Everyone thinks they can be a pro! (RANT)

[JodieO]

I didn't know who it was directed to (and I apologize if that upset you that it was directed at you) but I do know while it was a very harsh way in which he said it, I have had the same experience dealing with new photographers. In fact, I have actually taught many new photographers over the past two years, and the biggest problem they are having is defining whether or not they want to be a business... and those who are defining themselves as a business, end up frustrated when they realize they aren't making a dime.

While what he said above was harsh, I totally see where he is coming from after being in business for years, and if you are heading down the road of being in business, you will look back a few years from now and understand why he wrote that.

I'm not trying to be a jerk, but I remember when I first got into this business and heard what another local photog was saying and I kept saying "OMG, she is such a B@#@$"... now that I have gone down the same road she did, I totally totally understand why she acted the way she did.

 

[Chiller]

I just realized something...Im a WMWAC...Warehouse Manager with a camera.


sorry....back to my crypt

 

[Peanuts]

If Chiller is a WMWAC I am a PSWAC (poor student with a camera )or BHScSWAC (Bachelor of Health Sciences Student with a camera)

 

[MikeBcos]

The stereotypical MWAC has a husband who works, and she stays home with the kids. She dabbles in photography and decides to hang a shingle and be a business. But because she doesn't NEED to work, she only charges a few bucks to take pictures of other peoples' kids, usually on location or at the person's house. What the MWAC doesn't realize is that sure, it's a few bucks, but she's really not making a dime (she's actually charging less than walmart's a la carte prices). All the work she puts into PPing and money she puts out for camera bodies or equipment, she's not even thinking about that. If she did her expenses vs. income, she would see she's spending hours at minimum wage or less. What she is doing in actuality is dragging the industry down. She's making customers think that portraits should be cheap... so the MWAC will eventually go out of business because eventuallys he will get bored of not making money or her thrill of being a "photographer" passes.

This phenomenon is not limited to the photographic industry, I'm a graphic designer/printer. With the advent of the home computer and cheap colour printers everyone thinks they are designers and printers. -- "Aunt Beth is getting married next month so lets buy some blank invitations from Walmart and design the text and stuff ourselves."

It has hurt my industry, but I do not believe it has dragged it down, those who want quality realize that the pro will do a better job 99% of the time, I do lose a lot of business to people with their $49 deskjets, but, there are also the people who realize that my 25 years experience and my $100,000 digital printers are going to produce a much nicer job than Joey with his HP computer-kit-in-a-box. I just have to market myself to the right people.

I also know my limitations, I have been a photographer for 34 years. My daughter is in her Senior year of high school, naturally we wanted some excellent Senior photos, better than the ones the school's canned photographer would supply. So, I put my D40 back in its bag and hired a pro, it was worth every penny.

 

[Chiller]

If Chiller is a WMWAC I am a PSWAC (poor student with a camera )or BHScSWAC (Bachelor of Health Sciences Student with a camera)

:lmao::lmao: Thats a pretty long title ya got there Peanuts.

 

[JodieO]

This phenomenon is not limited to the photographic industry, I'm a graphic designer/printer.

ITA.

When I was interviewed by the New York Times a few years ago, they were looking for a MWAC (the stereotypical negative connotations version) and they couldn't get it through me - she kept trying to say "what does your husband do?" and all that when interviewing me... )... so they only quoted one little piece from me, but I was really irritated because they were so trying to start major controversy in our industry with the way in which they wrote up the article.

But sure, it is everywhere... you are right!

 

[manaheim]

Not like it matters, but...

Definitions of professional on the Web:

• [SIZE=-1]
• engaged in a profession or engaging in as a profession or means of livelihood; "the professional man or woman possesses distinctive qualifications ...
• a person engaged in one of the learned professions
• an athlete who plays for pay
• master: an authority qualified to teach apprentices
• engaged in by members of a profession; "professional occupations include medicine and the law and teaching" [/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]
• A professional can be either a person in a profession (certain types of skilled work requiring formal training/education) or in sports (a sportsman/sportwoman doing sports for payment). ...[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]
• A person who belongs to a profession; A person who earns his living from a specified activity; An expert; Of, pertaining to, or in accordance with the standards of a profession; That is carried out for money, especially as a livelihood; Expert [/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]en.wiktionary.org/wiki/professional[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]
• A player who receives payment for teaching or playing in tournaments. Usually shortened to Pro.[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]www.worldgolf.com/wglibrary/reference/dictionary/ppage.html[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]
• A difficulty setting available when starting a new game where the enemies can sustain and deliver more damage. The title screen also changes to a panoramic view of the village.[/SIZE]
  [SIZE=-1]www.experiencefestival.com/a/Resident_Evil_4_-_Gameplay/id/4708528[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Most of these have something about being paid in them.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]A few of them have something about a certain level of expertise. Since level of expertise is very subjective, but being paid is very objective... why don't we all just assume that if you get PAID then you are a PROFESSIONAL.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=-1]Now those of you who bristle at the idea of someone who isn't so great at what they do and still being called a professional... you can resign yourselves to calling those people "low quality professionals" if you like, and then we can all move on with our lives. [/SIZE]

