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Bridging Tech and Creative Photography
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Features

When Photographers Say “I Can Do That Too…”

Chris Gampat
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02/05/2016
3 Mins read

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Panasonic 20mm f1.7 II first impressions images (12 of 22)ISO 2001-250 sec at f - 1.7

“It’s less this, and more this…” said an archival rep to me at Magnum Photos years ago when I interned there, first motioning to shooting photos and second motioning to talking by using hand gestures. That piece of advice is still ranked amongst the most important lines I’ve heard about the industry.

One of the most common things that you’ll hear photographers state is “I can do that too!” For example, think about the Peter Lik sale: many other photographers came out and literally stated “I can do that too.” Typically though, this is associated more with the means of capturing an image rather than creating a scene or an idea.

And you’re right. You can do it too. You, and everyone else with a camera, a knowledge of manual mode, an idea of how metering in a scene actually works, compositional framing, and Photoshop knowledge can totally create that image by yourself, at your home.

But did you? And are you a photographer with a famous name in the art world?

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Panasonic 7-14mm f4 sample images (17 of 44)ISO 2001-1000 sec at f - 4.0

If the answer to the questions above are yes, then congratulations! You’re one step closer to a very expensive sale. Do you have the sales staff to be able to make a sale like that though? If you don’t have the staff, do you have the body of work or do you have the know-how to make the sale? Plus, do you have the network of people interested in buying art like that?

I’ve spoken on this blog many times about pricing your work and the mentality behind it, and that’s awesome. If you can capture that same image then wonderful–in the eyes of the art world you’re possibly looked at as a copycat. Why? Because you’re not known for that photo. It isn’t an original capture. That’s not at all to say that you’re a copyright infringer–anyone and everyone can go take the same image of the same building at the same time with the same camera setup. But the person who is well known for it is the one that ultimately ends up getting the credit. Those people actively go out and show their work off to the folks who matter in the art and photo world. They cultivate relationships, friendships and alliances.

Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Panasonic GH3 even more photos (3 of 6)ISO 2001-2000 sec at f - 4.0

These days, almost anyone can create images like Bresson or Adams, but it doesn’t mean that they necessarily will. It also doesn’t mean that they’ve got the legacy that both of those photographers built. Though it doesn’t sound like much, it’s important to realize that photography is actually a lot of work. Not only are you shooting, but you’re actively marketing, selling, networking and searching for new clients.

On the other hand, creating an image or capturing a scene that requires exclusivity is something far different. Creating requires an actual full creative vision while getting exclusive photos requires you to talk your way into something. Can you do either of those? If you can, then maybe you can create a body of work where no one will say “Oh, I can do that.”

I can do that too Peter Lik
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Chris Gampat

Chris Gampat is the Editor in Chief, Founder, and Publisher of the Phoblographer. He provides oversight to all of the daily tasks, including editorial, administrative, and advertising work. Chris's editorial work includes not only editing and scheduling articles but also writing them himself. He's the author of various product guides, educational pieces, product reviews, and interviews with photographers. He's fascinated by how photographers create, considering the fact that he's legally blind./ HIGHLIGHTS: Chris used to work in Men's lifestyle and tech. He's a veteran technology writer, editor, and reviewer with more than 15 years experience. He's also a Photographer that has had his share of bylines and viral projects like "Secret Order of the Slice." PAST BYLINES: Gear Patrol, PC Mag, Geek.com, Digital Photo Pro, Resource Magazine, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, IGN, PDN, and others. EXPERIENCE: Chris Gampat began working in tech and art journalism both in 2008. He started at PCMag, Magnum Photos, and Geek.com. He founded the Phoblographer in 2009 after working at places like PDN and Photography Bay. He left his day job as the Social Media Content Developer at B&H Photo in the early 2010s. Since then, he's evolved as a publisher using AI ethically, coming up with ethical ways to bring in affiliate income, and preaching the word of diversity in the photo industry. His background and work has spread to non-profits like American Photographic Arts where he's done work to get photographers various benefits. His skills are in SEO, app development, content planning, ethics management, photography, Wordpress, and other things. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. FAVORITE SUBJECT TO PHOTOGRAPH: Chris enjoys creating conceptual work that makes people stare at his photos. But he doesn't get to do much of this because of the high demand of photography content. / BEST PHOTOGRAPHY TIP: Don't do it in post-production when you can do it in-camera.
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