DIY Photography

Your one stop shop for everything photo-video

  • News
  • Inspiration
  • Reviews
  • Tutorials
  • DIY
  • Gear
Search

Submit A Story

Don’t be a photography snob

May 29, 2020 by Dunja Djudjic 2 Comments

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

No matter if you’re a hobbyist or you’re paid for your photography, I’m sure you’ve come across all sorts of unpleasant situations. In this video, Daniel Norton reflects on some of the situations that we’ve all been through. Snobbism and vanity are something we’ve all encountered. To be honest, we may even be vain or snobbish to some extent, and maybe we’ve done some of the things he mentions. This video is a bit of a rant, but it’s an important reminder of what not to do and how to be a better human being.

1. Belittling new photographers

In the video, Daniel gives a few examples of things that we’ve experienced, or maybe some of us even did them. The first one is mocking someone publicly. Let’s say you are an established photographer, who also has a lot of followers online. You sure know a lot about the craft, no one can deny that. However, you see someone who knows less, who takes mediocre photos, or uses a technique all wrong. And instead of helping them, you belittle them for “not knowing what they’re doing.”

Daniel even gave an actual example. An experienced photographer took a photo of a newbie who was clearly doing something wrong. He posted the photo to social media and publicly mocked them for the mistake.

I think that it goes without saying that this is completely wrong. In Serbian, there’s a proverb saying “no one was born with knowledge.” In other words, remember that we’ve all been newbies once and had to learn things from scratch. If you see someone doing something that’s not right, you can help them. You can teach them how to it instead of belittling them and mocking them.

I was a teacher for years (both as a volunteer and paid). And I think it’s a wonderful feeling to give your knowledge to someone. So the next time you see someone doing something all wrong – help them. Knowledge is a gift to then, and sharing your knowledge is a gift to you.

2. Harsh comments on someone else’s work

I don’t think I’ve ever done this, yet I have received some horrible comments on both my photos and my articles. One of my favorite ones was, after I posted an intentionally blurry photo: “I delete photos like this straight away.” It was while I was still a noob and I just started sharing my images. And you can imagine how much of an impact it has left since I still remember it.

There’s no need to look at other people’s work and put them down. I know, newbies can post terrible photos sometimes, but that doesn’t mean you should be harsh. Once again, we’ve all been there once. If you want to give feedback, make it constructive and be kind. Also remember that just because you don’t like something – that doesn’t mean not’s necessarily bad. Be objective: judge technical stuff and how they affect the image, not if you personally like the photo or not. Being kind and friendly costs nothing, really.

At the end, I will quote my dear mom and something she’d been repeating constantly when I was a child: “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything.” I pretty much live by this rule, but sadly – the rule of the people on the Internet is quite the opposite. There’s more negativity, trolling and bashing than positive comments and constructive criticism. So, don’t fall into that second group. And even if you don’t like something, there are always ways to respectfully disagree.

Make sure to watch Daniel’s video for more of his thoughts, considering that I posted more of mine here. And in case you’re dealing with trolls and people who criticize you, I recommend you watch this video from Sean Tucker, too.

[Photography Snobs | Daniel Norton]

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Related posts:

Are you a photography snob? How To Stop A Gear Snob From Bullying You Photography Isn’t a Contest: why You Should Stay Away from Photography Contests Kai’s photography tips for newbies: where to start and how to improve your photography

Filed Under: Inspiration Tagged With: Criticism, Daniel Norton, photographer, snob

Dunja Djudjic: from diyphotography.net

About Dunja Djudjic

Dunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

« Check out these 9 creative tips for shooting with 360° and action cameras
Five tips to get perfect reflections in your landscape photos »

Submit A Story

Get our FREE Lighting Book

DIYP lighting book cover

* download requires newsletter signup
DIYPhotography

Recent Comments

Free Resources

Advanced lighting book

Recent Posts

  • When Art Meets Flame: A Bold Statement for a Plastic-Free Future
  • How to make a pinhole lens from a coke can
  • Adobe’s Firefly AI model now open to businesses, everyone becomes “a designer”
  • Sigma’s 14mm f/1.4 DG DN Art is a big hunk of glass
  • Chasing the Sun: How to predict the sun’s position to improve composition

Udi Tirosh: from diyphotography.netUdi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.

Alex Baker: from diyphotography.netAlex Baker is a portrait and lifestyle driven photographer based in Valencia, Spain. She works on a range of projects from commercial to fine art and has had work featured in publications such as The Daily Mail, Conde Nast Traveller and El Mundo, and has exhibited work across Europe

David Williams: from diyphotography.netDave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred: from diyphotography.netJohn Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

Dunja Djudjic: from diyphotography.netDunja Djudjic is a multi-talented artist based in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 15 years of experience as a photographer, she specializes in capturing the beauty of nature, travel, and fine art. In addition to her photography, Dunja also expresses her creativity through writing, embroidery, and jewelry making.

Copyright © DIYPhotography 2006 - 2023 | About | Contact | Advertise | Write for DIYP | Full Disclosure | Privacy Policy