Is a photography niche right for you?

In the world of marketing and business, the concept of a niche is often touted as a critical element for success. But what exactly is a niche, and why is it so important? Is choosing a photography niche really so crucial?

In this article, I’ll explain my view on this, which is that I believe offering a niche photography service can be valuable since it can make marketing your photography business easier and more effective.

Disclaimer – While I will highlight the pros of having a photography niche based on my experience and that of working with photographers, of course, you don’t have to have one! Many very successful photographers do not specialise in a particular genre. Ultimately, it will be your choice as to whether you feel it’s the right approach for you.

Whatever your view on this, do let me know in the comments at the end of the article. It’d be great to hear about your experience of niching or if you’ve decided not to niche, and the reasons why. Whether to have a photography niche, or not, is a personal decision and is by no means essential. I appreciate that there are mixed views on this, and that we all have different experiences. I would love to hear yours!

Firstly, then, what is a niche?

A niche, as defined by the Oxford Languages Dictionary, is “a specialised segment of the market for a particular kind of product or service.”

Essentially, it’s about defining who you serve and how you serve them.

• It’s about being clear and focused on serving a particular segment of the market.
• It’s about deciding on the work you want to do and who you want to do it for
• It’s about seeking to attract only your ideal client through your marketing, rather than anyone who potentially needs photography.

How you can niche your photography business

You can niche in various ways:

• By genre: You may choose to focus on a specific genre of photography, such as wedding photography, corporate events, or family portraits

• By market segment: You can serve specific demographics or industries, such as small business owners, same-sex couples, health and wellness professionals, drinks brands, or non-profit organisations, for example.

• By Services: Alternatively, you might choose to keep your remit broad but offer specialised services, such as drone photography

• By Style: Another option is that you may develop a unique artistic style that runs through all of your images, and that becomes your photography niche. Your work becomes renowned for that style and, over time, becomes known and identifiable.

Is having a photography niche really necessary?

While it’s not necessary to niche your photography business, I’d argue that it can significantly enhance your business’s ability to attract and retain the right clients.

Particulaly when focusing on either a specific genre, market segment or when offering a niche service, you can then tailor your services and messaging more effectively. This will make it easier to connect with your ideal clients.

Why have a photography niche?

Here, I’ll talk more about these, and other, benefits of choosing a photography niche:

1. Clarity of message

Knowing your niche of photography helps clarify your marketing message. When you understand who you are serving and trying to attract, you can focus on those people’s specific needs, pain points, and desires. Your messaging will resonate more with ideal clients if you speak directly to them and about challenges they are experiencing that you can help them to overcome.

2. Easier marketing and content creation

With a defined niche, creating relevant marketing content becomes much simpler. You can can create content to address the specific problems and aspirations of your audience.

When, in your marketing, you speak to their common challenges and fears, addressing them and providing solutions, your ideal clients will be more likely to take notice. They will feel seen, understood, and valued. This is crucial for building strong relationships and attracting clients.

3. Position yourself as an expert

Specialising in a photography niche allows you to establish yourself as an expert in that field. This expertise can often justify higher pricing and attract clients who value and seek out specialised knowledge.

4. Stand out from competitors

In a crowded marketplace, having a photography niche helps you stand out. As marketing guru, Seth Godin, once said, “In a crowded marketplace, fitting in is failing.” By being distinct and memorable – being known as the “go-to photographer” for something – you can cut through the noise and get known more easily.

Related reading: Five ways to become a go-to photographer in your niche

5. Attract the right clients

A clear niche makes it easier for potential clients to decide if you’re the right fit for them. This not only helps attract your ideal clients but also ensures you’re working with people who value your expertise and approach. A niche helps to also repel those who aren’t a good fit.

6. More effective reach

By focusing your efforts on a specific group, your marketing becomes more effective. Instead of trying to reach everyone and appealing to no one, you can concentrate your efforts and resources on a well-defined audience that is more likely to convert.

7. Everything feels easier!

Serving a well-defined photography niche can also lead to more streamlined operations, making your business more time-efficient and profitable. Instead of needing to craft bespoke packages for every potential client, you can develop a core offer that addresses the common needs of your photography niche.

Common fears and myths about niching

Now, the most common way to niche is to limit either the type of photography services you offer or to specialise in working with only a particular demographic. With this move towards a specialism, naturally, you may experience an element of fear.

I know, because I felt this myself before niching into photography marketing and PR, and when moving away from offering these services to any type of business who needed them.

“What if the decision proves not to be a good one?”. “What if there aren’t enough clients or a big enough demand for your niche photography service?”, you may wonder (as I did). With the benefit of hindsight, I would say that these fears were unfounded and that niching was the best thing I ever did!

So, in case you’re currently in this mindset around niching, here are some of the common fears I think all business owners go through when deliberating about whether to specialise. Along with these are some suggestions of how to shift your mindset and to approach these more positively:

• Fear of running out of content: If you truly understand your target customer, you’ll always have relevant content to share. Knowing your target client base well means that content will actually feel easier.

• Fear of limiting income: Specialisation often allows for higher pricing and better sales, despite the fact that you are serving a smaller segment of the market.

• Fear of boredom: Niching doesn’t mean you can’t explore new ideas. In fact, it may even inspire you to be more creative than ever!

• Fear of being locked into your niche: Your photography niche can evolve, and you’re not locked in forever. You, as the business owner, are in control.

