I’ve been accepted as a Click Pro!

I mentioned this in my Instagram stories, but I wanted to take a minute and address some of the questions I’ve received since that announcement and share some backstory. My hope is that you’ll learn a little more about it: what is Click Pro, and why I’m so thrilled to be a Click Pro!

 

My Click Pro Story

Let me tell you a story.

More than a decade ago, I was spending my days as an office manager of an optometry office. I had a Canon Rebel and a little dream of starting my own photography business. On my lunchbreaks, I’d hunker down at my desk and soak up everything I could about photography.

It was 2010, and that meant the best place on the internet to do that was the Clickinmoms Forum.

 

Clickinmoms was THE place to learn photography in an accessible, heart-centered way. It was full of people from just starting out like me to official Pros with their own studios who’d been in the business for years. The Pros were carefully vetted and accepted by ClickinMoms so that only the best of the best education was taught. It was essential to my own growth as a photographer in the early days!

 

Since then, ClickinMoms has grown with their audience, rebranding to Click Community. Last year, I saw that applications were open for Click Pros, and I decided to give it a shot! I fully expected to be rejected the first time around–it’s common to apply a few times, adjusting your portfolio each time to get it just right. I was delighted to be accepted on my first try!

 

 

What is Click Pro?

Click Pro is an application-based membership and a network of ambitious professional photographers. The focus is on elevating your art and business.

 

What does the application to Click Pro entail?

The Click Pro application is based around a carefully curated portfolio of 150 images. A panel of three judges, including the Director of Click Pro, critique the portfolios. They judge your portfolio with a point system that addresses seven categories, from the technical to the creative. 32 points out of a possible 42 are required for admission.

A little screenshot preview of my final portfolio:

 

How is your Click Pro application judged?

Your portfolio is judged in each of the following categories:

• Exposure
• Use of Light
• Color + White Balance
• Composition
• Processing + Cohesion
• Technical Basics
• Creativity + Intention

Each category is on a scale of 1 to 5. You can read more about the Click Pro standards here. Gosh, I spent a lot of days examining each of my 150 portfolio images for each of these standards!

 

How do you apply?

The first step is preparing your portfolio. This is an intense process, even more intense than I was expecting! It’s an incredible thing to go through every photo I’ve made in the last several years to put together a comprehensive portfolio. I found myself not only feeling emotional about the incredible journey I’ve been able to go on with my photography, but also finding even more creative direction from threads that were already appearing in my work years ago. This was a really beneficial time to be introspective on my work and my artistic intention. And you don’t have to go it alone! There are prep groups available in the Click Community forums to help you as you put together your best 150 images. Head over to Click Pro to learn more about applying (heads up, this is an affiliate link, which means I may get a small commission if you purchase or apply through this link. However I make it a point to only share tools and resources I truly love and use, and being a part of Click Pro Elite has been so beneficial to me personally!)

 

What are the benefits of Click Pro?

Beyond the incredible community of other equally ambitious professionals, there are some great benefits to being a Click Pro. Among my favorites are:

• Feature Opportunities in Click Magazine
• Exclusive classes at Click Away workshops
• Access to Click Community Directors and Editors for teaching and writing opportunities
• Directory Listing (did you know there are only 8 Click Pros in Oregon?)

 

What did I take away from applying?

Applying to Click Pro gave me so much more than I was expecting. I thought it would be a good opportunity to receive a portfolio review from other professionals and give me some specific areas to push myself in more. And of course, it was exactly that. But the process of assembling the portfolio itself was invaluable. It gave me the time and space to reflect on my creative direction and artistic goals. It gave me a chance to see my work as a collective body over the years, with my personal work mixed in with client work, rather than individual images from sessions.

Doing that gave me an incredible sense of satisfaction and joy–I know there’s always work to be done and growth I’m excited about, of course, but to take that moment to hit submit on my application and just reflect on how far I’ve come since my big dream sessions on lunchbreaks in 2010…that is the thing that made my Click Pro application WORTH IT!

 

See some of my family photo sessions that contributed to my Click Pro application portfolio

 

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