Professionally, about 7 years. I have been taking photos since I was 11 years old, by the time I was 13, I knew I wanted to be a photographer. Turning it into a full time job was a much longer process.
I studied after high school; however, it's not often that you are guaranteed a job as soon as you graduate. I spent years working day jobs while developing my portfolio on the side. I definitely learned more in the real world than I did during my studies. I went from charging nothing, to charging peanuts, to charging a standard rate. This process took over 4 years. I gradually started working fewer hours at my day job until I finally quit and became a full-time freelancer.
