[alamo5000]

Has anyone else ran across photography snobs?

Last weekend I went to a big sporting event with some friends (Over 100,000 in attendance)...and there were photographers all around taking video and some were taking stills and so forth both before and during the game.

One guy came up and sat by me in the stands and was taking photos (to get various views)...he had his whole media tag and everything...

I asked him about his camera (making small talk)... I knew what he was shooting and fired off a number of specs about the camera he was shooting with... so we shot the breeze for a minute or two and he seemed satisfied that I knew a little something about photography...

It prompted him to ask 'so what do you shoot with' in a very friendly tone (assuming I was also a Canon or Nikon guy or maybe even a pro photographer--which I am none of the above)... it was like we were kindred spirits with a similar interest and it seemed as though we could have carried on a conversation for an hour.

That was until I told him "K-5" he looked puzzled... and I said "Pentax"... what resulted is the guy basically rolled his eyes and had an instant reaction of almost laughing. He went from being friendly to being somewhat of a jerk and seemed almost taken aback that someone would 'dare' shoot something other than Canon or Nikon...at least that is how he came across to me...

The guy just basically immediately seemed to write me off. Eventually he moved on, but the reaction was the reaction and to be honest it kind of made me mad that someone would be so rude.

So far its been my only experience with 'discrimination'... 95% of my friends look at my photos and say 'wow' or 'nice' and I have had numerous compliments from 'laymen'...

It doesn't appear though that Pentax is very well recieved in the professional arena though.

[Colbyt]

And then there are the people who would only drive a beamer. Need I pontificate more?

[JohnBee]

I've been lucky enough to live in an area where people don't really bother with brand loyalty etc. Well... at least not in the camera end of things. Trucks and snowmobiles... well that's a totally different story().
That being said, one my my better friends and photography mentors shot Nikon FF when we met. Now he uses Pentax K-5's exclusively for his church events(baptism, first communion and coverages). Still shoots Nikon for weddings and other events, but he tried the K-5 and the silent shutter won him over. Anyways, whenever we get together along with other people, we talk about whatever camera without any regard for brand or models. Which is kinda nice because its a big boys table and I doubt anyone within a 100 mile radius is in a position to say otherwise. - but that may be the exception I suppose.

Anyways, I wouldn't stress it but while I was reading your post(and I've seen others as well) I was thinking that perhaps Pentaxians should work on projection. You know... like when someone shooting a Nikon FF(and you're aware of it) asked, you could say something like: " Oh well... you know, I used to shoot upper-end Nikon or Canon, but then I got smart and discovered Pentax. And all I can say is wow!... was I ever wasting my time. - Which may be more akin to a land mine waiting to go off, but... hey, at least it will be enjoyable to watch from an assertive front

Anyways, oddly enough, I think Pentax has sat in the shade with professional due to its weaker AF. However a K-5 II in the pipe may just be what Pentax needed to be seen taken more seriously.

[magkelly]

When people try that on me I just say smile and move on. I'm generally far too busy using my camera to worry about what someone else is using. Actually I've seldom had that from Nikon people. But I have had it sometimes from Canon people. I'm beyond caring though what other people think of my gear. People like that, they don't even know Pentax, and don't want to. So why should I care what they think? They probably bought their cameras on the advice of some clueless salesman at the local Best Buy. :P

My one teacher probably makes 5X what most people like this make and he shoots most of the major brands as needed. He prefers Pentax though when he has a choice. The guy has been a photographer for longer than I've been alive, and for most of my life he's shot high level pro. The guy can afford any camera on the planet, and does.

He has a whole temperature controlled room of gear. Pentax, Nikon, Canon, Minolta, Yashica, Kodak, even some Hasselblad and Leica. DSLR's/SLR's, and several dozen antique cameras of various kinds. It's a darned gear museum practically. If with all that Pentax is his brand of choice then it's good enough for me. (Yes, you heard that right. He puts a Leica second to a Pentax K-5! Or rather two of them. 3 probably soon because knowing him he'll have a K5-II before they're in the stores, sigh...)

I sure wish I had his gear budget at times but I'm not at all embarrassed that the camera in my bag isn't a high end Nikon or Canon. Why should I be? The camera I've got is one of the best in it's class. If someone is too snooty to realize that? Well, I'd say that's their issue, not mine. My only regret when it comes to Pentax is that I can't afford as much of their gear as I'd love to buy, lol....

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Last edited by magkelly; 09-16-2012 at 06:44 PM.

[alamo5000]

I was thinking that perhaps Pentaxians should work on projection. You know... like when someone shooting a Nikon FF(and you're aware of it) asked, you could say something like: " Oh well... you know, I used to shoot no the upper end with Nikon and Canon, but when I got smart and discovered Pentax. And all I can say is wow... was I ever wasting my time. - Which may be more akin to a land mine waiting to go off, but... hey, at least it will be enjoyable on the assertive front

Anyways, oddly enough, I think Pentax has sat in the shade with professional due to its weaker AF. However a K-5 II in the pipe may just be what Pentax needed to be seen a little more seriously.

