What are the criteria of professionalism in photography?

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What are - in your opinion and/or according to what is generally accepted - the criteria of professionalism in photography?

How does someone achieve them?
 
Professionalism is primarily an attitude that shows through in how you deal with others in the business environment.
Think that is true across all disciplines and not just photography.
I say that not as a professional photographer but as a professional in another area.
 
best one i heard was getting workable photo's, whatever the situation
 
PhotographyBuff said:
What are - in your opinion and/or according to what is generally accepted - the criteria of professionalism in photography?

How does someone achieve them?
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There is no answer to your question.... there is an answer if you aim the question seperatly at wedding photographers, sports photogrpahers, news photogrpahers.. baby photographers.. event...blah

It will be different for each one..

Otherwise its the same answer as it is for any profession...


and thats quite a good answer from me.. considering...iv'e had a drink :)
 
As others have said, professionalism isn't industry specific. What's expected from someone acting 'professionally', will vary in different cultures though.

pingu666 said:
best one i heard was getting workable photo's, whatever the situation
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You see this bandied around online a fair bit, but it's too general, and often not applicable. In many situations the best solution would be to realise that the conditions/situation aren't the best they could be for the result you need, and the better option is to walk away and come back to shoot at another time.
 
Dealing with others in a fair, honest manner. And giving them the respect every person deserves. I think that applies equally to every industry/culture/age group/genre/etc.
 
As stated above -
In one word: Attitude.

As a photography hobbyst who sometimes has "clients" it is;

#1 Have the technical skills to complete the task to meet the "clients" needs.
(Training and practice (and experience up to a point))

#2 Have the people skills to work with your clients and other people.
This is the hard one - basically you do have to get along with people and meet their expectations. Again training (mostly how to communicate properly and understand people) and and practice will help.

#3 Know when to say no to a "job".
 
I think you have No. 1 and No. 2 in the wrong order (assuming you were placing them in order of importance).


Steve.
 
As above, professionalism is far from specific to any industry.

Smartness, promptness, good communication skills.

Your work only needs to be consistent with your portfolio and consistent generally.

To be very professional your communications need to be top notch and you under promise and over deliver.
 
To be a pro these days all you need is a Iphone and VSCO app. Well that's according to some of the "Professional Iphonographers" on Instagram
 
This is pretty subjective, as shown by the posts above.

IMHO, it's not necessarily industry or specialisation specific. It's the ability to consistently deliver work of an appropriate standard, meet your clients' expectations, and deal with any problems promptly and capably.
 
Jayst84 said:
As others have said, professionalism isn't industry specific. What's expected from someone acting 'professionally', will vary in different cultures though.



You see this bandied around online a fair bit, but it's too general, and often not applicable. In many situations the best solution would be to realise that the conditions/situation aren't the best they could be for the result you need, and the better option is to walk away and come back to shoot at another time.
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I think it applies to events, corporate stuff... can't come back to a wedding or race weekend the next day :-) . And it distigishes you from a person with a camera who only knows auto
 
Steve Smith said:
That is competent rather than professional.


Steve.
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Actually, by "professionalism" I largely meant competence. Perhaps I chose the wrong word, but I think professionalism entails/connotes competence and skill.
 
PhotographyBuff said:
Actually, by "professionalism" I largely meant competence. Perhaps I chose the wrong word,.
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yep.. asked totally the wrong question you meant to..

so to answer the real question.. there isnt a level.. you can be a professional photogrpaher with a low level of competence at photogrpahy but a high level at business...
 
KIPAX said:
yep.. asked totally the wrong question you meant to..

so to answer the real question.. there isnt a level.. you can be a professional photogrpaher with a low level of competence at photogrpahy but a high level at business...
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That's a reasonable answer. It makes a good point about professional photography, and many people overlook the criticality of developing business skills when they try to enter the field. On the other hand, it narrows the definition, and focuses on the ability to earn a living from photography.

I suppose that separates professional photography from the occupations that are normally considered 'professions', such as law, medicine and accountancy which all require you to demonstrate a certain level of competence through academic qualifications, some sort of internship, and registration with a professional body based on these criteria.

I'd like to think that a truly professional photographer brings more to his craft than simply being a good businessman who manages to make money with a camera.
 
MartynK said:
...
I suppose that separates professional photography from the occupations that are normally considered 'professions', such as law, medicine and accountancy which all require you to demonstrate a certain level of competence through academic qualifications, some sort of internship, and registration with a professional body based on these criteria.

I'd like to think that a truly professional photographer brings more to his craft than simply being a good businessman who manages to make money with a camera.
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That's because photography isn't a 'profession' in that sense:

Professional footballer
Professional musician
Professional sculptor
etc.

These are people who do things for a living which many people do for fun, which is I suppose where the requirement to add 'professional' comes in to differentiate them from amateurs :thinking:

The difference with photographers is that they sometimes have an air of the other type of 'professional' but personally I think it's a red herring, and why this 'issue' comes up on forums on a regular basis.

Being 'professional' and being 'a professional' are 2 different things. And no matter how much we'd 'like to think' something is so, there's no line to measure against. Being able to earn money with a camera requires more business skill than photographic skill, and you don't necessarily have to be 'professional'.
 
I agree with Phil. In fact, I don't know why people describe themselves as professional photographers. I have never heard plumbers, carpenters, builders, doctors, lawyers, etc. describe themselves as a professional (insert trade of choice).

I was driven home from work today by a professional bus driver - see, that doesn't work either!


Steve.
 
Phil V said:
That's because photography isn't a 'profession' in that sense:

Professional footballer
Professional musician
Professional sculptor
etc.

These are people who do things for a living which many people do for fun, which is I suppose where the requirement to add 'professional' comes in to differentiate them from amateurs :thinking:

The difference with photographers is that they sometimes have an air of the other type of 'professional' but personally I think it's a red herring, and why this 'issue' comes up on forums on a regular basis.

Being 'professional' and being 'a professional' are 2 different things. And no matter how much we'd 'like to think' something is so, there's no line to measure against. Being able to earn money with a camera requires more business skill than photographic skill, and you don't necessarily have to be 'professional'.
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Sure, I agree with this. Professional hunters in Africa fall into the same category, they earn a living doing something other people do recreationally, but I've also known a few PJs and freelance (conflict zone) photographers. They all described themselves as photographers, not professional photographers.

I earn most of my living as a security consultant, but I like to think that my clients regard me as professional in the broader sense.
 
Most photographers don't call themselves 'professional photographers' it's a label used by other people. And a label used by the industry to differentiate gear, techniques etc more likely to be used by a working photographer.
 
It seems most common in sports. Like fighters, they will call themselves professionals once they do their time in the amateur ranks. You'll hear them refer to themselves as a "professional athlete"- and what they mean is, they get paid to fight.
 
Phil V said:
Being 'professional' and being 'a professional' are 2 different things. And no matter how much we'd 'like to think' something is so, there's no line to measure against. Being able to earn money with a camera requires more business skill than photographic skill, and you don't necessarily have to be 'professional'.
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Nice distinction!
 
PhotographyBuff said:
Nice distinction!
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Like I said - it comes up fairly regularly and I've been honing that for a while ;)

Although it's the first time I've hit on the professional wrt sportsmen and artists
 
@ PhotographyBuff.

To expand on my previous post (#7):

Can you always meet your customers needs (if those needs are possible to meet)?
If you can't, you will not be in "business" once the word gets around.
Your customers will decide if you are "competent" or not.
 
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