[Leica] Professional photographers?

[lrzeitlin at aol.com (Lawrence Zeitlin)]

When I mentioned the almost impossibility of selling figurative photos at 
art and photo shows several LUG members suggested that I repost this note. 
It was written half a decade ago and is still relevant today.

"A couple of truths. Photography is not legally a profession in most parts 
of the USA. Anyone can call themselves a "professional photographer." There 
are no exams, no licenses, no boards of regulation, no educational 
requirements. Your doctor, dentist, architect, lawyer, accountant, 
podiatrist, and even your kid's kindergarten teacher are professionals. 
Photography is either a hobby or a business. In some communities you must 
have a business license to operate. But having a business license does not 
mean that you are legally a professional. According to the IRS, if you don't 
make money three years out of five, it is a hobby. The Bureau of Labor 
Statistics data shows that there are 152,000 people in the U.S. who classify 
themselves as photographers but only about 10% of those make a living which 
puts them solidly in the middle class. If the practice of photography is 
their only income, the rest qualify for food stamps. Many LUG members who 
profess to making a nice living from photography are not free lancers but 
are or were gainfully employed by some organization who paid them to take 
pictures.

Second, photographic equipment has evolved to the point where little 
technical knowledge is required to make adequate photographs. Anyone can 
pick up a camera, point it at a subject and get a perfectly exposed, in 
focus, image. It is all in knowing where to point the camera and that 
facility is shared by many who do not classify themselves as photographers. 
There is no long apprenticeship learning the fundamentals. The entry bar is 
very low. This extends to commercial photography as well as pictures of Aunt 
Julia. A national distributor of mechanical fasteners in my neighborhood 
photographs all the pictures in his voluminous catalog himself. "Why," he 
says, "pay thousands to a professional photographer. How much skill does it 
take to make a picture of a bolt?"

Third, professional quality equipment is cheap and readily available. Canon 
expects to sell 26 million cameras this year. Two million will be of 
professional level. Nikon, Sony, and even Leica will add to the sum, perhaps 
5 million pro cameras in total. Clearly there is no shortage of equipment 
which can meet the highest standards for publication. And the stuff is 
easier than ever to use.

The LUG has over 1000 members all of whom have a high interest in 
photography and probably possess professional level equipment. How many of 
us make a living from photography alone? Just photography. No other day 
jobs, investment, trust fund, Social Security, retirement benefits or 
spousal income included. I mean a real living. The average middle class 
income in the US is $40,000. The poverty level is under $20,000. Remember 
you can make that much by frying hamburgers at Burger King. If you don't 
make an adequate living income from photography, no matter how skilled you 
are, you are practicing a hobby. Unless more than 100 LUG members are 
gainfully employed in photography, I maintain that the "professionals" 
amongst us are a distinct minority, unrepresentative of the interests of the 
entire group. If we listen to them we might as well expect all real 
photographers to only use Leicas.

Larry Z


A couple of truths. Photography is not legally a profession in most parts of 
the USA. Anyone can call themselves a "professional photographer." There are 
no exams, no licenses, no boards of regulation, no educational requirements. 
Your doctor, dentist, architect, lawyer, accountant, podiatrist, and even 
your kid's kindergarten teacher are professionals. Photography is either a 
hobby or a business. In some communities you must have a business license to 
operate. But having a business license does not mean that you are legally a 
professional. According to the IRS, if you don't make money three years out 
of five, it is a hobby. The Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that there 
are 152,000 people in the U.S. who classify themselves as photographers but 
only about 10% of those make a living which puts them solidly in the middle 
class. If the practice of photography is their only income, the rest qualify 
for food stamps. Many LUG members who profess to making a nice living from 
photography are not free lancers but are or were gainfully employed by some 
organization who paid them to take pictures.

Second, photographic equipment has evolved to the point where little 
technical knowledge is required to make adequate photographs. Anyone can 
pick up a camera, point it at a subject and get a perfectly exposed, in 
focus, image. It is all in knowing where to point the camera and that 
facility is shared by many who do not classify themselves as photographers. 
There is no long apprenticeship learning the fundamentals. The entry bar is 
very low. This extends to commercial photography as well as pictures of Aunt 
Julia. A national distributor of mechanical fasteners in my neighborhood 
photographs all the pictures in his voluminous catalog himself. "Why," he 
says, "pay thousands to a professional photographer. How much skill does it 
take to make a picture of a bolt?"

Third, professional quality equipment is cheap and readily available. Canon 
expects to sell 26 million cameras this year. Two million will be of 
professional level. Nikon, Sony, and even Leica will add to the sum, perhaps 
5 million pro cameras in total. Clearly there is no shortage of equipment 
which can meet the highest standards for publication. And the stuff is 
easier than ever to use.

The LUG has over 1000 members all of whom have a high interest in 
photography and probably possess professional level equipment. How many of 
us make a living from photography alone? Just photography. No other day 
jobs, investment, trust fund, Social Security, retirement benefits or 
spousal income included. I mean a real living. The average middle class 
income in the US is $40,000. The poverty level is under $20,000. Remember 
you can make that much by frying hamburgers at Burger King. If you don't 
make an adequate living income from photography, no matter how skilled you 
are, you are practicing a hobby. Unless more than 100 LUG members are 
gainfully employed in photography, I maintain that the "professionals" 
amongst us are a distinct minority, unrepresentative of the interests of the 
entire group. If we listen to them we might as well expect all real 
photographers to only use Leicas."

Larry Z