Has ClubSNAP become a sourcing spot for cheap photographers. Are we being taken adv?
- Thread starter szekiat
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AJ23 said:
Piangz....... can give up liaoz..... the average rate of posting seems to have fallen..... I'm doing my best.........
tan: Open a new window for every post u want to reply to..... like that faster and wouldn't interrupt your reading when u post since the forum will return u to the last page of the thread.
This phenomenon isn't at all unique to photography. Virtually every industry in the world that previously required special information/skills which are now made easy-to-pick-up by technology is affected, from music/audio recording to entrepot trade. People with the right knowledge and tools (which are cheap these days) can start a business or sell his service at a very low cost especially for freelancers and students maybe. This kills off a lot of well-established businesses and make it harder for newcomers to make it big with little experience.
This is not entirely bad, ideally, it increases competition and lets only the very very good (or most popular ones) to succeed but the not-so-good or so-so ones to be struggling.
CS is only part of this trend, if not for CS, there would be a thousand other means for freelancers to do the same. The ball lies in the court of people buying these services, whether they want to pay for good quality service or settle for anyone in the market, and the market is now mostly saturated with so-so and not-so-good services.
This is not entirely bad, ideally, it increases competition and lets only the very very good (or most popular ones) to succeed but the not-so-good or so-so ones to be struggling.
CS is only part of this trend, if not for CS, there would be a thousand other means for freelancers to do the same. The ball lies in the court of people buying these services, whether they want to pay for good quality service or settle for anyone in the market, and the market is now mostly saturated with so-so and not-so-good services.
Acieed said:
My sentiments exactly........ so after a while responding to the posts here, I was started to see that this improvement in technology and the lowering of price barriers to the photographic industry was the primary factor in allowing people to "undercut"..... we live in a free-market economy (for most intents and purposes), and so we let market forces decide. I disagree totally with the idea proposed by someone to have a union that has power to regulate prices..... that smacks of the unions of the past which are still in operation in counries like Britain and France, and the result is the crippling strikes that afflicts these countries every now and then..... we have left that behind in history, no wish to return to that...... cos if the photographic industry can have union to actively regulate prices, every other industry also want to have one...... so let market forces decide, if u are cheap and lousy, also no business...... if u are expensive and bloody good, then sure have business...... it' all about the clients' image..... what people want to project when engaging a top pro.....
At this stage, I wonder how many of us here remembers any of the 4 questions that was asked by SzeKiat in his first post.
Here's a quick test....try to recall the 4 questions, and reply truthfully how many of the questions you can even vaguely remember!
My Score: 1
I actually had to take Astin advice and open up a second window to check
This might actually help us maintain the thread and page views a bit longer.
Steven
Here's a quick test....try to recall the 4 questions, and reply truthfully how many of the questions you can even vaguely remember!
My Score: 1
I actually had to take Astin advice and open up a second window to check
This might actually help us maintain the thread and page views a bit longer.
Steven
taneks said:At this stage, I wonder how many of us here remembers any of the 4 questions that was asked by SzeKiat in his first post.
Here's a quick test....try to recall the 4 questions, and reply truthfully how many of the questions you can even vaguely remember!
My Score: 1
I actually had to take Astin advice and open up a second window to check
This might actually help us maintain the thread and page views a bit longer.
Steven
We win the ladies thread in kopitiam... think not many guys wanna post in that thread...
vader said:
Well unless you are ready to be a sister.............. :bsmilie:
Hey I think if you all guys want to beat the U/W, thread........dream on :blah:
By the time Larry, AdamGoi, Bluestrike or Dagger finds out, they will close this thread unless you all still have the will and reason to argue and debate on amatuers and professional photographers.
TME n Mr Vader seems to be kicking off well. Are you both.......ahem.....in :heart: ....... :bsmilie: :bsmilie: :bsmilie:
hi. just thought to drop a few lines (to contribute to beating u/w thread)
Agree with ALL of you!
So its a fact that free services are being offered, sought after, taken up. so how?
Nothing anyone says or does would chanqe this situation, short of legislation.
Now what do pros need to do to survive?
maybe we can steer the thread to how to make pros more viable? I guess its things that amateurs/'free'lancers cannot do or provide for the prices they are offering. :dunno:
Damien
)Agree with ALL of you!
So its a fact that free services are being offered, sought after, taken up. so how?
Nothing anyone says or does would chanqe this situation, short of legislation.
Now what do pros need to do to survive?
maybe we can steer the thread to how to make pros more viable? I guess its things that amateurs/'free'lancers cannot do or provide for the prices they are offering. :dunno:
Damien
Smile the ever present agruement with proponets on both sides, some of which have very personal bias linked to either their wallets or preception of themselves.
Sad to say it is not just Clubsnap - it is a real world all aroud us thing. People will try to "save" on what ever they can and if they can find some sucker opps correct that nice person to do it nearly free so much the better. Of course until the meet up with a specimen of photographer terribuslus who could come back with no pictures at all.
No amount of talking by any of us will change things- people change when as they experience things... hopefully.
It is a free world and choices are made based on what ever basis the person deciding uses. Why sweat it ? Yes I understand it means that prices for free lance work is begining do go lower again but that is somewhat like the way the cookie crumbles.
Not even creating a new class of professional service supplier for photography like doctors for medicine or engineers for engineering will help - I'd like to see how our government could be pursuade to do so.
Sad to say it is not just Clubsnap - it is a real world all aroud us thing. People will try to "save" on what ever they can and if they can find some sucker opps correct that nice person to do it nearly free so much the better. Of course until the meet up with a specimen of photographer terribuslus who could come back with no pictures at all.
No amount of talking by any of us will change things- people change when as they experience things... hopefully.
It is a free world and choices are made based on what ever basis the person deciding uses. Why sweat it ? Yes I understand it means that prices for free lance work is begining do go lower again but that is somewhat like the way the cookie crumbles.
Not even creating a new class of professional service supplier for photography like doctors for medicine or engineers for engineering will help - I'd like to see how our government could be pursuade to do so.
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