1 It begins with enthusiasm.

Do you love your work? Are your excited, engaged and passionate about the visual landscape around you? Your clients and audience will only be as interested as you are. So it vital they share your zeal for creating great images.

2 Knowing your kit.

Not the hand book, I have never read one! But really knowing the technical side so well its second nature. So when things fail (and they will) you can seamlessly cover and move forward. You must always give the impression of confidence even as Rome burns. People can smell fear…

3 Happy accidents.

When you start any project you may have a pre conceived idea of the final result. This is fine if you never want to challenge yourself. However what really stimulates creativity are the happy accidents when a model, location or shaft of light takes your images to an unplanned place.

4 Don’t be so serious.

Really don’t. I have no idea where serious will get you. You are not curing cancer or pulling people from a burning building. Taking pictures is an amazing and fun way to make a living. The more you relax and enjoy it, the better the experience for everybody.

5 No rules.

In the list of rules let’s be clear there are none. I did not study photography at school, I qualified as an unemployable fine artist. Many of my excellent fellow photographers have had numerous careers. Photography is a craft that does not need qualifications or letters after your name. The path to success is like all creative industries both unique and relentless, good luck!