You don’t need to know everything to be a good photographer

How much do you really know about photography? If you’re like me, your knee-jerk reaction is probably “quite a lot, actually, thanks,” however upon taking one of DIYP’s quizzes, I would beg to differ! Like most people, I am very knowledgeable about a few key aspects, somewhat knowledgeable about a lot, and I’m sorry to say there are a few gaping holes in some topics.

Now this shouldn’t really be a concern. Very often, we are hired to do the things that we do well. In this video, Scott from Tin House Studio tells us how it is and candidly shares his opinion on where you should put your stock as a pro photographer.

Scott is incredibly honest in the video and seems to happily tell us how little he knows about cameras and technical things. He is, however, an excellent photographer who knows how to light his subject like the back of his hand. He focuses (pun intended) his attention on the creative aspects of the job. Namely, coming up with ideas, creating great compositions, and of course, lighting.

These are the things that people are hiring him for and that no one else can easily replicate (well, aside from the lighting, that is). For anything else, you can get other people to help. As Scott says, you don’t even need to be that great with Photoshop because if you use a retoucher, why do you need to be? You can get rental houses to help, use a lighting assistant or a digital tech assistant…really, the list of what you can outsource is endless.

Now, of course, for those at the bottom end of the career ladder, there won’t be the budget for much of this. However, there is an argument for concentrating on what you’re good at, hiring out the other bits that you’re not good at, and spending the time saved on marketing and getting more business.

I have recently started working with a video editor. I can edit video myself, but I’m slow and a bit basic. I can’t do the things that this guy does in the same amount of time. It is money well spent, in my opinion, and it frees me up to do other things that I am good at.

In the coming years, with further advancements in AI, this is going to become more and more pertinent. Your creativity will keep you getting hired. Your technical abilities won’t.

You simply cannot do it all or know everything. And if you did, you’d probably be insufferable and completely burnt out!