Reading mode: Light Dark

A curious conversation with a professional photographer

Go to last post
R

rhlpetrus

Forum Pro
Messages
27,478
Solutions
3
Reaction score
5,418
Location
Campinas, BR
Last week my latest grandaughter was born, my daughter doesn't trust my skills so she hired a photographer, a lady in her early 40s who does weddings, birthday parties etc. She carried a larger Canon DSLR with the usual 24-70 f/2.8 zoom.

We chatted a bit afterwards, and I asked her about ML, if she had used it or planned to. She said she actually got a Sony A7 something at some point BUT ... when she started using it for events people would ask her if it was really a "professional" camera. So, now, she always carry the larger outfit and she said she'll likely get a Canon ML system eventually.

Any prfessional photgs here with such an experience? Sounds ludicrous to me but maybe it happens more often that I'd would think reasonable.

Cheers!
 
I'm not a pro, but the whole "what are you shooting with" seems so childish and silly. Sticking your nose up at other systems reeks of egotistical tendencies. What should matter is the output - the actual photos.
 
Last edited:
Last edited:
rhlpetrus said:
Any prfessional photgs here with such an experience? Sounds ludicrous to me but maybe it happens more often that I'd would think reasonable.

Cheers!
Click to expand...
Not only sounds ludicrous, but I'd say, undeniably is.

However, Sony Mirrorless Camera bodies have been generally, of a far more compact design size than Canon, Nikon, or other's, weather ML, or DLSR.
 
Last edited:
rhlpetrus said:
...

Any prfessional photgs here with such an experience? Sounds ludicrous to me but maybe it happens more often that I'd would think reasonable.

Cheers!
Click to expand...
Maybe ludicrous, but real. People do judge you by what gear you carry, and for some people size does matter.

I've been in and around professional photography for many years and often seen it. And even sometimes been guilty of it myself.

Gato

EDIT TO ADD: I have a battery grip for my mirrorless camera just for those times I feel a need to "impress the peasants," as we used to say.

--
It's a work in progress, but the website is up and running:
https://jrsprawls.smugmug.com/
.
Personal pictures, road trips, rural nostalgia, and kitty cats:
https://www.instagram.com/j.r.sprawls/
 
Last edited:
I love looking at other people's cameras. Naturally nosy, I guess, plus I just love cameras, the weirder the better. Photography, more than any other kind of art I do, is all about the process. If you ever want to talk about cameras with me, I am so there for it.

I don't turn my nose up at anything, though. If it focuses light on a picture plane to record an image, it's cool with me.

--
Instagram: @yardcoyote
 
Last edited:
Sounds more like insecurity on the photographer’s part.
 
It's amazing how many lay people still associate a "pro" with the conventional big black camera, and nothing else. Get something that looks less impressive and be ignored. Bad for business for some, I'm sure, but great for those of us who want to fly under the radar.
 
yardcoyote said:
I love looking at other people's cameras. Naturally nosy, I guess, plus I just love cameras, the weirder the better. Photography, more than any other kind of art I do, is all about the process. If you ever want to talk about cameras with me, I am so there for it.

I don't turn my nose up at anything, though. If it focuses light on a picture plane to record an image, it's cool with me.
Click to expand...
Nothing wrong with that. I was going after the people that make fun of people that shoot other systems from their own, or the degree of professional camera used.

--
Ryan
 
Last edited:
rhlpetrus said:
Last week my latest grandaughter was born, my daughter doesn't trust my skills so she hired a photographer, a lady in her early 40s who does weddings, birthday parties etc. She carried a larger Canon DSLR with the usual 24-70 f/2.8 zoom.

We chatted a bit afterwards, and I asked her about ML, if she had used it or planned to. She said she actually got a Sony A7 something at some point BUT ... when she started using it for events people would ask her if it was really a "professional" camera. So, now, she always carry the larger outfit and she said she'll likely get a Canon ML system eventually.

Any prfessional photgs here with such an experience? Sounds ludicrous to me but maybe it happens more often that I'd would think reasonable.

Cheers!
Click to expand...
When I was a pro I would front the most "professional" camera possible during any photography event that I was in front of the public with and needed access or their cooperation. Put on the detachable motor drive to make the camera look larger, etc, whatever it took...

The more the public or people at the event recognized and didn't question me as a pro rather than just one of them with a camera, the easier it was to do my job, they would get out of the way or do what I wanted easier. I didn't care what someone thought personally of my gear other than I was looking for the path of least resistance to do my job as easy as possible. Since I couldn't wear a shirt with the words "Professional photographer - get out of my way and do what I say" on it, being recognized by the gear was another option that happened to work.
 
That's just silly.
 
and a pretty big 18 - 135mm lens looks more "pro" than my R8 and 24- 50 tiny zoom.

BAK
 
I'v been known to leave the Canon or Nikon in the bag and bring out the Mamiya 645, or even the RB67. And Dynalites on big stands when the Canon or Nikon flashes would have worked fine.

It makes the clients more comfortable paying the invoice.

And, of course, bigger does make better pictures, depending on the use.

BAK
 
BAK said:
I'v been known to leave the Canon or Nikon in the bag and bring out the Mamiya 645, or even the RB67. And Dynalites on big stands when the Canon or Nikon flashes would have worked fine.

