Seven photographers you should book

Booking the right photographer to test with is essential; your book is how you get your foot in the door, and whilst there are many photographers you can collaborate with, there are few who present a distinct style and personality in their work that will allow you to communicate yourself visually in a nuanced fashion.

Here are seven photographers in Sydney you should look at working with right now.

Test means “test for print;” it’s getting an opportunity to try new things, see if someone works well for a job, or you want to try something new. Test was never meant for free, but it was a way of getting practice for both photographer and model at a discounted rate.

As the unspoken eighth, there are a few things to remember! Firstly, a test doesn’t mean free; most of us, whilst we will do test shoots, these are shoots at a discounted rate, lower than what we’d charge a commercial brand, but still enough to justify the time, experience and knowledge we will impart on a shoot.

As a guide, most photographers’ rates for these sorts of things would start at around $700; many I know and have worked with start around $1200. Factors like location, medium (film, digital, 35mm, medium format), experience, and offerings, including retouching, timings, direction, and wardrobe, will change the budget.

It’s important to know that building your portfolio is an investment, and the more shoots you do, the more opportunities you’ll have. But like any skill, not all practice is good practice; working with newer photographers or photographers who have not kept up with current trends may teach you bad habits, give you false expectations or make it harder to get paid work.

I believe the ones below, listed in alphabetical order, offer something great, and I will probably do another list soon.