When can you legitimately call yourself a photograper?

[Bitter Jeweler]

the topic is clearly about "photograpers".
J.

Aw ****, I thought I saw that as I clicked "submit".

I like your terms of "defining characteristic" though. It's sort of quantitative.

 

[Overread36]

You may only call yourself a photographer once you have the official certificate - in order to apply for consideration please send me your name, address and £40 in used notes to me and I'll put your name up for round one of consideration.

So now you are a purveyor of online degrees?

Don't be so short sighted - this is no online degree - we are not offering you the training nor the teaching; we are hear to ensure that only legitimate photograhers are awarded the title of Photographer. As such we take a nominal fee for processing costs inured during the deliberation stage of an application.

Once settled you can be assured; if you pass the criteria; of not only holding the official title of Photographer, but of also being able to charge a Photographers rates for work.

Note however if you wish to charge Professional Photographer rates you'll have to contact our Professional Award Allocation department. Note we also do Professional building, writing, drawing and dentistry

 

[Chamelion 6]

When you're too caught up in taking pictures to worry about whether you're a "photographer" or not.

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

While I know you are being funny, Overread, I can relate it to getting a "certified" Master Jeweler title.

It's expensive to take the test, which does entail making things using certain skills, and being "judged". It looked like an industry scam to me. But I can't call myself, and advertise myself as a Master Jeweler without doing so.

You are actually on to something. Think of the money you could make!

 

[Overread36]

Bitter I'm actually surprised there isn't a photography group like that setup - albeit on more official lines - for something like the title Master Photographer. I know there are some wedding groups and such, but most I've seen are the type I've listed above - take your money and who cares about the actual quality of the product

Though on some level I guess photography is harder to classify - esp if you put art into the mix where (provided you're good at waffling and self justification and know a few friends in the right places) almost anything counts including rubbish (quite literally if you include the Tate Modern )

 

[KmH]

...I'm actually surprised there isn't a photography group like that setup - albeit on more official lines - for something like the title Master Photographer....

Here in the US there is a group that tests and certifies professional photographers as being Master Photographers. It's called oddly enough, the Professional Photographers of America, or PPA for short. www.ppa.com

 

[bentcountershaft]

...I'm actually surprised there isn't a photography group like that setup - albeit on more official lines - for something like the title Master Photographer....

Here in the US there is a group that tests and certifies professional photographers as being Master Photographers. It's called oddly enough, the Professional Photographers of America, or PPA for short. www.ppa.com

Is that for union purposes or something? The "master" designation I mean.

 

[Overread36]

Aye but they don't prevent you calling yourself a Photographer and chances are you can call yourself a master photographer without their certificate - unlike in some other areas such as the jewellers trade and some other areas such as in the UK you can't become a farrier without the appropriate acknowledgement from the governing body

 

[sabbath999]

I've been taking pictures for 35 years. Big deal, so what.

I don't call myself a photographer now... it sounds pretentious.

 

[sleist]

If you don't have the self confidence to call yourself a photographer, then you never will be one.

 

[Bitter Jeweler]

I don't call myself a photographer now... it sounds pretentious.

Do you think there is a sort of romanticism attached to the word?
The need to call ones self that, in hopes of being held in higher regard? In the same manner that applying a "watermark" does?

 

[Chamelion 6]

I dunno about outside the states, but as far as I know here you can pretty much call yourself what ever you like as long as it's not a licensed profession... Like a Dr. or RN. and so forth. So I could call myself a Master Jewler or Master Photographer or Master Mechanic.... Where I might get in trouble is if I said I was "Certified" as a master in one of those professions... But that would only be an issue in a civil situation if I were being sued for misrepresenting myself.

If there is no licensing agency there is no mandated standard.

 

[pgriz]

I'm a photographer. Whoop de doop. I'm also a kayaker, a skier, a boater, a driver, a reader, a singer, a husband, a father, a cook, and depending on which hat I wear , a CEO, CFO, CIO, COO, CBSO... I'm an inventor, a dreamer, a skywatcher, a bug watcher, an investor, a consultant, an owner, and ... I speak canonian, nikonian, practikian and several dialects of Hinglish. With some of those, I get the official recognition of a multi-coloured ribbon, with others, a propeller beanie may be more appropriate. Labels. That what they all are. And they all fail to capture the holistic existence of pretty much all of us. Having said that, some of "us" are better at "it" than others. And again, in the big, big picture, we're all stardust at the start, and probably at the end.

 

[kundalini]

Click and you're done in one.

​

 

[David Dvir]

I think if you enjoy even simply the notion of photography, you are a photographer. However I believe that being a professional photographer is a different title. One that is earned when you are living photography, ie earning a living off of it and are not fuelling your hobby with some other job.