Freelance Photographer by Day,
Medical Consultant by Night
As I dictate the last of my consult reports at the end
of a frantic night shift at Mississauga’s Trillium Health Centre, my thoughts
turn to the busy yet rewarding day that lies ahead. I head home to grab a bit of shuteye, then eagerly set out for
the day’s photo shoots. My first
subject is an adorable two-week-old newborn by the name of Samantha, the next a
38-week-pregnant mother expecting twins, and the final one a rambunctious labra-doodle
pup.
Before driving to my first on-location shoot, I double
check my equipment to make sure everything is in working order and nothing is
missing. In addition to my Nikon bodies
and lenses, I bring along a portable backdrop unit plus a pair of studio
strobes. I prefer to shoot using
available natural light, but this is not always possible depending on the time
of day and prevailing weather conditions.
I also like shooting outdoors if possible, and often do sessions at
local parks or gardens. I favor a more candid style of portrait photography
where I blend into the background and try to capture the subject being its own
natural, spontaneous, unposed self.
Several hours fly by, and hundred of photos later, I
finally finish the last of my scheduled sessions, exhausted but happy with the
results. But the work is far from over.
After transferring the images to my laptop, I begin the often equally
time-consuming task of touching up the photos.
Hours later, I am done and can finally burn the images to a CD and also
create from a selection of them a DVD slideshow set to music.
The first camera I ever owned was a long-since-extinct
1998 Kodak digital point-and-shoot, back in the days where a one megapixel
resolution camera was considered revolutionary. Unfortunately, the images it
produced were grainy even at a mere 8”x10” print size, as digital camera
technology was still in its infancy. Digitals were also expensive compared to
their film counterparts, so few people owned one. I had just completed my
Gastroenterology training and was starting my Hepatology research fellowship,
so I took some time off to do a bit of traveling. While abroad I would use my
new toy as the need arose. When I got
home however, it would sit in a drawer and accumulate dust until the next trip.
My serious interest in photography only developed a
few years ago, at a time when digital single-lens reflex cameras (SLR’s) were
finally able to produce images comparable in quality to those of conventional
film-based SLR’s. Since then, I have
devoted almost all of my free time (and I have a fair bit of it since I
typically work only two night shifts a week) to taking photos and to learning
how to improve my craft. Other than a
three day photography workshop in Killarney Provincial Park a couple years ago,
I am entirely self-taught, having read almost every book available on the
subject. Not only do I try to keep
abreast of the newest technologies and equipment available, but I also regularly
peruse the many photography and digital imaging magazines on the market in
order to come up with fresh ideas and creative new techniques.
As a result, what was once merely a hobby for me has
now turned into part-time work as a freelance photographer-for-hire. Most of my
time is now spent shooting portraits, usually of babies, children, families and
pets. While I do advertise my
professional services online, it is mostly through word of mouth of satisfied
former clients that I attract new ones.
I do have a home studio at my disposal, but clients usually prefer to
have me conduct their photo shoot on location, at their own residence or some
nearby venue of their choosing. This
often helps put their children and pets more at ease, and can go a long way to
ensuring that my shots capture the true essence and uniqueness of the subject.
The service I provide differs from that at most photo
studios in that my sessions never feel rushed or pressured, and typically last
2-3 hours. They can be arranged around naps and feedings, or whatever other
obligations there may be. I work with the client to create photographs that
‘tug at the heart strings’, and to produce fine art images that they will
treasure and display proudly in their home. Unlike most professional
photographers who require that you purchase any and all prints from them, I
provide the client with all the images on CD, and allow them to print out or
develop the photos themselves. Most of
my clients end up displaying a selection of my photographs either as a grouping
of framed, matted images on a wall, or as part of a custom-designed
leather-bound ‘coffee table’ book.
In addition to my work in portraiture, I devote a
considerable portion of time to building a stock library of images, each of
which can be purchased through my website www.howesim.com as fine art prints. In the past three years, I have amassed one
of the largest personal collections of stock images available online, currently
numbering well over two thousand. The
images are grouped into categories such as architecture, food, transportation,
nature, still life, and the abstract.
Thanks to the global reach of the Internet, I have been able to showcase
my work not only to fellow North Americans, but also to the international
community.
Despite the competitive market of stock photography,
many of my images have been purchased by individuals from all corners of the
globe, something that simply would not have been possible for the average
photographer in the pre-Internet era.
My most popular images also happen to be some of my personal favorites,
and include several Canadian landscapes and photographs taken abroad. I have also been successful in getting many
of my images (and in some cases accompanying articles) published in various
magazines. Eventually I would like to start self-publishing books featuring my
work.
For a while I was not sure if my turning photography
from a mere hobby into a business venture would be a wise decision. Friends
warned me that once it became a source of income, my interest in it would
wane. I am happy to report that I
remain every bit as passionate about photography as before. For me, the main difference between then and
now is that I now share my photography with a much wider audience, whether it
be those who have ordered prints from me, or parents who now have a collection
of timeless portraits of their loved ones.
I am not certain
in which direction my photography will take me in the years to come. Perhaps I
will eventually focus entirely on landscape photography or on child
portraiture. Or perhaps I will choose
to work exclusively in black & white or the even funkier medium of infrared. Whatever happens, so long as it remains a
welcome relief and escape from the everyday world of making a living in
medicine, I will continue in this wonderful pursuit of mine. Who knows, perhaps
in the not-too-distant future, I may be able to fully retire from medical
practice to work exclusively as a professional photographer.