 

[Chiller]

WOO HOOO(yes Im yelling for those who are prefessional grammatically correct people)...it is official. Im a professional retard.

 

[abraxas]

Adapt or die. It ain't going to get any better. Don't forget all those MWAC are mommies and have kids which will morph into KWAC, of which they will ultimately take over the world!

 

[unitekbenchmark]

As far as I'm concerned, the more people with cameras out there the better. There is nothing wrong with pursuing a hobby. I have a bigger problem with the people who claim to be advanced or professional and have no skill in developing photographs. Learn your medium before you start tinkering with computers and effects. If you really want to be a photographer get in a dark room and start doing some work. After you deal with that frustration then turn on a computer and appreciate the differences and understand photoshops limitations.

 

[rufus5150]

Before you turn on your computer, make sure you fire up the old PDP-11 and bang out some microcode, too!

 

[JerryPH]

If Chiller is a WMWAC I am a PSWAC (poor student with a camera )or BHScSWAC (Bachelor of Health Sciences Student with a camera)

Sigh... so that makes me a SAWAC. (smart a$$ with a camera).

At least I am NOT a man with a wrench... AKA a plumber... butt-crack... ewwww!

I understand and actually agree with Jodie about this, what she says sings very true with what I have seen around my area.

 

[JerryPH]

[SIZE=-1]Now those of you who bristle at the idea of someone who isn't so great at what they do and still being called a professional... you can resign yourselves to calling those people "low quality professionals" if you like, and then we can all move on with our lives. [/SIZE]

Now that fits me to a "T".

 

[MikeBcos]

I used to read these same discussions in photo magazines back in the early 80s, I'll bet the first letter to a magazine on this subject was written in February of 1900 right after Kodak introduced their camera for the masses - the Brownie.

 

[JerryPH]

I found it! The definitive definition of a professional photographer. If you know some of the older Chuck Norris definitions, well you guys will feel right at home. I am *SO* glad we can finally lay that discussion to rest with this new info.

Here we go:

A professional photographer is the Chuck Norris of photography

A professional photographer's camera has similar settings to a non pro, except ours are: P[erfect] Av[Awesome Priority Tv[Totally Awesome Priority] M[ajestic]

A professional photographer doesn't color correct. The world adjusts to match us.

Sure, a professional photographer deletes a bad photo or two. Other people call these Pulitzers.

A professional photographer doesn't adjust his DOF, he changes space-time.

A professional photographer doesn't wait for the light when he shoots a landscape - the light waits for him.

A professional photographer never flips his camera in portrait position, he flips the earth

A professional photographer orders an L-lens from Nikon, and gets one.

When a professional photographer brackets a shot, the three versions of the photo win first place in three different categories

Only a professional photographer can take pictures of a professional photographer; everyone else would just get their film overexposed by the light of our genius

A professional photographer's nudes were fully clothed at the time of exposure

A professional photographer once designed a zoom lens. You know it as the Hubble Space Telescope.

When a professional unpacks his CF card, it already has masterpieces on it.

A professional photographer’s portraits are so lifelike, they have to pay taxes

On a professional photographer's desktop, the Trash Icon is really a link to National Geographic Magazine

A professional photographer spells point-and-shoot "h-a-s-s-e-l-b-l-a-d"

For every 10 shots that a professional photographer takes, 11 are keepers.

A professional photographer's digital files consist of 0's, 1's AND 2's.

A professional photographer never focuses, everything moves into his DoF

A professional photographer's shots are so perfect, Adobe redesigned Photoshop for us: all it consists of is a close button.

A professional photographer never produces awful work, only work too advanced for the viewer

A professional photographer isn't the Chuck Norris of photography; Chuck Norris is the professional photographer of martial arts.

:thumbup: :mrgreen: :thumbup:
​