• Fear of excluding potential clients: A strong niche can still attract non-perfect clients occasionally, and that’s okay. Of course, you can do other types of work or for people outside of your core photography niche too.

When is the best time to choose a photography niche?

When starting out as a professional photographer, you are just finding your feet regarding the work you want to do. At this point, you may have no idea what photography niche to choose. Niching isn’t something you will likely want to leap into from the start (although you could!).

I suggest that it’s beneficial to niche down once you have a good understanding of what you enjoy, what sells, and who you like working with. You might start as a generalist and then specialise a few months or years in, which is what I did. Alternatively, you may choose to niche and then widen your remit over time.

The key is to remain flexible and responsive to market demands and your interests. Remember though that you may need to take a leap of faith. There will never be the ‘perfect’ moment to specialise.

Examples of photograpy genres

Below I am listing examples of photography niches based on genre. Each of these can be further specialised too, offering the opportunity to hone in on a very specific market segment and tailor your services to meet the unique needs of your chosen niche.

There are many different photography genres, as I have shown above, and so the possibilities for niching are endless! If this is the way you are thinking niching your photography business, which genre or specialism feels most suited to you?

My journey to finding my niche

As a PR and content strategist specialising in helping professional photographers gain visibility and attract their dream clients, I’ve experienced firsthand the benefits of having a clear niche.

My focus isn’t on amateur photographers or hobbyists. Instead, I serve ambitious independent professional photographers; photo specialists and photography experts who are striving to make a bigger impact through the creation and sharing of their high-quality images, but who need PR and marketing help to promote their businesses.

Related reading: PR and marketing for professional photographers: How I found my niche

For my clients, photography is their main source of income and they have dreams of building a business that supports their dream lifestyle. They may work part-time around family commitments or full-time.

1-2-1 CLIENTS

• The photographers I work with on a 1-2-1 basis tend to be more established and are already successful in that they are attracting a steady stream of clients. They outsource elements of their PR and marketing to me to free up time and to up-level what marketing they are already doing.
  
  They may be one-man bands or they may already have a small team or work alongside a partner.
  

MENTORING CLIENTS

• Those who hire me for one-off support or who join my mentoring programme tend to be less established or simply don’t have the requirement or budget for outsourced marketing support.
  
  Through providing a support and mentoring service, I can help them learn something new or discover a fresh approach to their marketing that they go away and implement.

I enjoy having a variety of PR services that allow me to support photographers at whatever stage they are in their business. While not all are at the same stage in their business or marketing journey, all are serious about their craft and business. They also want to get more visible so that they can attract and work with more clients.

Related reading: Content and PR Services for Photographers

Niching within a niche

Even within the niche of photography marketing, there are numerous sub-niches I could potentially serve. As there will be similar segmentations available within your niche too.

Focusing on a niche within my niche would allow for further specialisation. What I have found is that, personally, I love the diversity within the broader photography niche. I am happy working with a variety of photographers. I love that there is the option to specialise further if I want to later though.

For instance, I could target:

• Professional photographers (as I do now)
• Professional portrait photographers (more niche)
• Professional Wedding photographers (even more niche)
• Professional Elopement photographers based in Italy (super niched)

My photography marketing experience

When I first started out supporting photographers, and for many years since, I have worked with portrait photographers (newborn, family, pet, equine, boudoir) and those who typically have a photography studio, based at their home or elsewhere.

I have also worked with photography experts who are not studio-based. For example, wedding photographers, those who work out on location including African wildlife photographers, as well as personal branding photographers who typically shoot at a client’s business premises or outdoors.

More recently, I have worked with several commercial photographers as well. Those clients include:

• A food and drink photographer who works with luxury hotels and drinks brands,
• A commercial photographer who works with family-focused lifestyle brands,
• A cultural and humanitarian photographer whose images help us to appreciate other cultures and ways of life,
• And a social documentary photographer who helps businesses communicate their CSR initiatives through visual storytelling.

I love this variety in the work that I do!

Related reading: Photography Clients 

Positioning statement challenge

Now that I have discussed the benefits of niching, if it’s something you are open to or are actively considering, it’s important to define a clear positioning statement for your photography business. This, or a version of this, can then be used in your marketing and adapted for your website and social media channels etc.

For example, this is could be used on the website of a fictional company, which I’ve named In The Frame Photography:

Your photography niche positioning statement

Having read the above example, now consider what your positioning statement might be. Evaluate your current positioning statement (if you have one) or write one.

When drafting yours, at the very least ensure it communicates who you help, what you do, and the transformation you offer, i.e. how they benefit. Go into more detail (as above) if you wish.

Key information to include in your positioning statement:

• What you do
• Who (specifially) you do it for
• What is the result you help them achieve

Finding your photography niche

Choosing a niche requires courage to focus on serving a smaller segment of the market, but it offers significant benefits. By understanding and serving your ideal clients deeply, you can differentiate yourself from competitors, build stronger connections, and create more effective marketing strategies.

From my experience of running my own business, and from working with many independent photographers over the years, I believe that having a clearly defined photography niche can potentially lead to greater business success. If nothing else, it certainly makes marketing easier!

Do you have a photography niche? Are you a photo specialist in a particular genre? If so, when did you niche down and what triggered this decision? If you are a generalist, is having a photography niche something that you’ve considered before? If yes, what is it about niching that you’re not keen on?

Either way, please comment below – I’d love to hear your thoughts. Or join my PR-Savvy Photographer’s Facebook group – a community of over 1000 photographers from around the world. Let’s chat about it in there too!