The Professional Photographers of America (PPA) has unlocked its entire online education platform to anyone with a free PPA account, to help photographers fill the time learning some new skills.

“You are our family.  We stand by family!”. That’s the opening statement made by the Professional Photographers of America while inviting professionals to create a free account and explore the online education platform usually exclusive to members. Times change, says PPA, “but our dedication to serving our members remains constant. We are a partner, advocate and guide for photographers navigating the increasingly complex business of photography.”

The decision to open the platform to non-members means that anyone can use this period to master some new skills, discover other ways to expand your business. Just follow the link to create a free account: PPA.com/education-unlocked and have access to over 1,100+ online classes. In addition, the organization also offers some new webinars and Facebook Live sessions to help support you and offer guidance.

Free webinars and Facebook sessions

The free live webinars are ideal to get a bit of inspiration or a dose of entrepreneurial wisdom. Available to all photographers, they cover a range of photography and photography business topics. PPA members have the added benefit of being able to replay these webinars on demand. Facebook Live sessions help to bridge the gap, offering 30-minute segments being aired every other Wednesday at 2pm ET.

The Facebook Live short sessions are ideal for small business owners who are crazy busy and for whom time is both limited and valuable. They offer a quick dose of entrepreneurial inspiration and advice on topics such as:

• How to overcome business fears
• What has changed in the industry
• Who your clients are and what they need
• How to attract the right clients
• What it takes to conquer in-person sales

A letter to Congress

Because times are tough and everybody is dealing with uncertainty, disruption, even fear, the organization decided to actively help photographers beyond opening its online platform. PPA has urged Congress to help the creative community, and PPA CEO David Trust invited photographers to visit the webpage ppa.com/InItTogether and become familiar with its content, adding that “It is becoming more robust daily, and will be your single stop for information on government benefits. It also features education & webinars specifically addressing things you should be engaged in during these unprecedented times.

David Trust also encouraged photographers “to check-in regularly on the Professional Photographers of America Facebook page for information.  As a reminder, this is a great time to brush up on your photographic and entrepreneurial skills on PPAedu. We’ve opened all of PPA’s online education so that, when this is over, you can hit the ground running!”

The page We’re In This Together, continually updated, has the most recent information on government assisted relief and how to use it, and is the hub to access other vital information collected by PPA, from the webinars available to the free online education resources made available to all photographers during this period.