Find a photography internship

Find a photography internship

Find a photography internship : Multi-thousand tips to make your life easier.

With skill and vision, you can transform a camera into a tool for art and create masterpieces from photographs. If you want your big break in the world of photography, starting with a photography internship is a great idea, as it will allow you to gain invaluable field experience. Here’s how you can get an internship.

Portfolio. Before you apply for any internship program, make sure you have prepared your own portfolio first. The portfolio will not only showcase your strengths as a photographer but will also be used by your mentor to assess how much you already know about photography. Apart from the portfolio, also make sure you have access to the equipment needed for professional photography. Remember, you cannot expect your mentor to provide you with a camera. Luckily, DSLR camera prices are dropping, and getting a fairly high-quality camera is easier. Also, make sure you fully know how to manipulate your camera’s features and that you know the basics of a camera, such as what aperture, f-stop, etc., mean.

Local photographers. Contact local photographers and ask if they have any internship programs open. Basically, you will be working as a sort of assistant for professional local photographers. Do not expect to earn much from your internship with a local photographer, especially since most local photographers do not earn much from photography themselves. But the advantage is that you get to travel with the photographer and take pictures from various sets, studios, and sceneries where your mentor happens to bring you. Working with the mentor will also give you insights into how to improve the photos you take.

Career counseling. If you have developed an interest in photography early on, consider getting advice from your high school career counselor. Remember that career counselors have contacts and links with hundreds of industries, companies, and professionals, among whom you will probably find a professional photographer willing to provide you with an internship. Many photographers also work in publication companies such as newspapers and magazines. One of the publications may offer you an internship program.

Contributions. Also send your photographs to local newspapers or magazines. Getting your photos published is a great way to get into a prestigious internship program. Sometimes, local papers will even hire or ask regular contributors to be interns or even staff photographers. Make sure, however, that you brush up on the basics of photojournalism so that you know how to take an action-packed shot that is newsworthy.

Competitions and freelancing. Consider photography contests, which will sometimes publish your photograph, award you with a plaque or other rewards, and even offer you an internship program. Some of the groups that occasionally host competitions with apprenticeship awards are National Geographic, Time, and the Hearst Media Foundation.

Be sure to post copies of your shots on social networking sites and your own website. You never know when you will meet a photographer online and get noticed enough to earn a photography internship.