Working With Cars; a Job or a Hobby?
I haven’t been very active on CT as of recent due to being very busy, so hey again everyone!
However, what I’ve been busy doing is exactly the point of this post. I’m a self-employed/freelance Automotive photographer. #BlogPost
Why not make it make me money?
Here’s a little about me; I started posting pictures on my Instagram (@mr_jozo for those interested) roughly 2 years ago as a young avid car enthusiast. Over time I improved my work and as a result was able to build up a decent following, which led to people contacting me personally for photoshoots. As I’m sure some of you do, if you’re contacted to shoot a Ferrari, money is the last thing on your mind - the experience pays for itself!
However I like to think I have a fairly good sight on business, and over time I’ve realised that as much as I would love to do shoots free of charge as a hobby, there is a niche market to start a business in this industry. So I set myself a minimum price that I would work for. It’s nothing crazy, it pays travel expenses with a little profit on top. I thought, why not make it make me money?
I’ve landed a few deals with some exotic car dealerships to be their main photographer, have private shoots coming from my Instagram and try to dabble in sales too. I get opportunities to shoot some of the rarest and most sought after cars in the world.
I’m writing this sitting in my living room, wearing a VW shirt, listening to music with Ferrari headphones, and typing with dirty fingernails after working on my car. I’m working with cars 24/7 and I can’t get enough of it.
I’m a big believer in realising your own worth. Whatever your trade in this industry; a mechanic, a tuner, a photographer, a detailer, your skills are worth something to someone else. Yes, doing our skill for free is perfectly acceptable to us as we’re all petrol-headed enthusiasts who want to be in and around automotive beauty every second of the day, but should we? Is it viable to stretch out of a 9-5 office job that pays the bills (Unless it’s at CT - that’s an exception) to chase our ambitions, or is this completely idiotic?
Let me know your take and experience on this topic, I’m very interested to hear others’ opinions!
Comments
I’m glad you’ve turned this into a profession now and you’re overjoyed in doing so. I remember talking to you years ago when you were starting out. Those are some great shots you’ve got there too by the way!
Thanks man! I wanted to write this because as I sat down to edit earlier I thought “Is this actually my job?”. i find it interesting to see my friends slave 10 hours a day at a place they hate, yes they make much more money than me, but that’s not the point. I’d rather make less money doing what I love rather than more doing something I dread. Thinks it’s an interesting topic when it comes to cars as there’s so many areas of this passion that you can jump into for work. Want to hear other peoples situations! :) And thanks it means a lot! I still want to improve and get bigger and better though haha
I used to think being a mechanic or being car engineer would be nice, but at one point I started to get afraid if that would kill my passion. We have a saying in Finland (maybe this exists in other places as well): “shoe-makers son doesn’t own shoes”
I am becoming an engineer though and I may work with vehicles but I wont be designing the cars/vehicles themselves, but I would be designing the equipment and other accessories in cars (that are powered by electric). Or I can go design machines lol, with the graduation I’m getting the choices aren’t too limited lol
I started maintaining and repairing rotary engines as a hobby and ended up doing it as a business for a long time. Working at something youre passionate at and making it a success is a great feeling! Best of luck to you!