Unpopular opinions matter in photography and here’s why

Regardless of how you feel about photography, it comes with opinions. Lots of them. From absolute beginners to seasoned pros with 50 years’ experience behind them, we’re constantly bombarded with opinions in photography. “You need to follow this rule!”, “You need to sell that camera and buy this one!”, “You need to…” this, that and the other.

A lot of these opinions are unpopular. Some deserve to be but many simply lack the context required to truly express their real meaning. In this video, Adam Karnacz at First Man Photography breaks down five unpopular opinions (very well, too), plays a little devil’s advocate for the other side and explains the underlying reasoning why people might swing one way or the other.

It’s an insightful video covering a number of topics, and I’ve heard all of these shouted across social media far too many times to be able to count. Invariably, they eventually get taken completely the wrong way, words get twisted and somebody brings out the banhammer (or the block button). Or, they’re responded to with the one-in-a-million rare case that disproves the foundation on which the opinion was built, proving that the entire argument is invalid… right?

• 1:01 – The gear doesn’t matter
• 3:30 – There are photography “rules”
• 5:43 – Stop shooting tourist trap
• 8:08 – Editing is cheating
• 11:07 – There’s no future in photography

All of these are controversial topics, no matter which side of the fence to which you lean. Simply having an opinion on any of these topics one way or the other is going to be unpopular with somebody. But understanding all of the viewpoints and why certain people hold a particular position on all of these topics is important. Remember, an opinion is not fact. It’s just a summation that’s brought about by one’s own personal interpretation of their experiences and the information to which they’ve been exposed.

The important thing with any opinion is that we’re open to new information and seeing things a different way. You also have to consider that context. You might find that after being presented with more viewpoints, you still hold to your original belief and that’s ok. But it might just change your mind and that’s ok, too.