The prospect of working within a specific illustration niche can be a scary one to some people - the thought of getting stuck doing only one type of work or work based on one subject for the rest of their career can feel restrictive and take the fun out of it.
If you, like me, are just starting out in illustration the natural inclination is to reach out to everyone and try a blanket approach in order to land your first commission but here’s is why I’m going to try a more targeted, more strategic approach:
- It helps create a stronger portfolio that better showcases my natural strengths
- It gives me a clearer focus for my marketing efforts (i.e. rather than blanket contacting any and all art directors for all sorts of publications I can focus on contacting only those ones which feature my type of work)
- It helps me brand myself as the ‘go to’ illustrator for the type of work I want to specialise in - which will hopefully give me a solid base from which to then expand the type of work I might want to do in the future
The first reaction to focusing on a smaller niche area is usually one of horror for many illustrators (myself included). We tend to think that if we niche, we will miss out on all of the potential commissions and jobs that don’t fall within that niche.
But here are a few examples of how finding a niche has worked exceptionally well for some illustrators:
- Alex Ross - is there anyone else who is more well-known in the realm of painted comics?
- James Gurney - the “go to” guy for dinosaur illustrations
- Jacqueline Bissett - a fashion illustrator with a recognisable style, featured in many UK national publications
Niche’ing may not be for everyone and it won’t necessarily mean instant success but over time, making a name for yourself as the ‘go to’ illustrator in your area could equal a long term career in illustration with art directors approaching you, versus being a general all-rounder who has to compete with every other all-rounder and fight for every commission.
Being the jack of all trades and the master of none I agree will hurt you in the end. I think the key however is, no matter what your niche market is, never turn something down outside of it. If you choose to follow one path, don’t be afraid to hop off of it for a $delicious$ detour every now and then. You can always stay focused on the future projects in line with your niche. I am actually starting out on the same journey you are on. Revamping my web presence, portfolio, etc and so on. So I enjoy seeing your progress. Good luck to you.
Charlie
Very nice post! I was unsure whether to find a niche or not but this post gives me more confidence to do just that.