How do I become a someone who edits/ retouches photos as a job (I used to study photography and have a fair amount of Photoshop skills)?

Frank

You can start your own business where you get in contact with photographers. Many photographers are really good at Photoshop, but they don't want to be stuck staring at a computer screen. Time is money, and any successful photographer needs to be shooting to make money. They can't do that if they're spending time editing photos; the opportunity costs are just too high. If being your own boss isn't your thing, then apply for photo editing jobs with established photographers. But before you do, you MUST have a portfolio to showcase your skills. Without a portfolio, you're dead. Build your own website using tools such as SquareSpace. This will allow anyone, anywhere to view your portfolio. Remember, you're in a global economy, and your services allows you to work at home for anyone in the world! So don't limit your search for potential employers to just those in your immediate area.

Steve P

Good answer from Frank, and I wish you all the luck in the world, but you do have a problem. India has made massive moves to take over the photo retouching industry. They can do it SO much cheaper than an American based business, and they do outstanding quality work also. So, like I say, I wish you the best of luck, but outsourcing such work overseas is becoming the norm for this now.

John P

Be utterly brilliant at your skills! Most photographers do their own "everyday" editing and retouching, thus they too have a fair amount of Photoshop skills. You need to have something extra special to offer.

keerok

I imagine most photographers do their own image manipulations, if ever, but I can only guess that those that require graphic artists to do it for them would be working in large organizations like in publications, the fashion industry or with news.