I grew up in the seventies and eighties with such things as the walkman and disco and .....film.
Back then I remember that you weren't a professional photographer of any caliber unless you were shooting with a medium format camera the likes of Hasselblad, Mamiya or a twin lens reflex Rollieflex.
Photography then was truly an art, the craft of visual professionals who understood the quality and play of light upon their subjects and the varying attributes of each film type that manifested their visions on that wonderful emulsion covered celluloid.
Producing a visual masterpiece took time and planning and patience.
That "image" was produced at the time of firing the shutter, the culmination of thoughtful planning, film choice, experience and engineering excellence brought together in a split second of exposure.
Yes I lament those days.
And I still hold fast to the idea that film was a medium that had "soul".
Of course, things have changed these days.
And I have had to change with them.
Sadly it's a time when anyone with a little imagination and a mediocre camera can "snap" a reasonable photograph and massage the hell out of it in Photoshop to produce something stunning.
Or a poorly produced image can be touted as the product of "artistic licence" .
I've met many "weekend warriors" who barely know the basics or are aware of any of the technical attributes of their cameras and leave their cameras on "auto" mode and fix their images later on a computer.
Don't get me wrong.
Freeing oneself from the technical constraints of photography certainly can leave you to concentrate on being more creative and I know a number of photographers who produce fine work this way.
But the mystique of the art, and the hard work and technical expertise that produced professionals like Jousef Karsh, Ansel Adams and Byron Harmon seems to have disappeared with ever increasing technology and along with this, the falling value of a professional visual artist.
Having said all this, I'm the first to agree that the new digital technology has indeed helped me personally to realize more of my creative talents and expanded my control over the final image.
Of course, as humans we are all resistant to change wanting instead to cling to the things that we hold dear in our past.
As professional photographers we need to embrace technology and move forward with it seeking to better our craft and answer the ever changing requirements of our chosen industry.
But there are somethings that should never change.
And that is the value of a professional photographer.
I'm a strong believer in the axiom "that you get what you pay for".
Twenty years behind the lens has proved this to me.
I've had potential clients have "Uncle Bob" shoot their wedding only to have them come back to me asking if I could fix their half removed heads, arms and legs, correct poorly exposed or grossly blurred images.
When it comes to weddings, not every couple can afford the services of a professional photographer and the value of his / her service is generally commensurate with their experience.
But whatever a clients budget may be, I cannot impress upon them enough that of all the services commissioned on the day of the wedding, there is only ONE service that perseveres well after the day has passed and keeps giving, generation after generation.
Of course that service is that which captures arguably the most pivotable day of ones life in all its intimacy to be relived time after time, generation after generation.
This is the service that only a professional photographer can provide........... a passionate, creative, technical............professional photographer.
Well worth the investment.
Well worth your most precious memories.
Well worth the value of a professional photographer.
