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Thread: Photographers and Pastry Chefs

  1. #1
    Senior Member jennipurrr's Avatar
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    Photographers and Pastry Chefs

    A friend from grad school decided to start a facebook page for her photography business this week, so that triggered this post. I don't know how to express this exactly, but it seems like over the past few years all these people I know (mostly young women) have decided to become "photographers" or "bake cakes" for a living. I put these things in quotes because it seems like these people have no training in it, and generally don't do a very good job of it. Seriously, 3 people I know have gone into baking (no training) and I can count nearly 10 photographers!

    I understand the faux pastry chefs coming out of the woodwork with all the TV shows about cakes and cupcakes, desserts whatever...but what is up with all the photographers? I can't imagine people who take fairly amateurish photos are making a living...is this just a creative outlet, and we've become so consumeristic people have to call it a business? People disillusioned with a traditional career? Or maybe its the realm of the housewife/stay at home mom, but those areas are also taboo now, so people now say they have a career in photography/baking???

    Just thinking out loud here. Anyone else noticed this? Or maybe its been around all along and I am just now aware of the phenomenon?

  2. #2
    Senior Member Miss Cellane's Avatar
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    Or maybe these are both part-time jobs that can be done as a stay-at-home parent? Or they can't find a good paying job in their field right now? Or they are unemployed and desperately seeking some source of income? Or they are underemployed and need additional money?

    If they are talented, their businesses with thrive. If they are no good at what they want to do, no one will pay them money to do it and the business will die.

  3. #3
    Senior Member Gardenarian's Avatar
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    I'm not aware of a lot of photographers - I wouldn't think there was much money in it. How do they make a living when everyone has a digital camera?

    As for baking, there has been a rash of books that celebrate women finding themselves through cooking, and mostly through baking. The general story line is that the woman is single or divorces and has fallen on hard times. Her one skill is making the best cupcakes/pies/cakes/ in the whole world. Whatever will she do? Can she really start a successful business and win the heart of the scruffy but adorable history professor who lives next door?

    I am a feminist, and support women in whatever they do, but it would be cool if some of these women started an adventure travel company, or did web design, or, heck, black smithing.

    Good luck to them all! I wish there were more flexible jobs for women - in homeschooling I'm letting my dd explore all sorts of skills - knifemaking, leathercraft (including skinning and tanning), gardening, architecture, construction, carpentry, as well as getting a good foundation in academics and arts.

  4. #4
    Senior Member Sissy's Avatar
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    Well, I know several amateur photographers (pretty good ones) and I think that they appeal to people because they are cheaper. My DD had some wonderful pictures taken of her baby by a relative and the other one had a friend that took her wedding pictures cheaply since she was just starting out. The pictures lasted longer than the marriage

    I would rather buy a cake made by someone starting out than a bakery. But then we don't have any bakeries around here. So it is Walmart, duh or the grocery stores.

    Now I know that people get carried away and start something that they don't have enough experience in, but then how do you get experience if you don't put yourself "out there"?
    I may not run with the wind in my hair, but I do get winded.

  5. #5
    Low Tech grunt iris lily's Avatar
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    I haven't noticed it in my immediate group, but I am at an age where people aren't jumping into new stuff so much. A couple of decades ago, yes,I know more than one person who thought they could bake from home and make $$$.

    Here in my city is a professional kitchen for rent that meets codes and that caters to these professional baker wannabes.

  6. #6
    Senior Member Tradd's Avatar
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    I have a friend, SAHM of 3, who does absolutely incredible cakes/cupcakes. She'd done it for her own family for years and then started branching out to others. It's still all very informal and word of mouth, but she goes to a large church and gets a lot of business that way. She specializes in special, very creative cakes for children, and seems to have a pretty busy time of it, from the pictures she posts on FB.

    Her DH is a school teacher and she does this both for some extra money as well as for something fun and creative to do - that she gets paid for.

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    a friend of mine does photography as a side business. it started out as a hobby, and she's pretty good at it (and works at it), and so now she does it so that she can get more training and equipment as she wants it. it's a break even.

    the big one in my area was everyone becoming a yoga teacher.

    yoga schools make a lot of money soaking wannabes who aren't ready to take training. A studio in philly that I know makes $140k a year just on *teacher training* because they max out the number of people they train. These people -- many of whom are not ready to take training, let alone teach -- then flood the market and depress incomes for yoga teachers who are trying to actually earn an income from it.

    which is why i started a studio and run it the way that i do, with fair trade yoga for yoga teachers (teachers take 60% of income, and we take 40% of income from a given class, which includes profit margin for us, so it's not like we are missing out on profits -- but it allows the teacher to make a living teaching).

    anyway, it's pretty common for these things to happen.

    i have friends cater my various events. I'm way too busy -- and paying someone a little bit to do something nice for me is. . . nice.

  8. #8
    Wildflower
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    My DD has a side photography business she started about a year ago to supplement her income. She is good at it, enjoys it, and charges a very fair price. She has more business than she can handle these days.

    She loves to travel with her kids and is now able to thanks to the extra income....

  9. #9
    Senior Member Selah's Avatar
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    The bakers/caterers are also getting inspired by Paula Deen, HBO's reworking of "Mildred Pierce" (very inspiring, but a few anti-feminist messages in there as well) and the movie "Julie and Julia." Plus, of course all the millions of cakes and cupcake shows, as the OP mentioned. I don't know about the photographers...perhaps they're taking seriously all the "oohs, ahhs" and "likes" on their Facebook pages when they post a photo, and are getting a false sense of their abilities and talents, a la "OMG, that picture is awesome, you should be a professional!" But, as has been pointed out already, these are good service businesses that can fit in with family and other jobs, and could indeed grow into sustainable careers for people who work at it, have talent, and have the patience and drive to build a business for themselves.

    In my old neck of the woods, ten years ago, everyone and his dog were getting trained as NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) Master Practitioners, Reiki Masters, Life Coaches and Aromatherapists! VERY few of them are still doing it professionally.

  10. #10
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    From the 70's thru the 80's one of my many, many income streams was catering fancy tea parties and romantic dinners for 2 along with baking specialty cakes and pastries..I did quite well.
    I put my self thu university in part by doing upscale clothing repair, adjustments and custom sewing. The feminist in me would have enjoyed horse-shoeing, but there was no real need for farriers in NY at that time so I also did wallpapering and wall stencils . What I could have accomplished if the web had been around then!!
    My mother though that I was wasteing my education, but I reminded her who was paying her bills and putting my siblings thru school. Work is work, and if it pays the bills and you enjoy it what could be better?

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