Pro or Amateur?

[bolt2014]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

 

[Jonsi]

Below 50% so amateur, I guess.

Found I enjoyed photography more when I didn't sign contracts to do it. Not having to deal with people, including mothers of the bride, is just a bonus.

 

[Bobthearch]

Amateur for sure, even though I sometimes get paid.

 

[Smaug01]

1) Most of them know what they need to know to make money

2) For them, it's WORK. They don't want to spend their free time reading about work.

 

[Aaron801]

1) Most of them know what they need to know to make money

2) For them, it's WORK. They don't want to spend their free time reading about work.

There are a few but I think that you're mostly right... there's not many.

 

[Jonsi]

1) Most of them know what they need to know to make money

2) For them, it's WORK. They don't want to spend their free time reading about work.

There are a few but I think that you're mostly right... there's not many.

Yea, I don't know of any in the Open Forum.

 

[stevo23]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

- Owner of high end pro level gear and like people to think I'm pro

- Producer of very high level, pro quality photos but print for fun or family

 

[stretchman]

Amateur, but I try to take professional images.

 

[tcg550]

It depends who's asking and how they define pro.

I have a service business not related to photography I have many customers familiar with my photography who either call me when their business needs photos or an event organizer needs photos.

When they get asked if they know a professional photographer they refer me.

I have 3 million in liability insurance plus workers comp insurance for any employees.

After the shoot I turn in an invoice and get a check made out to my corporation, that check gets deposited and state and federal taxes get paid.

Income from photography is a very small, tiny, insignificant portion of my business but to those customers of my other services it makes me a little more valuable.

Is that professional or amateur?

 

[Brev00]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

- Owner of high end pro level gear and like people to think I'm pro

- Producer of very high level, pro quality photos but print for fun or family

Those are self-graded, subjective categories while the op gave two specific categories that depend on one objective criteria: do you get paid.

 

[markyboy81]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

- Owner of high end pro level gear and like people to think I'm pro

- Producer of very high level, pro quality photos but print for fun or family

Those are self-graded, subjective categories while the op gave two specific categories that depend on one objective criteria: do you get paid.

 

[markyboy81]

Amateur producing amateur looking images

 

[Jonsi]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

- Owner of high end pro level gear and like people to think I'm pro

- Producer of very high level, pro quality photos but print for fun or family

Those are self-graded, subjective categories while the op gave two specific categories that depend on one objective criteria: do you get paid.

More specifically... how much do you get paid.

If only 40% of your income is photography then you're an amateur

 

[Brev00]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

- Owner of high end pro level gear and like people to think I'm pro

- Producer of very high level, pro quality photos but print for fun or family

Those are self-graded, subjective categories while the op gave two specific categories that depend on one objective criteria: do you get paid.

Surely the very definition of professional means that you get paid, although it also has connotations of quality.

Yes. I was simply trying to explain why the two suggested categories don't mesh with the op's. I was not indicating disapproval or approval of his definitions. Just that they are pretty straightforward and easy to reply to. So many polls are vague and do call for more specific categories.

 

[Brev00]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

- Owner of high end pro level gear and like people to think I'm pro

- Producer of very high level, pro quality photos but print for fun or family

Those are self-graded, subjective categories while the op gave two specific categories that depend on one objective criteria: do you get paid.

More specifically... how much do you get paid.

If only 40% of your income is photography then you're an amateur

Is that an objective bar agreed to by all or most photographers (more than 40%)? The op made it simple. One could set up a poll where we divided the scale by tens. So, who makes 0-10% of income from photography and on and on. Or, more subjectively, we could ask what percentage of one's income needs to come from photography to be considered a pro. Different polls.

(I am not sure what the wink means here as your first sentence seems to be serious so I answered that way).

--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brev00

 

[stevo23]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

- Owner of high end pro level gear and like people to think I'm pro

- Producer of very high level, pro quality photos but print for fun or family

Those are self-graded, subjective categories while the op gave two specific categories that depend on one objective criteria: do you get paid.

No, they are tongue in cheek categories with a hint of truth.

 

[ZodiacPhoto]

Photography is an interesting field: practically anybody with a camera can work for pay ,and, if successful and paid enough, call themselves "Professional " photographers.

In most other fields, you need to go through a mandatory education, graduate, pass some kind of board exam, and often register with the state to get license to practice.

 

[stevo23]

Photography is an interesting field: practically anybody with a camera can work for pay ,and, if successful and paid enough, call themselves "Professional " photographers.

In most other fields, you need to go through a mandatory education, graduate, pass some kind of board exam, and often register with the state to get license to practice.

It's become a loose term. What you say used to be very true, but now we call a guy who lays brick for a living "professional". Or we call a really excellent paint job, "very professional".

 

[threw the lens]

It might be better not to be professional. Most jobs are steadier and a lot are better paid.

You can also end up shooting things or people you don't care for, as a professional. Beauty of being a hobbyist is you do only what you like

 

[Jonsi]

Are you a pro photographer or amateur?

- Owner of high end pro level gear and like people to think I'm pro

- Producer of very high level, pro quality photos but print for fun or family

Those are self-graded, subjective categories while the op gave two specific categories that depend on one objective criteria: do you get paid.

More specifically... how much do you get paid.

If only 40% of your income is photography then you're an amateur

Is that an objective bar agreed to by all or most photographers (more than 40%)?

No, I was just using the OP's example.

The op made it simple. One could set up a poll where we divided the scale by tens. So, who makes 0-10% of income from photography and on and on. Or, more subjectively, we could ask what percentage of one's income needs to come from photography to be considered a pro. Different polls.

(I am not sure what the wink means here as your first sentence seems to be serious so I answered that way).

The first part was a correction. The poll isn't "do you get paid". You could get paid a lot and still be in the amateur category.

The wink is just the thought of calling McNally, Liebovitz or Kelby "amateurs" the day they retire, or even today, if their investment income happens to be 100% more than their photography income.

And before anyone chimes in, I'm not knocking his poll... I just find that funny.