Every time I sit with an emerging photographer who is struggling to make money, the pattern is identical.

They are talented.

They are passionate.

They are making cool pictures.

Yet their bank account is on life support.

And the reason is brutally simple.

They are making pictures for people who do not need them.

If you want to make money with your camera, you need to focus only on clients who need your photographs to move their needle forward.

Clients who are building something.

Clients who are selling something.

Clients who are growing something.

Clients who are doing the work.

These are the people who understand immediately that photography is not decoration.

It is not a luxury.

It is not a dopamine hit.

It is leverage.

It is fuel for their business.

Those are your people.

And once you understand that, everything about your business gets clearer.

You also need to stop spending your time on clients who only want your photographs to feed their ego.

Those clients do not value you.

They do not value the craft.

They want to look good on Instagram and pay you pennies to make it happen.

That is not a photography business.

That is not experience.

That is you burning energy on clients who will never help you grow.

And while I am already being direct, stop doing photoshoots that feed your ego as well.

I know the trap.

I fell into it early in my career as well.

Shoots that look cool but go nowhere.

Concepts that feel artistic but attract zero paying clients.

Right now, especially if your business is struggling, you do not have the luxury of shooting for applause.

Your portfolio needs to work for you.

It needs to pull in the clients who actually pay.

The simplest professional filter you can use is a single question.

I ask my Portfolio Lab members this every week.

“Who would pay you to make this photograph?”

If the real answer is nobody, you already know why you are stuck.

And here is something most photographers ignore because it forces them to stop hiding.

You must choose a lane.

Choosing a niche is not limiting your creativity.

It is giving your business a backbone.

When you shoot everything, you attract nothing.

When you show everything, you confuse everyone.

Every successful photographer I know chose a lane.

Not forever.

But for right now.

And the easiest way to choose your lane is to understand these three categories.

Because everything in photography falls into one of them.

People
Headshots.

Editorial portraits.

Corporate portraits.

Lifestyle sessions.

Athletes.

Founders.

Artists.

Creators.

If you want to photograph people, your portfolio needs to be filled with people who look like the clients you want to attract.

Places
Architecture.

Interiors.

Hotels.

Restaurants.

Real estate.

Commercial buildings.

Design studios.

If you love shooting spaces, your work must reflect precision, design awareness, and the ability to make a physical environment look intentional.

Things
Products.

Cars.

Jewelry.

Food.

Packaging.

Tech.

If you shoot objects, brands should immediately see that your images make their product look more valuable and more desirable.

Your work should make someone want to buy.

Pick the lane that aligns with your local market.

Pick the lane that has real demand in your city.

Pick the lane that gives you the best shot at turning your camera into income.

Your city might not need another fine-art fashion photographer.

But it might need a strong editorial portrait photographer who can shoot founders, executives, and fast-growing businesses.

The money is always in the niche that solves a real problem.

Photographers who succeed long term are not lucky.

They are intentional.

They make pictures for people who need them.

They show work that pulls in the clients they want.

They choose a lane and commit to it.

Do this consistently and the money shows up.

The clients show up.

The opportunities show up.

This game is not complicated.

But it does require clarity.

And clarity is your new competitive advantage.

Thanks for reading me this week.

I hope this brought you value.

See you next Saturday.

PS. I turn hopeful photographers into full time pros using a proven 6 phase system. Learn more at TheCartyMethod.com.

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