It seems today, more and more, people tell me that they are self taught photographers trying to make it big in the world of freelance and photojournalism. I always smile and nod politely because there are a few photographers in history that were self taught and have made some lasting images. Ultimately though, the sad truth is, most of the peole that tell me they are photojournalist turn out to be people with expensive equipment and no real understanding of photography.

I am glad that cameras can do all the work for people now so that everyone can have great memories capture in a still image. But when people think that just because their unknowledgable friends told them they were a great photographer that they should take their work into the catagory of photojournalism and expect to get paid for it, thats what I have a problem with. If you don't know what an f-stop, shutter speed, or iso is then you are not a photographer. Photographers care enough about their craft to learn about it.

Professionals do not leave their camera on the green box or P and shoot because matrix metering and auto settings produces a flat exposure. If you have wondered why pros pictures pop and your don't, it is probably because their images are intentionally exposed and yours are not. Images should not come out of your camera dull and require hours of photoshopping to be revived.

I am on this rant because everytime I look at the photojournalism catagory of this website I die a little more inside. The crap that is posted there with the belief that it actually deserves to be called photojournalism is like a big stake driving into my heart. Photojournalism does what journalism does; it tells a story. The difficulty in photojournalism is that you are telling the story through a visual language. Showing a picture of a poor guy or a man in uniform is not telling a story. Paying zero attention to lighting is a sign of a poor photographer, even if you are branding your images as photojournalism. Guess what? Photojournalists pay attention to lighting too.

I realize bad photographers are only going to continue to flood the market, but there really has to be some way to start reminding people that not everyone that buys a camera has the eye or the knowledge to call themselves a photographer. At least take the time to learn the basics before you open up your freelance/photography/headshot/photojournalism/protrait/fetish studeo.