Things in the world are weird right now. They’ve shifted quite a bit, and overall we’re addressing something that’s very important to us: the definition of a photographer. For what it’s worth, we’re a publication that doesn’t do any sort of diving into the video world. When brands told us that they wanted us to get more into video, we declined. As it is, we tried that with our reviews and even on YouTube. It didn’t work for us because we’re not truly a clickbait site. And of any of the standing large photography publications in America, we have more of an art-focus. So with that in mind, we’re going to further define who we’re targeting: passionate photographers. This includes pros and amateurs both. But it goes deeper than that.
What is a Photographer?
The Phoblographer defines what a photographer is by legal definitions and by primary art forms presented. When you pay taxes in the United States, you’d have something associated with your income that best describes how you make money. Several years ago, when I decided to do the Phoblographer full-time, they defined me as both a photographer and a journalist/publisher. I’m a photographer because I sometimes do paid gigs that bring me taxable income. I also sometimes bring in lots of print sales that bring me taxable income. But most of my income is made running this website. It’s through banner ads, sponsored placement sales, etc.
On taxes, then, I’d be a photographer and a journalist for sure. But I identify as a journalist and a publisher. And in truth, that’s really what I am.
The same thing often applies when you apply for certain retirement funds. When I first started doing this, they didn’t have a position for a blogger at all. Again, they considered me a photographer and journalist.
So our first definition of what a photographer is has to do with legal stances. According to the Law Dictionary a photographer is:
Any person who makes for sale photographs, ambrotypes, daguerrotypes, or pictures, by the action of light. Act Cong. July 13, 1866,
But our second definition has to do with the creation of still-images made with a camera with as little post-production as possible. At a certain point, you end up being a post-production artist more than a photographer. These images may be spread via your website, social media, etc. But you have to create a standing body of work that is done in an impeccable way and that triggers emotions in humans that makes them worth staring at.
This means that a content creator who primarily posts photos on their social media feed could be considered a photographer to us.
The Professional
A professional photographer goes into two different directions: semi-professional and professional. A professional photographer earns most of their taxable income from photography and has the invoices to back it up along with all the taxation forms submitted and attributed to their name and business.
On the other hand, a semi-professional photographer still makes taxable income from their photography.
The income can come from being hired to shoot still photographs, print sales, licensing, etc. But again, it is primarily focused on making stills.
The Amateur
An amateur photographer is anyone that is really enthusiastic about making still photographs. The medium is also what the person primarily shares as their art form. You may also call this person a hobbyist.
What is a Passionate Photographer?
A passionate photographer is defined as anyone who genuinely loves, lives, and breathes photography. There are professional photographers who hate their jobs, and I wouldn’t consider them to be passionate photographers. These are the folks we often interview.
That’s it. Most of your favorite YouTubers and influencers aren’t folks that we’d consider photographers. But instead, they are what they are — and that’s fine. They’re not who this publication is going after. We’re committed to the idea of photography and reminding people that it’s not all just about the gear. It’s about making passion projects and artistic expression.