Professional photographers need to start looking at other careers

I just got back from our once a month photography meeting at Starbucks. This months hot discussion was about the birth and rapid growing "Craigslist" "Pro" photographers. Who are flooding the market with cheap rates, poor results and making a mess of what was a good career choice for many. Nikon, Canon and other camera manufactures are making camera's so much less expensive that we are in a new time of instant photography, most everyone has a camera and doesn't need to hire a pro photographer, or they hire someone from Craigslist.

Either way, the over all feelings this morning was if you make a living off photography and don't have a huge client list and are dependent on new business to survive. It might not be a bad idea to plant seeds for other career choices.

Photography has most often been a sideline pursuit for many, shooting weddings on the weekends, or sports teams a few hours a week, but the proliferation of "instant Pro" photographers and such has made it difficult for freelancers to separate themselves from the herd. this has been a problem for many over the past few years,myself included.

I agree with Rob. The same phenomenon has been going on for years in other crafts. The laid-off plumber offering to do work at a fraction of the price of others, a graphic artist designing a flyer at bargain prices, a hair stylist giving "cut-rate" (sorry about the pun) haircuts in her home).
The Craigslist "pro" quality will show and people will take the same attitude as they do with Craigslist plumbers, house painters, etc. Word will spread that during business with Craigslist is not always a good idea. A messed up haircut will grow out, a messed up painting job can be redone (at extra cost), but a messed up wedding shoot can not be recreated.
As the economy improves, quality businesses will again start to gain "traction". Part-timers have always been price beaters but build you portfolio and keep at it. A backup plan is a good idea (like training in tax prep).

Again this was the general thoughts from this morning, but it was agreed that it will get worse before it get's better. As economy worsens "more people become desperate for money, there for drop rates to crazy low".

Well I don't know if it'll get worse or if it's 'bottomed' out; at least in sports this has been happening for some time already. But it does seem like the realization is there already that they got what they paid for and they 'come back' to the photographers they used to use more.

I think like Rob said it hasn't been full time for many anyway, things just got more lean. Sports photographers who work in the major leagues for a team or a magazine/newspaper might have been able to stay full time through the years of a tough economy, but freelancers probably not. And as John said, the economy has affected other fields besides photography.

Let me throw out my my opinion and thoughts based on nearly 30 years in the business. I have seen many a good photographer cut and run at the first sign of economic downturn (this isn't the first) only to TRY and come back when it was over. As a formally educated professional, I have always tried to stay positive and adapt to the conditions and stay the course. And I will be the first to say "at times I failed"; but I am still here. Sure the conditions were different (technology was drastically different).

Right now I have a "girl" 8 miles away that will do a 90 minute location portrait shoot and provide an entire disc of photos for $40.00 flat fee! YEA FORTY DOLLARS! I can't begin to compete with that, BUT I have lost several clients to here to only get them back a few months down the road, because they didn't like the snapshots.......customers called them snapshots, not me.

As professionals. WE need to focus on marketing experience, education and and the fact that we have been here for a while. Last time I took a snap shot was in the 6th grade! I can still shot film and yes I have customers that request film and negatives. I can do retouching and enhancements and even deliver 20x30 mounted and framed prints.

In closing remember your PROFESSIONAL and sell that and don't sell yourself short to the snapshot shooters..... We can provide what others can't!

Namaste'

DJ

I'm a bit curious...what are the qualifications of a "proffesional" portrait photographer? Everyone has to start somewhere. Don't they?

DJ Tangeman wrote: Let me throw out my my opinion and thoughts based on nearly 30 years in the business. I have seen many a good photographer cut and run at the first sign of economic downturn (this isn't the first) only to TRY and come back when it was over. As a formally educated professional, I have always tried to stay positive and adapt to the conditions and stay the course. And I will be the first to say "at times I failed"; but I am still here. Sure the conditions were different (technology was drastically different).

Right now I have a "girl" 8 miles away that will do a 90 minute location portrait shoot and provide an entire disc of photos for $40.00 flat fee! YEA FORTY DOLLARS! I can't begin to compete with that, BUT I have lost several clients to here to only get them back a few months down the road, because they didn't like the snapshots.......customers called them snapshots, not me.

As professionals. WE need to focus on marketing experience, education and and the fact that we have been here for a while. Last time I took a snap shot was in the 6th grade! I can still shot film and yes I have customers that request film and negatives. I can do retouching and enhancements and even deliver 20x30 mounted and framed prints.

In closing remember your PROFESSIONAL and sell that and don't sell yourself short to the snapshot shooters..... We can provide what others can't!

Namaste'

DJ

Very good point

Cream rises to the top.

Scotty wrote: Cream rises to the top.

That's one way of looking at it!

I'm no pro, but it's all about how you market yourself too. Right marketing will get you in the right crowd of clients. Not everyone goes to Craigslist for photographers.

Just got to be smarter is all. Reel smarter!

@DJ Tangeman

Good points and observations DJ but may I suggest that an essential part of being "a professional" is one's public image and communications manner and style... through which one conveys a sense of literacy, knowledge and integrity... which means paying attention to good grammar and spelling... so "in closing"... here/her, shot/shoot/ your/you're all express different meanings and when mis-spelled can diminish one's credibility. Just saying

(I am a working professional since 1978 and photography educator since 1995)

This has been an issue since the dawn of photography. In 1891, when Eastman Kodak introduced the box camera, photographers everywhere declared the end of "professional photography." But that did not happen.

In 1976 when Canon brought camera advertising to television (Canon AE-1) it put advanced 35mm photography into the hands of amateurs everywhere. And professional photographers cried, "it's the end of professional photography." But that did not happen.

Jump to now...

Digital photography brought all new capabilities to my work as a professional (I went full digital in 2003/04). But this time, I believe, digital photography has brought the end to many of us working professionally. It was not just digital cameras which did this. The entire spectrum of how we take, access and share photography changed. We lost many outlets for paid work, from "iReporters" to the Weather Channel to newsprint; the new model changed to "send us your photos" and overnight everything changed.

I have enjoyed 30 + years award-winning photographer - from photojournalism to a profitable consumer-based business. In the last few years I have watched my business tank. It was not a matter of marketing any longer (as some would lead you to believe). It came down to dollars and sense. That "sense" being the lack of business sense by new photographers entering the marketplace.

In the 90s I served on the Board of ASMP Colorado for many years. We tried over and over to get schools to add a solid business module. Not a single one saw the need for teaching emerging photographers how to run a business. But business aside, the ease and availability of digital photography has forever changed the business in ways we could not have dreamt of (nightmares, that is).

I have pared my photography business down significantly, cutting out the areas in which un-educated photographers have toasted for good. These include any type of family portraits, reunions, corporate and convention photography and wedding photojournalism. I am focused almost entirely upon dog photography.

Consumer based photogs are not alone. I continue to have dialogues with (now) former photojournalists who have watched the business of news photography get handed out to "send-us-your-pictures" amateurs, staff writers with an iPhone and the like. As the face of journalism continues to change the need for qualified photojournalists will continue to wither on the vine.

There are very few areas of photography which have not been affected. I urge my students to consider this very, very carefully when making plans to become a professional photographer. Most graduates from photography programs can take their place in the employment line beside and behind the MBAs!

Regards from Colorado...

Matthew Eric Lit
photographer & photography educator
And, of course, you can find me on facebook (how ironic )

Oh, and I'd like to add one more comment:

1) I am tired of photographers who shout that photographers need to educate clients. While this is true to some extent, the reality is we need to educate other photographers. The problem is photographers have proven time and again that they don't need to be educated. Worst group of business people I've ever seen!