DIY Photography

Your one stop shop for everything photo-video

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

Submit A Story

Rant: photographers, know your sh!#

Oct 22, 2017 by Missy Mwac 2 Comments

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

I admire birth photographers.

I don’t engage in birth photography myself, but I marvel at those who do it well. The emotional climate is always changing at a birth, and so a photographer must not only be prepared in their own heart and mind, but also bring to the birth a level of patience, compassion, and skill that allows them to adapt to any and all changing conditions. The photographer is there to document what is in front of them and has very little to no control over the situation. They can’t dictate to the doctors or midwives what they need:

“Hey, could you angle that light a little bit for me? I know you are trying to deliver a baby and all, but that would really help ME.”

“Woah…woah…woah…slow it down there. This is going way too fast. Could you wait a minute to deliver? I am not quite ready.”

“Hey, there, Doctor. I’m going to need you to perform the caesarean super slow. That would be great.”

“DUDE! YOU’RE IN MY LIGHT!”

No. You don’t get to do that.

And it’s a one time-deal; kind of like a wedding. There is no way to re-insert baby back into the womb for a re-shoot if you muck things up. You get ONE opportunity. One. The parents are counting on you.

So knowing all this…and here comes the Tough Love part…don’t take it on if you don’t know what you’re doing. And this applies to any job.

I read a post in my newsfeed recently about a birth photographer who was in distress. She was at the hospital freaking out and asking for tips because the room the mom was in didn’t have a big window and she is a 100% outdoor natural light photographer.

Just in case it wasn’t clear, she was AT THE BIRTH in the room, asking for help shooting it because the room was dark. <gasp> A dark room? In a hospital? Well, that’s unusual. Except not at all.

She had no idea what to do. Of course, she was flooded with suggestions from photographers. I almost chimed in, too, as everyone wanted that mama to have great images.

And, maybe the photographer ended up pulling it off. Or…maybe she didn’t. One thing is for sure, she’s not alone. We’ve all read stories of unpreparedness; photographers showing up to photograph a session or event only to be smacked in the face with the knowledge that they are in over their heads because their skill level isn’t quite there, yet. And then the frantic cry goes out over social media for “HELP!”

“QUICK! PEEPS! I’ve got a maternity session in an hour and I need posing tips!”

“Shooting in a very dark church tomorrow and don’t know how to use off-camera flash. HELP!”

“Client changed locations and I don’t know what to do now. Anybody ever photographed at <fill in blank>?”

Now, there’s nothing wrong with asking for help. When you’re new, you don’t know stuff. We’ve all been there. But here’s the thing: you don’t take on a job unless you are able to do it. Period. End of story.

My friends, people are trusting you with their memories, and when a lack of skill and know-how mucks it up, BOTH of you are hurt by it. Actually, the entire industry is hurt, because we are in this profession called Professional Photography together.

Lift up the bar of excellence by being as fully prepared as possible.

The industry is counting on you. And so are your clients. xoxo

About the Author

Lynn Cartia (AKA Missy Mwac) is a photographer/eater of bacon/drinker of vodka and a guide through the murky waters of professional photography. You can follow her social media links here: Facebook, Tumblr. This article is also published here and shared with permission.

FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Flipboard
  • WhatsApp

Related posts:

Default ThumbnailEpic Rant: Stop Photographing Snow Covered Patios! Response Shows Patios Are Still Loved Rant: Dear Adobe, Your Mobile Apps are a Mess Rant: Tripod makers, please don’t force us to carry coins in our bags One photographer’s rant about shooting BTS on high-end jobs

Filed Under: Inspiration Tagged With: business advice, business of photography, Missy Mwac, Tough Love

Guest Author: from diyphotography.net

About Guest Author

We love it when our readers get in touch with us to share their stories. This article was contributed to DIYP by a member of our community. If you would like to contribute an article, please contact us here.

« DIY Bookkeeping Accounting Software for Freelance Creative Professionals
What is that purple line on your Photoshop Brush tool, and how to turn it off »

Submit A Story

Get our FREE Lighting Book

DIYP lighting book cover

* download requires newsletter signup

Recent Comments

Free Resources

Advanced lighting book

Learn photography

Recent Posts

  • Adobe ordered to pay more than $33 million for patent infringement
  • Hands on with the Kelvin Epos 600 RGBLAC light
  • Hands on with the Godox MG2400Bi LED beast
  • Hands on with the Saramonic WiTalk
  • Another tourist falls off a cliff while taking a selfie

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