When you think of a photographer what do you see? Just someone Snapping pictures with a camera right?
It sounds really easy on the surface. But there's so much more to it. What you don't hear about is the 1000's of hours we put in practicing to learn about lighting, and how to get that perfect shot. How you have to adjust your iso to compensate for long or short exposure times, or how you have to learn what the perfect exposure time is in any given lighting condition.
You don't hear about all the money we spend on classes to become great in a field where most of us fail, or how most of us start our careers off knowing the odds are stacked against us
What you don't see is the 1000's of dollars we have to spend on gear to get ourselves started and begin to grow our reputations. The $500 wide angle camera. The $750 35-150mm DSLR. The $2000 laptop or the $400 software suite we not only have to purchase, but take additional classes to learn how to use.
No one tells you about all the free weddings, portraits, family photos, pet photos, and volunteer opportunities we often have to take so we can start building our portfolios.
You never hear about the struggle we face trying to find models that will catch someone's eye when we want to sell ourselves as photographers, who are willing to work with us within our price range, or for free, or the dozens of people trying to sell us advertisement space to "get exposure".
You see a photographer, and you see a beautiful picture he took of a waterfall on top of a mountain. And you appreciate it, and move on.
But what you don't see behind that photo is the 20 mile hike into the mountains he had to make to get that shot, or how he did so even though he had an injured ankle, because he wouldn't miss that opportunity for the world.
No, Photography isn't for everyone. It takes dedication, effort, open mindedness, fearlessness. Anyone can pick up a camera or a phone and snap a picture. But not anyone can handle photography. It's art. It takes a special kind of eye, a certain vision. And it's work. It takes sweat, blood, tears, and thousands of failures before we start seeing successes.
If you appreciate the struggle your favorite photographers have most likely all gone through, and enjoyed this little post, learned something interesting, or gained a new perspective of your own, feel free to throw me an upvote or a resteem! #supportstarvingartists <3