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© Sandro Ineichen, Precise Genetic Medicine
Sandro recently became a member of SBF. He is actually a spatial planning draughtsman and traffic planner and became - unplanned - a photographer. Today he is an advertising photographer in Winterthur. His goal: By 2025, Sandro wants to be able to live entirely from photography. He tells the SBF editorial team in the following article how he wants to achieve this.
You surprisingly became a career changer? Yes, it wasn't planned that way! I spontaneously took over a shoot for an agency. Our cooperation went smoothly, the client was very satisfied and hired me for the next assignment. After the third assignment, the thought of pursuing photography full-time came up for the first time. In 2019/2020, I decided to set up a sole proprietorship and since then I have been working - part-time for now - as a photographer.
Where did you learn to take photographs? I have been taking photographs for almost 30 years. I took my first steps with a reflex camera at the age of 10. At school, I chose photography as a free subject and thus acquired the technical basics. I also used the school darkroom. Developing and retouching photos was great fun. Photography was also a constant companion in my professional training. I attended training courses in image editing with Photoshop to be able to make visualisations for our work in public spaces. I also attended workshops during my studies and expanded my photography knowledge.
What fascinates you about commercial photography? I love everything that is technical! My favourite thing is when clients or an agency come to me with a good brief and mood board and I can spend time in the studio working out lighting setups. My biggest goal is to be able to make a living from product advertising later on. At the moment, most of my jobs are still in the service advertising sector.
How did your career start? I started just before the pandemic - not good starting conditions! But I'm not complaining, I'm still employed. I take my hat off to all my colleagues who didn't have this security. Also, the advertising industry with the health sector, where my most important client comes from, was not as badly affected as the private sector. My goal remains the same - despite the pandemic and the offspring last September. By 2025, I want to switch fully to photography, although I can't yet pay myself a salary. Nevertheless, I can already finance everything around photography through my income. That's a start.
How do you build up a client base? I rely entirely on referral marketing and on building up a good, broad-based professional network. I am active at networking events and try to make good quality contacts instead of many superficial contacts on social media. That way, the decision-makers know me personally and I know them. This puts me in a stronger position, especially when I can help them through my network.
You recently became a member of the SBF. Why? For me, membership in the SBF has three reasons. First, it is about expanding my professional network. I don't see colleagues as competition, but seek collaboration. I regularly get requests for work that I don't do (e.g. events, private shoots etc.). I like to pass these on to colleagues who fit the person making the request and who I am sure can deliver. The second reason for membership is knowledge transfer. We are all in the same boat and have all been confronted with a difficult situation. The last reason is personal exchange and training. Regular training is important for advancement in the profession.
https://sandroineichen.ch/