Five years ago Bambi Cantrell’s business was almost exclusively wedding/event photography.  Today, her business is a mix of wedding, family and children’s portraiture together with high school seniors.  She’s even done an occasional commercial shoot and her outdoor landscape work, recently previewed in Rangefinder Magazine, was incredible.

Think about the mix of your own business.  If, for example, you’re a wedding photographer and you did a great job, then why not be there when the couple’s first child is born?  As the child grows up and Mom and Dad’s photographic needs change, why not be there for product shots for their business catalog, holiday cards or family portraits?  And there’s one more loop in the chain – as the kids grow up they become seniors.  Every kid still wants to be a rock star and the senior category continues to be one of the fastest growing segments in portraiture.

It’s a simple concept – in the same way many of us were with the same doctor or dentist for several generations, why can’t professional photographers do the same?  If you really hate photographing kids and just don’t want to diversify, then at the very least, find a children’s photographer who you admire and trust.  Start referring business to each other.  Share the cost of joint promotional efforts.  Develop a relationship to help you both build your businesses and grow!

Life in professional photography right now isn’t about survival of the fittest, it’s about survival of the most creative and the most diverse!