Oh the world of Photography.

First of all- HI! I wanted to quickly let everyone know that I re launched my new website FINALLY. You can find the link on the right side of this page under Heather P. Photography- just click on that and it will take you right there! If you have had a recent session with me, theres a good chance that you may see your images there :) Now on to some annoying business stuff. I have been thinking about this for a while, and then a fellow photog friend of mine, Scarlet, got me thinking about it more tonight after I read her blog post.(Check her out BTW, if you are in the Columbus OH. area, shes a real treat!)She blogged tonight about how Photoshop doesn't define a GERAT photographer. So I want to chat a little about that, and branch out from there. Photography is an extremely competitive industry, and unfortunately, a lot of photographers have placed themselves on a very high stool to look down upon others. EVEN beginners do this. And it gets under my skin- ohhhh does it ever. Photography is an art, and each person has their style, their THING. And most importatly, WE ALL started somehwhere. What is a GREAT photograher?? There are SO many self taught photogs out there that are AHHH-MAZZZING- I cant even put into words. I myself, am an educated photographer- but guess what- that means NOTHING when it comes to the editing process that is now involved in digital photography. When I was learning all this, editing involved a paint brush in a dark room for selective color (ok people we are talking 2003 here fyi, I am not ancient) I taught myself PhotoShop and it.was.HARD. Because I did it right, I took the time to learn, and boy was I reluctant to do so. (Digital SLR's were just becoming the "in" thing when I was in school and we snickered and whispered about the sellouts bringing in their new DSLRs to class. [cheaters] so I SWORE I'd never do so. And I didn't- for another 8 years.) So I aplogize to my first "digital" clients that had to be part of that disaster- but look where it got me ;) Anyway, I stayed up until ridiculous hours of the night tinkering around with PhotoShop and editing, and re editing, and watching tutorials. And more tutorials. And throwing things because I am SO imapatient. But I did it. YAYYY NOW- I am a GREAT digital photographer.....no. If I am great (IF- I'll let you be the judge of that)it's because I KNOW my camera. I know light. I know how to manipulate my camera, and light. I MAKE my photographs. Not the camera. NOT PhotoShop. "Ok Heather, so why are you boring us with this chatter about cameras and software?!" Ok- so here's the thing. I live in a small town. (Just a little while longer ;) I watch people crash and burn trying to "be" photographers all.the.time. And it's not just here. I belong to a few different forums and online groups. Especially in this economy. People think that if they own or buy a "good camera" and have some editing software, BOOM- they're in business, its easy money right?! "ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TAKE GOOD PICTURES AND THEN BUMP UP THE SATURATION RIGHT?!" <----No. If you want to be a photographer, that's GREAT! I LOVE what I do. But it takes work. LOTS of it. CONSTANTLY. That means, watching any new tutorials you see, researching new equipment, just see what is going on in the camera world. Attending workshops, and networking. It is non stop renewal. Editing software changes, cameras, lenses, flashes, filters, it ALL changes, and picture styles change. Look at your family photos from when you were 10. Would you want that re created? You start with an entry level DSLR (Canon Rebel t2i or t3i- I know nothing about Canon- or Nikon- D3000,3100, and what is with this new D3200 with 24.2 megapixels for only $699.00?!-LOVING that!!) And you LEARN YOUR STUFF. You learn every aspect of how to work a camera, how to edit your images. And then you upgrade. And upgrade again. And again, until you get where you want to be. NO need to run out and by a top of the line camera when you have no idea what you are doing, because guess what? It's a waste of money. Take your time. LEARN. Go outside and take pictures of EVERYTHING. Develop your EYE for the art of photography. Change your SS, FStop, ISO, WB. change it again. and then another 10 times. Do it EVERY DAY. THAT. Is what makes a GREAT. Photographer.