(I realize that not all film photographers share this opinion, but I’ve heard it enough to get tired of it. So you guys out there know who you are.)

Okay, I get it. You learned photography with a manual focus Pentax II 35mm camera. You had a tiny little darkroom in your apartment closet where you developed your own film, and you had to know exactly what your settings were before you took the shot, because there was no checking the little screen and trying again. You learned the hard way, and for that you have my respect.

But don’t you DARE sit on a frickin’ pedestal and tell me that I have it easy. Here are a few things WE have to deal with.

We have to compete with established photography businesses. That means you, Mr. “Real” Photographer. I know, this is the main reason you get huffy and puffy, but the truth is, when you have 40+ years of portrait experience, the pressure is on me to bring something new to the table. You already have your studio, a customer base, and a business model that works for you. Chances are you didn’t have to compete with too much of that back in the 60′s when you started yours.

There are a LOT of us. I bought my camera around the same time that everyone else did. Nikon and Canon started releasing some really high quality, relatively inexpensive digital cameras, and I bit, much like the rest of America. Now all of a sudden, anyone that can point and click thinks they take amazing photos. Worse yet, their friends and relatives REALLY think they take amazing photos. I was one of these people, and it was up to me to separate myself from the pack. In such a flooded market, not only do you have to be amazing, you have to be different as well. Try coming up with something unique that has mass appeal when there are 10 million other people out there trying to do the same.

The economy sucks. Sure it may not have been great back then either, but let’s face it; No one is buying much right now. Pair that up with the previously mentioned high quality inexpensive cameras, and there’s a whole new level of consumer “do it yourself” mentality that has not been seen before. How do you convince Soccer Mom to spend $250 on a portrait session of her kids when she can pull out the 15 megapixel camera out of her purse and be done with it? Not a great time to be trying to start a business.

We are competing with each other, as well as you. One thing that the “newbies” are bad about is that they’ll do ANYTHING to get the job. They’ll under-bid each other, offer more for less, and even give away stuff for free. I’ll admit that I was guilty of this as well, until I realized the negative impact it has on the photography market. I changed, but it looks like this is something that is here to stay.

We still have to know what we’re doing. I know just as well as you do that pointing and clicking isn’t all there is to photography. Photography equipment is still required, and still very expensive. Any new photographer, despite the digital camera, still needs some good glass, some good lights, and the knowledge to use them to their full potential. We still need to know how to pose, what to do with a reflector, and why a light meter is important. The only thing that has changed about photography is the camera.

I’ll admit, I still have a way to go. I’m not there yet. I still have a lot to learn, and my business still has yet to become a viable source of income. But I’m working on it. I’m growing as a photographer, and learning new things every day. I’m not content to take the same kind of photos over and over, or to just point and click. I’ve gotten a lot of help from other digital photographers, and even a few “real” photographers, who have embraced us who want to learn, rather than look down their nose at us and scoff at our aspirations. But even with their help, trying to become a professional photographer in this day and age is anything but easy. So think about that next time, Mr. “Real” Photographer.

-Damon