It makes the clients more comfortable paying the invoice.

And, of course, bigger does make better pictures, depending on the use.

BAK
Click to expand...
I've heard of photographers calling it "dog and pony" when they set up extra lights.

For the young crowd, that was a reference to the tiny 'dog and pony" circuses that used to travel from one small town to the next.

G
 
The most ridiculous thing is that many people hate seeing pictures of their own ugly faces (in their minds) when they're super sharp thanks to a high quality lens. They say it's your camera's fault because it did something weird. The pictures look "weird" to them because they have perfect detail. That's why "retouching" post processing effects are so popular and "AI retouching" which "removes imperfections" and makes your face look like a mannequin's is now standard in smartphones, some of which also have amazing lenses. Yet those same people are exactly those who judge you by how your gear, which they have zero knowlege about, looks. In short, yeah, if you want to make money working for stupid and insecure people, you have to dress up and gear up for stupid and insecure people.
 
Last edited:
mfinley said:
When I was a pro I would front the most "professional" camera possible during any photography event that I was in front of the public with and needed access or their cooperation. Put on the detachable motor drive to make the camera look larger, etc, whatever it took...

The more the public or people at the event recognized and didn't question me as a pro rather than just one of them with a camera, the easier it was to do my job, they would get out of the way or do what I wanted easier. I didn't care what someone thought personally of my gear other than I was looking for the path of least resistance to do my job as easy as possible. Since I couldn't wear a shirt with the words "Professional photographer - get out of my way and do what I say" on it, being recognized by the gear was another option that happened to work.
Click to expand...
Yep. Things have changed now, but back in my news photographer days there were many times when a motor drive and a big lens got me past police lines or security -- whether I had credentials or not.

And it still helps with events, weddings, and large group shots.

But times have changed for news people. These days at a news event a big camera can attract a rubber bullet. So get a good cell phone.

Gato
 
WilyKit said:
The most ridiculous thing is that many people hate seeing pictures of their own ugly faces (in their minds) when they're super sharp thanks to a high quality lens. They say it's your camera's fault because it did something weird. The pictures look "weird" to them because they have perfect detail. That's why "retouching" post processing effects are so popular and "AI retouching" which "removes imperfections" and makes your face look like a mannequin's is now standard in smartphones, some of which also have amazing lenses. Yet those same people are exactly those who judge you by how your gear, which they have zero knowlege about, looks. In short, yeah, if you want to make money working for stupid and insecure people, you have to dress up and gear up for stupid and insecure people.
Click to expand...
Bingo! My 87yo mother in law, whom I really love, hates me when I come with my better cameras/lenses, she screams, "not too close, it'll show all my wrinkles!". Poor lady, if she understood what a zoom can do .... Anyway, I always use a nice softening tool on her larger portraits, she ends up liking them. But I'm keeping the raws for future realistic family documentary collections.

I think human nature is to be respected, even when we don't agree with people's choices.
 
The last family wedding I attended was pre-Covid. The photographer and her assistant each carried a matched pair of APS-C cameras. So far as I know, the family was happy with the results.
 
There is a guy who posts in the pro forum as Shabang. He is willing to go on and on about how important his Leica SL3 is to promoting his wedding photography business. Note that he famously pairs it with second hand, manual focus 3rd party lenses. The other pros on the forum are not kind to him.
 
rhlpetrus said:
Last week my latest grandaughter was born, my daughter doesn't trust my skills so she hired a photographer, a lady in her early 40s who does weddings, birthday parties etc. She carried a larger Canon DSLR with the usual 24-70 f/2.8 zoom.

We chatted a bit afterwards, and I asked her about ML, if she had used it or planned to. She said she actually got a Sony A7 something at some point BUT ... when she started using it for events people would ask her if it was really a "professional" camera. So, now, she always carry the larger outfit and she said she'll likely get a Canon ML system eventually.

Any prfessional photgs here with such an experience? Sounds ludicrous to me but maybe it happens more often that I'd would think reasonable.

Cheers!
Click to expand...
I find those types of inquiries idiotic. I read books, but never once wondered what type of typewriter the author used.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

J
End of an era
5 6 7
Replies
121
Views
8K
vegetaleb
vegetaleb
Smaug01
Had a few drinks and volunteered to shoot another wedding
2 3
Replies
45
Views
784
Blind Bill
Blind Bill
S
My advice for sports photographers
Replies
15
Views
611
Scott Larson
S
D
Sigma 300-600 4 DG OS Sports – Review After 14 Days of Testing
Replies
1
Views
10K
jerste
J
C
BEST BACKPACK / RUCKSACK FOR HIKING PHOTOGRAPHERS (2021)
6 7 8
Replies
149
Views
25K
Waku Waku
Waku Waku

Keyboard shortcuts

f
Forum
m
My threads
Mobile site
About
Editorial content
Cameras & Lenses
Community
All content, design, and layout are Copyright © 1998–2025 Digital Photography Review All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction in whole or part in any form or medium without specific written permission is prohibited.
When you use DPReview links to buy products, the site may earn a commission.
©GPS Media - Guides, Products, Services.
Back
Top