I shoot with a Nikon D7100. This is a crop sensor, DLSR, and is a great camera. I've moved up from the D60 originally, to the D3100 and now the D7100. Now you might notice a pattern, I like Nikon. Not because I dislike other brands, but because Nikon is what I have used, and gotten used to, and all my gear fits Nikon. So, for all you Canon lovers, I'm not knocking your camera! I just like mine. 

I shoot mostly portraiture and even my outdoor wildlife photography is more portraiture of the subject. I don't do a lot of wide open landscapes and sweeping views of the countryside. I typically pick a subject that I want to capture and focus on that. For the kind of photography my favorite lens is my 50mm prime. It stays on my camera most of the time and is my go to for a quick snapshot or for my client sessions.  It gives great focus, great bokeh, and the open aperture makes shooting on darker days easier. 

Now, there are more expensive 50mm lenses. They have larger apertures and may have even better focusing. But, when you can get a 1.8 aperture for as reasonably as you can, it is a great option. Especially for learning your new DLSR and experimenting with new forms of photography. It can help you turn out beautiful images. It has been a great addition to my gear. 

This lens has really upped my photography game and I love experimenting with it. 

The images below are just some examples of pictures that I have taken with my 50mm on my D7100.

Full disclosure: The above is a link to my amazon affiliate link. I can make profit from your purchase of the lens using the above link. Keeping a blog going is a time consuming venture, so I chose to become an amazon affiliate to review products that I use. Thank you for using this link if you are interested in a 50mm lens! 

So I have spent hours and hours on this website and still have to tweak and twist it! It really has been an undertaking to try to start a business. I will say I have had some nice encounters with people though. When I called the State office about business licensing and tax ID's, I got some of the nicest people! Shocking  since it was a state department! Much better than dealing with the DMV, that's for sure!
This is more of a diary posting at this point, but maybe one day someone will find some solace from me sharing my experiences. Trying to balance the work that still needs to be done on the business end, with trying to finish post processing on a wedding, and entertain a 6 year old nephew who is spending the day has been fun, maybe?  

My tips when trying to start a photography business: Allow plenty of time. You can't do everything in a day, a week, or even a month. Take one thing at a time. (I need to use my own advice here). 
1. Find out about the legal stuff. Call your state business licensing office. They can walk you through it all. North Carolina requires a business registration and tax ID. They also require a "privilege" license for photographers that is renewed each year.
2. Develop a system for tracking expenses, invoicing, and tracking receipts at the beginning before you have your first paying customer. 
3. Develop a system for cataloging and tracking photos. 
4. Have a backup  of all your files (external hard drives).  I have had too many times when the PC crashes and I think I am not going to be able to retrieve data. I have learned my lesson.
5. Make sure you have a pricing structure set, and do a lot of  research about your policies and how you want to run your business. While your policies can change and be added to, you don't want to make it all up as you go along. I have found a lot of good information about what to include by reading other blogs, participating in discussion on FaceBook groups and looking at others' photography contracts. 
During all this I have been building my portfolio, shooting, shooting, shooting. 
​Here are some shots I have had a lot of fun with over the past couple of months.
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