We see images everywhere, on posters, on sidewalks and in the sides of trucks and buses. They are so ubiquitous that we hardly take any notice of them. It is the very success of photography that leads it to be casually taken for granted and always undervalued. Yet every one of those pictures has been researched, photographed and then placed with thought and attention. Whether it is a soap powder commercial or a shot of last night's baseball game, every photograph is created to tell a story. The fact that we don't need to read the copy, or in some cases even know the context, reveals just how tuned into photography we really are.
Yet with the introduction of the camera phone and inexpensive digital photography, it seems that anybody can take a fabulous image. These amateur images flood Facebook, are loaded onto thousands of emails and help to define peoples' public personas. Any public event is awash with iPhone, iPad and camera phone coverage. No site or facebook page is complete without having these grainy, unfocussed, out of context photos. The bald truth is that basic photography is now more accessible than ever before - and cheaper. The camera phones that are in the shops now could compete easily with the professional DSLRs from a few years ago and are a lot more forgiving. So does is all this photo technology and these enthusiastic photo-journalists really spell the end of professional photography?
The phrase "Got an iPhone - now I am a photographer" strikes fear amongst the photo industry, as professional photographers watch their incomes drop and their commission rates slashed. It might be hard to think that professional photography has any future at all. But we need to realize that the Facebook photographers are often just recording what is in front of them, rather than creating photographs. Their grainy, badly focussed photographs represent their memories of the time itself and are just as short-lived. If they want an image to last for years and still make them smile, or they need a photo to strike a chord with people beyond their social group, they will need an image that was created, thought about and shot with the highest standards in mind.
So is the profession of photographer dead? You might think so if you discuss it with them. Editorial photographers in particular have had a hard time as newspapers and magazines try to cut expenses and rely more heavily on PR content. Media can now access any number of picture sources across the web and download exactly what they want straight away. The need to commission a professional to photograph a stock image, or to send a photographer to an event 'just in case' has simply vanished.
Advertising and PR photography are also suffering as companies cut expenditure and are able to find stock photos from all around the world. However there are areas which, whilst suffering from the economic situation, are otherwise healthy. Wedding and family photography, special event photography and even animal photography still have the potential to earn a professionala living - because a person will always want high quality when it involves something that is really important to them.
It is ironic to see that many editorial photographers still belittle this kind of photography. These are the guys who have been the most versatile over the years - not just in terms of their jobs, but also in adapting the new technology and requirements. They jumped from film to digital from dark rooms to photoshop and from wire machines to laptops in what seemed to be hardly any time at all. Now they need to summon their energies once more to find - and in some cases create - new demand for their profession. They may need to spread their skills across stills and video, photograph weddings and pets, and provide CDs or downloadable versions, to keep up with what is expected, but there are photographers already who are offering these services and they are prospering. The Profession of photographer is not dying, it is evolving and the fittest will survive.
Yet with the introduction of the camera phone and inexpensive digital photography, it seems that anybody can take a fabulous image. These amateur images flood Facebook, are loaded onto thousands of emails and help to define peoples' public personas. Any public event is awash with iPhone, iPad and camera phone coverage. No site or facebook page is complete without having these grainy, unfocussed, out of context photos. The bald truth is that basic photography is now more accessible than ever before - and cheaper. The camera phones that are in the shops now could compete easily with the professional DSLRs from a few years ago and are a lot more forgiving. So does is all this photo technology and these enthusiastic photo-journalists really spell the end of professional photography?
The phrase "Got an iPhone - now I am a photographer" strikes fear amongst the photo industry, as professional photographers watch their incomes drop and their commission rates slashed. It might be hard to think that professional photography has any future at all. But we need to realize that the Facebook photographers are often just recording what is in front of them, rather than creating photographs. Their grainy, badly focussed photographs represent their memories of the time itself and are just as short-lived. If they want an image to last for years and still make them smile, or they need a photo to strike a chord with people beyond their social group, they will need an image that was created, thought about and shot with the highest standards in mind.
So is the profession of photographer dead? You might think so if you discuss it with them. Editorial photographers in particular have had a hard time as newspapers and magazines try to cut expenses and rely more heavily on PR content. Media can now access any number of picture sources across the web and download exactly what they want straight away. The need to commission a professional to photograph a stock image, or to send a photographer to an event 'just in case' has simply vanished.
Advertising and PR photography are also suffering as companies cut expenditure and are able to find stock photos from all around the world. However there are areas which, whilst suffering from the economic situation, are otherwise healthy. Wedding and family photography, special event photography and even animal photography still have the potential to earn a professionala living - because a person will always want high quality when it involves something that is really important to them.
It is ironic to see that many editorial photographers still belittle this kind of photography. These are the guys who have been the most versatile over the years - not just in terms of their jobs, but also in adapting the new technology and requirements. They jumped from film to digital from dark rooms to photoshop and from wire machines to laptops in what seemed to be hardly any time at all. Now they need to summon their energies once more to find - and in some cases create - new demand for their profession. They may need to spread their skills across stills and video, photograph weddings and pets, and provide CDs or downloadable versions, to keep up with what is expected, but there are photographers already who are offering these services and they are prospering. The Profession of photographer is not dying, it is evolving and the fittest will survive.
About the Author:
Andy James has worked in the photo industry for more than twenty years. He has a particular interest in how digital cameras have evolved. To find out more about the new Nikon D7100 go to his webpage. The site will also have information about the Nikon D7100 release date and offers great advice about how to Use Nikon DSLRs.
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