Life of a Photographer

Ever wonder how beautiful images are made?

That photo of your phone as a wallpaper,

the awesome looking banner about your car brand

or gorgeous photos of your mother and father at their wedding day!

As a photographer myself, I can tell you these pictures are not as easy as others say it is!

There are some of the thousands of photos I took over the years of my shooting experience. And I can say is, It's no easy path to take! I started as a small guy with hopeful dreams of being one of the best photographers here in Cebu City, Philippines. After some rough times and very brain breaking moments, I finally found my style.

This means I can make a name of myself and work independently, and yes I did. All the while I am schooling as a Civil Engineering Student in University of Cebu - Main campus and still able to shoot and supply needed funds for my expenses. I am happy to shoot even though I won't be able to sit down for the next 12 or more hours of work. I am satisfied, I am free.

Some would think that photography would just end after the event, well I will tell you why it is so expensive and so hard to do!

1. You are to hire not only the Photographer, but also his equipment. Which are so expensive he can buy 5 motorcycles and fill them with gas full 5x.

2. His equipment is not automatic, all of his equipment are built to be a workhorse, so it is expensive and at the same time, hard to use. That is why some went to school in order to know his equipment.

3. His creativity is priceless and unique, it's not a manpower based work, it's art.

4. He has no holidays, in fact the days you actually spend the holidays is the time he is booked more often. Sometimes even in Christmas Day, he is out there shooting somebody else's family.

5. After shooting, the job does not end there, he goes to his work station and edit every single one of the photos he took of that day with his utmost best to make it great! Sacrificing hours and hours of his own time for you. Imagine he just shot a wedding with over 2 thousand pictures and he has to edit every single one of them then he gets another call of he is to shoot another wedding soon after he just got home. Imagine that kind of stress.

6. It takes time to think creatively, its no number that won't solve by himself, but as a photographer we base our work on emotion of how will we convey the thought of the photo to the viewers. And he does this every time he starts to work, so his mind must be conditioned or he will face consequences.

7. He has to act fast every time especially in weddings because there is no way he can make that same scene happened again. With his precision and speed, he is able to shoot one of the most beautiful photos of the day. And It takes a human with a phenomenal caliber to do that.

8. He doesn't have government support, not even pensions.

9. He doesn't have a stable source of income, he relies on his communication skills to be able to hook up work.

10. and finally, he is a human too, like the rest of you he is to give up his own health and security to be able to deliver you the best photos he can give you as fast and as good as he can.

So the next time you are to hire a photographer, consider these things. This will help you and your Photographer well, you are able to communicate efficiently and understand his side of the bargain.

Thank you guys and I hope you can help us as well!

Your Friendly Photographer: Xavier II Romano B. Coronel

FB: Xavier Kevrock Coronel e-mail: [email protected]