of photography. Also, there are 10,000 hours of learning the theory, not just of taking photos.
Are professional photographers required to have a college degree? The short answer- no. The majority of today's clients looking to hire a photographer are simply looking for experience and the right quality of work.
High school diploma or equivalentPhotographer / Entry level education
There are expenses, lots and lots of expenses. There are boring, repetitive tasks. There are hours spent doing behind the scenes stuff. No matter how great of a photographer you are, if you aren't good at the business side of things, you are going to struggle as a photographer.
Here are some examples of specialized photography courses you might like to consider:Cinematography. Merging photography with film studies, this specialization is concerned with the art of photography and camerawork in film-making. ... Commercial photography. ... Photojournalism. ... Nature photography.
If it truly is your passion and if you do it from the right institute, then yes it is definitely worth it! Look for a good, well reputed school that offers a variety of courses in media and production. They are most likely to have a good network that can give you the right exposure to eventually land a good job.
Photographers are often self-employed, and work on a pay per-photograph or per-day basis. Their incomes depend on the success of their businesses as well as how many hours they work. In 2018, the average income for photographers is estimated to be around $43,400.
31,710 USD (2015)Photographer / Median pay (annual)
According to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average wage for photographers comes in right around $30-40k per year with the top 10% of earners making over $70,000 per year.