Become a Certified Professional Photographer and Set Yourself Apart!

It's that time of year again; school is almost out, seniors are graduating and high school juniors are preparing for "Senior Year". For parents of a junior, odds are their mailbox is beginning to fill up with all sorts of info from colleges across the country, encouraging them to visit. It's a major choice and they'll want to help their student choose wisely.

Also in their mailboxes are lots of offers from photographers. Senior portraits are an important part of the year as well; it's the image which will be forever remembered in places such as the school yearbook, given out in the form of wallets and also occupy a place on the family room wall. There are lots of photographers to choose from, ranging from trusted studios to the upstart "friend of a friend who just bought a nice camera."

How do they decide? What separates you from the pack? The choice is a lot simpler than you think.

Become a Certified Professional Photographer.

Think of it this way; just because your friend owns a good scissors, would you let that person cut your hair? To be able to cut hair professionally in Minnesota, you have to take 1550 hours of training, perform multiple services on customers while supervised by an instructor, take a comprehensive written test and do a practical demonstration of your ability to perform your tasks in a professional manner.

Yet a bad haircut grows out in a couple of weeks!

So . . . do you think they really want to trust their families' memories, their once-in-a-lifetime events, their most important special occasions to someone who just picked up a new camera kit at Wal-Mart or Sam's Club, printed a handful of business cards online and now calls themselves a "professional?" Of course not!

To earn the designation of Certified Professional Photographer you will have to pass a comprehensive written exam measuring your technical expertise, successfully submit your work to a panel of judges for review and approval, and abide by a professional code of ethics. A CPP must re-certify through the Professional Photographic Certification Commission every 5 years to show that you are maintaining a high level of technical and artistic competency, assuring that your clients' expectation of the standards of excellence are consistently being met.

Your clients want quality portraits for their investment. Make sure they realize that they are getting their money's worth by becoming a Certified Professional Photographer.

For more information on becoming a Certified Professional Photographer, visit www.CertifiedPhotographer.com

- David Grupa