Re: Message VS Medium--It Ain't the Camera

[Donal Philby <donalphilby@earthlink.net>]

Ted Grant wrote:
> 
> But attending a photo school does not guarrantee one will be a great
> photographer, ala HCB, Capa, Ralph Morse, and many of the great shooters we look
> up to.

Well, here I am with a degree in photojournalism and mostly what I
learned was how to be a good journalist.  And when so many of the Icons
of documentary/photojournalism worked, the technical demands of color
and artificial lighting were minimal.    All (and I mean ALL) of my
technical knowledge is self learned by reading everything in sight,
devouring seminars and lectures, studying other people's work, and
taking on projects I had no idea how to do--and climbing out of the
hole. 

My major complaint, and it is a huge one that I have written about to
the university where I graduated, is that I didn't really understand how
the business of photography worked.  I don't mean how to balance a
checkbook, but how you freelance.  How you make contacts, develop
specialities, generate momentum.  Get things published.  Get paid.  

I thought you just had to be a good photographer.  So I blythely went
about working to that paradigm.  

I became so frustrated with trying to make a living, understanding
newspapers and magazines, that I ended up switching to writing for many
years.  

My firm belief now is that learning to "do" business is the hardest
photographic skill there is.  Because if you don't have clients that pay
you, and pay you well, you don't have the time, the equipment, the
resources to create high amounts of good work.  In equipment and
materials, photography is just too costly.  Sure, you can take a job at
the local fast food joint and do documentary on weekends, but how much
are you really going to produce.  Some of the great names in
photojournalism were independently wealthy and were working at a time
that the market actually paid.  (A day rate in 1950's for Time magazine
was $100 and today (when they are willing to give an assignment instead
of asking for shooting on speculation) it is $350-400).  

Today, making a living in photography requires enormous energy,
incredible talent (either to create images of substance or trendiness),
excellent negotiating skills, indefatigueable marketing efforts, and, of
course, high technical skills and craftsmanship to deal artificial light
and color transparency films.  Plus a strong back to carry all the gear!

I'd be real happy to use nothing more advanced than an M2 and a couple
of lenses, if only someone would make an R8/F5/EOS-1-like whiz bang
device that would do the business!

Especially the taxes.  I keep looking for the tax exposure compensation
button on this computer.  Can't find it.

Donal Philby
San Diego