Building Your Photography Network: The Power of TFP, Group Photoshoots and, Workshops

As an aspiring photographer, breaking into the industry can feel like a daunting task. You need a strong network, a diverse portfolio, and a lot of hands-on experience. That’s where TFP (Time for Print) events and workshops come in. These are not just opportunities to take photos; they're golden chances to grow, learn, and thrive in a creative environment. I've decided to start keeping track of the workshops and happenings in the east coast area (mostly NYC and NJ to start).

Make it stand out

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Check out the NY/NJ Photoshoot Calendar!

They often happen on weekends, so sometimes it’s hard to get out of bed, but I always remind myself of the advantages.

• Connecting with a wide range of creatives (photographers, models, makeup artists, and stylists) which could lead to future collabs and paid gigs

• Grow Confidence and Experiment: Not sure where to start in general? Workshops and group photoshoots provide an opportunity to learn from others, test new ideas, and experiment in a low stakes environment.

They're not all fun and games though - they can get tough.

• Photographer competition: sometimes the ratio of model <> photographer is really off - like 6:1. It can feel like you’ll just be taking the same image but this is when you get creative by practicing a different technique. Maybe it’s time to try out motion blur or detail shots

• Newer Models: Newer models means they might not know their best angles or. variety of poses - but that’s an opportunity to figure out how to direct the models. It’s ok to try one thing and then go — wait nvm go back.

Tips and Tricks:

• Edit your photos fast - Often times you’ll be shooting with other people, so there’s a lot of different perspectives the model might have but here’s a secret —models might actually only get photographs back from a couple photographers, and the faster you get yours to them, the more likely they’ll use yours. Fastest wins here.

• Talk to the Models: It’s easy to go and just take pictures, but you’ll get the best pictures by doing more than take a photo

  • Get the model’s attention - You don’t want a bunch of photos where the model’s eyeline is in a different direction. Yes, directing them to look in a direction is one thing but when it’s just slightly off - it’s apparent that they weren’t paying attention to you and generally makes for a less compelling photo.

  • Direct your model - Give them posing ideas - this is easiest if you come with ideas

  • Ask the model what they want - Often times people have seen things they like - make it a collaborative experience by sharing to get to a vision together .

  • Write them off in taxes! You can write these off as an education expense!

What's the difference between TFP and Workshops and Group Photoshoots? I wrote a bit on this here!