Well this is a sensitive topic. So if it's in the wrong forum, or the moderators feel uncomfortable about it, I wouldn't take it personally.
First of all, apologies to some of the fellow CSers who feel upset by this post. The post is made in good faith, for the good of the photographic community in Singapore - pros and non-pros alike.
And let my rant begin.
There was a time where photography services were sought after (still are), and people seeking these services are paying the photographers for the service they receive.
Photographers charge because of the massive amount of cash they invested in equipment, either the current set they own, or the sets they purchased in the past which were responsible for the current set of skills they possess. They charge, because of the level of expert knowledge the possess in photography. They charge because of their ability to deliver the desired results. The list goes on.
Recently, there is an influx of learners who are keen to learn photography. The learners are passionate about the hobby, and are keen to gain the learning experience. These experiences cannot be gained otherwise, such as model shoots, studio shoots, and most recently, even event shoots. Initially, they were willing to shoot for free. Some who seek photography services capitalise on the opportunity, and begin to use these services as an alternative to paid services.
More recently, some are willing to pay, in order to gain the experience. We see course sprouting up, model shoots organised. Lines began to grey. However, courses are justified, because of time spent, equipment loaned etc. Likewise, model shoots because of paying for the modelling services, make-up, transportation etc. Even then, we begin to see non-experienced models trying to exploit this group of willing-paying photographers, despite the fact that they do not have what it takes like full time/qualified models to charge. But that's another story. Nonetheless, the landscape is changing.
Even more recently, there are people who probe the market even further, offering learners the "opportunity" to shoot events, for a fee. This however, throws the line entirely into the grey area. The events were organised to fulfill other commercial purposes. Not for the sake of learner's gaining experience.
From what I can gather, this has made full time photographers very uncomfortable. If this were continue to happen, I see full-time, quality photography going down into the drains. For obvious reasons. People who seek photography services, can eventually get these services (which might be, or not be, of quality) for free, or even charge, to get these services. Those in the line who are sacrificing the potential income from another line, eventually have to move away, from photography. There will be a smaller pool of pros who are willing to handhold/mentor newbies, when the rest of the industry is charging newbies. Everything is moving towards dollars and cents, when it comes to development of newbies. We would begin to see the standard of published photography drop. The list goes on.
It's definitely not a cause for concern now, especially for the established pros who have the ready pool for high-profile clients. But the landscape is undeniably chaning. How responsible is each of us in shaping the landscape of photography in Singapore?
First of all, apologies to some of the fellow CSers who feel upset by this post. The post is made in good faith, for the good of the photographic community in Singapore - pros and non-pros alike.
And let my rant begin.
There was a time where photography services were sought after (still are), and people seeking these services are paying the photographers for the service they receive.
Photographers charge because of the massive amount of cash they invested in equipment, either the current set they own, or the sets they purchased in the past which were responsible for the current set of skills they possess. They charge, because of the level of expert knowledge the possess in photography. They charge because of their ability to deliver the desired results. The list goes on.
Recently, there is an influx of learners who are keen to learn photography. The learners are passionate about the hobby, and are keen to gain the learning experience. These experiences cannot be gained otherwise, such as model shoots, studio shoots, and most recently, even event shoots. Initially, they were willing to shoot for free. Some who seek photography services capitalise on the opportunity, and begin to use these services as an alternative to paid services.
More recently, some are willing to pay, in order to gain the experience. We see course sprouting up, model shoots organised. Lines began to grey. However, courses are justified, because of time spent, equipment loaned etc. Likewise, model shoots because of paying for the modelling services, make-up, transportation etc. Even then, we begin to see non-experienced models trying to exploit this group of willing-paying photographers, despite the fact that they do not have what it takes like full time/qualified models to charge. But that's another story. Nonetheless, the landscape is changing.
Even more recently, there are people who probe the market even further, offering learners the "opportunity" to shoot events, for a fee. This however, throws the line entirely into the grey area. The events were organised to fulfill other commercial purposes. Not for the sake of learner's gaining experience.
From what I can gather, this has made full time photographers very uncomfortable. If this were continue to happen, I see full-time, quality photography going down into the drains. For obvious reasons. People who seek photography services, can eventually get these services (which might be, or not be, of quality) for free, or even charge, to get these services. Those in the line who are sacrificing the potential income from another line, eventually have to move away, from photography. There will be a smaller pool of pros who are willing to handhold/mentor newbies, when the rest of the industry is charging newbies. Everything is moving towards dollars and cents, when it comes to development of newbies. We would begin to see the standard of published photography drop. The list goes on.
It's definitely not a cause for concern now, especially for the established pros who have the ready pool for high-profile clients. But the landscape is undeniably chaning. How responsible is each of us in shaping the landscape of photography in Singapore?