The State of the Art
December 16, 2009 at 8:45 There seem to be two countervailing forces within the professional photography business at the moment: lower barriers to entry, versus the fact that people are only willing to pay for difficult work.
Camera equipment is cheaper than ever, and photographic knowledge, especially via the Strobist phenomenon, is virtually free. The premium that clients, especially editorial, will pay for that knowledge is therefore minimal and we are moving towards a truly 2.0 world where specialist knowledge is no longer chargeable.
The upside is that, as the advertising photographer Chase Jarvis frequently intones, a rising tide floats all boats; anyone can now take a good photo. The economic qualification is that professionals have to improve accordingly. Only hard work makes a profit, and no-one will pay for what they can do themselves, or pay much for what many people can do.
Overall, the effort required to make a living from photography stays the same, so if the job is getting easier, beware!
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