When someone is just starting out it can be crucial to have someone act as a mentor. Gordon McGowan explains why he’s only too willing to help out

Professional photography is a tough enough business to break into in the first place, without the added challenge of having to gain experience on the job and potentially make terrible mistakes in order to find out the right way to tackle a particular situation. In an ideal world there would be a helping hand for those who are starting out, someone who was more experienced and who was prepared to invest time and energy into helping someone further down the career ladder to get to grips with both the technical and the business side of running a photographic studio. We’ve already covered the ‘Mentor Me’ scheme which the SWPP operates in the This Month section of this issue, and the MPA also runs a similar scheme, designed to put photographers who are looking for a little friendly support in touch with photographers who are prepared to put something back into the industry.
It’s a sign of what a strong mutual self-help climate there is out there in the world of professional photography that so many of those, many of whom are at the very top of their profession, are prepared to put themselves out to make life a little easier for someone who is fighting to get established.