As an active member of the photography community over the past few years, I’ve started to notice some toxic traits. In a small community like this, how can people sometimes seem to hate each other so much? Let’s dig deeper and see how bad it is here.
Before I go any further, I would like to say that there are many smaller, closer-knit and more personal communities where members support each other to become better photographers. I, first of all, have a great friend who happens to be a photographer with whom I share the same genre – a lot, we shoot the same models, work with the same team, etc. However, he helped me a lot during my work. job. At the same time, the broader photography community is, well, a mix of many things, but “helpful” wouldn’t be the first word that comes to mind when talking about it. Take a look at how malicious photographers can be online at times.
Online versus real life
What makes photographers so mean is that they are mostly malicious online, not in real life. The anonymity of a platform where you can post your craziest opinions has an appeal to such individuals. Things that you wouldn’t say in front of someone are easily said online. It can be anything from petty childish remarks such as “you are stupid to think X” to legitimate death threats. Many content creators, myself included, have received death threats from random people online. Some are even being watched. I won’t be the first to say that there are a lot of weird people out there who will try to make you feel bad.
The anonymity of an online space leads some to exaggerate their hate and take it to the next level. When I read someone’s comment under my posts, I can keep that in mind. As someone used to having friends and family comment on my Facebook posts, I consider strangers my friends: people with good motives behind them. It’s not hard to imagine someone wanting to interact with the content and get something out of the interaction. So I take all opinions seriously and personally. However, I quickly realized that there was a segment of the audience that just wanted engagement, regardless of the message behind it. The lesson here is to keep fewer comments in mind and try to see what the real intention behind them is.
To me, this is a malicious online photography community problem online but not in real life. Sometimes it’s hard to tell if someone is hating or just really not liking a piece. There are pieces of advice that definitely come from people who don’t like a particular piece of work, advice that I find valuable and for which I am grateful. At the same time, when you meet such people in real life, you can often tell just by them being friends that you won’t get anything useful out of them.
The usual comments about how bad someone’s image is should not even be covered in this article. I believe this is very childish, it will cause the speaker to say it’s timeout and no device time for a week. There are much worse camera club members out there, especially online. They pretend to give advice, when all they want to do is make you question your choices and eventually give up. I sincerely wish there was a simple way to figure out how to distinguish good feedback from bad feedback. In short, I stopped looking for feedback from other photographers and started looking at feedback from clients, my hires, and industry authorities. Seek feedback from your audience, not your colleagues.
Another toxic trait that often accompanies camera club photographers is the flaunting of titles and achievements, often measured in decades. Listen, no one needs to know that you’ve been a photographer for 40 years. Just because you’ve had a camera for 40 years doesn’t make you a pro. There are people who achieve more than you in four years, and there are people who achieve less than you in 40. All this stems from the fact that some people are childish. The whole argument about “years of experience” can be condensed when students end the battle with: “I am older, so I am right.” If there’s any real way to measure progress in photography, it should take the years spent and put that against the improvement and the big clients gained. Everyone has their own way of telling if they are progressing.
Device review
Device reviews are perhaps some of the most polarizing parts out there. While reviews are created as buying advice for potential buyers, it’s not uncommon for people who already own a device to read reviews as well. Photography is an expensive hobby or profession. While the basics can be purchased for as little as $1,000, a lot of photographers invest much more than that. Photographers, especially hobbyists, amass equipment worth tens of thousands of dollars.
It’s not uncommon for these people to continue to rate their favorite devices and read what others have to say. If the review is positive, they will usually leave a nice review. However, if their precious camera is criticized, it opens up a pile of vermin. I don’t know why, but a lot of them seem to take this personally and too close to their hearts. Sure, you worked hard to buy that camera, but that doesn’t mean you should hate everyone who hates your camera.
Reviews reveal some of the biggest fights between photographers. In fact, it doesn’t really make a difference. All that matters are the pictures you take. Perhaps instead of spending time arguing online, you can spend your time becoming a better photographer.
People predict their opinion
Finally, what also becomes toxic are the people who put their point of view on photography into your work. Sure, there are people who want to take pictures with a camera and reject the slightest possibility of using a phone for the same task, and certainly, someone who rejects Photoshop, a digital camera or whatever. That’s not to say this idea is the only right way. Photography is technical, but it is an art form where people can do whatever they want in any way they want. All that matters, especially in the amateur world, is the end result and how satisfied you are with it. Listen to suggestions, but please don’t take them as guidelines.
Stop thinking
Unfortunately, the photography community is full of malicious people, mostly online. It’s really sad to see a community that can be supportive and encouraging sometimes just the opposite. There is probably no solution to this other than to suggest that one think for a minute before posting a comment. Think about how the person on the other end of the screen would feel seeing it. Remember, they most likely think this is their best picture, it could be their best tool, or anything you hate can have sentimental value.
What are some toxic experiences you’ve had in the community? Share with us in the comments!