I think 'mid grade' professionals tend to be the worst. I have three friends who are very well known for their photography. Guarantee you've seen at least two of the three's work. (Pretty good set of mentors I might add)...but I will say getting info out of them is like pulling teeth, but one of these days I will go on an extended trip with one of them..."intern" might be my title...its in the works...

One of these three people (different guy from above) shoots Canon but he's open to anything. He has some Canon lenses but his main favorite is a 3rd party lens.... This one actually made the comment when I was in my initial hunting and learning phase and wondering what to buy, that 'back in the 1970's everything was manual so now everything is a step up'... and when I asked him specifically about equipment his direct quote to me was 'quit asking so much about the equipment....It would be like going to the Iron Chef's house for dinner and then saying 'you must have some great pots and pans! what kind are they?'....then he kind of chided me to 'learn what I was doing'....

With that in mind I pointed out to the jerk shooting the football game that I got a brand new K-5 and lenses and other stuff for just over half price of a Canon 7D....and pointed out that I was planning on getting a 7D at first but in the end for almost half price I was getting 'as good if not better performance out of the K-5'... 'especially for what I was doing'...I even went so far as to tell him I compared the two side by side before buying (which is true)...

The guy was taken aback by that I pointed out that 7D users were generally getting screwed over on price...and that I would 'dare' compare a K-5 to a 7D....

[alamo5000]

And then there are the people who would only drive a beamer. Need I pontificate more?

Good point.

Then again I have met more than one person who buys a $150,000 'race car' and doesn't even know how to drive it. Running to the supermarket in a 2 seat Ferrari might make you look cool but where are you gonna put your groceries?

I think the people that really know look more at the end results. Anything that produces end results is good. Anything that gets in the way of end results needs to be improved upon. And from the sounds I've heard most of what stands in the way of end results is the person looking through the view finder....

[alamo5000]

When people try that on me I just say smile and move on. I'm generally far too busy using my camera to worry about what someone else is using. Actually I've seldom had that from Nikon people. But I have had it sometimes from Canon people. I'm beyond caring though what other people think of my gear. People like that, they don't even know Pentax, and don't want to. So why should I care what they think? They probably bought their cameras on the advice of some clueless salesman at the local Best Buy. :P

I did my own homework. I researched out cameras for about one full year before I bought one. I had no idea about these biases or anything like that when I looked. I read spec sheets on every camera you can think up. Then I decided on what I wanted (it was going to be my first DSLR) and ended up making an objective choice to buy a K-5.

I had my budget and actually was able to buy quite a few more lenses for my total budget, and I am happy with it for the most part. Given I am still learning A LOT. I still want more lenses and more than anything I want to be in places worthy to shoot interesting and awesome photographs....

[Docrwm]

Good point.

Then again I have met more than one person who buys a $150,000 'race car' and doesn't even know how to drive it. Running to the supermarket in a 2 seat Ferrari might make you look cool but where are you gonna put your groceries?

I think the people that really know look more at the end results. Anything that produces end results is good. Anything that gets in the way of end results needs to be improved upon. And from the sounds I've heard most of what stands in the way of end results is the person looking through the view finder....

True. I left my son's soccer game the other day and had a Lambo in the left lane next to me in traffic. He kept reving the engine, jerking in and out of traffic, and trying to weave his way through. I just kept driving. Funny, 3-4 miles down the road there we were, right next to each other again.

[DaniBoBani]

I know several people who are very pro Canon or Nikon. One definite snow wrote off my old Sony, which admittedly it wasn't the best, but at least I didn't have a maxed out credit line for a camera I didn't know how to use.

Once I talked to my current Canon friend he understood why I made the choice I did.

[alamo5000]

I used to live in Park City (Utah) and this one dude was a real jerk. He pulled up to the base of the mountain in a brand new Land Rover, had brand new skis, new boots, everything matched....he looked cool as hell to be honest.

We had never met the guy, but apparently he owned a house nearby that he visited a few times a year...

Another friend of mine pulled up in an old Ford LTD that you had to pump the gas to get it started and had his skis crammed in the back...

The first guy was looking down his nose like you can't even imagine.... until we hit the slopes.

At the bottom of the hill after a couple runs he commented to my friend (with the worn out Ford LTD) "Where in the HELL did you learn to ski like that????!!!"

My friend smiled and responded "The olympics"

True story.

[DaniBoBani]

I used to live in Park City (Utah) and this one dude was a real jerk. He pulled up to the base of the mountain in a brand new Land Rover, had brand new skis, new boots, everything matched....he looked cool as hell to be honest.

We had never met the guy, but apparently he owned a house nearby that he visited a few times a year...

Another friend of mine pulled up in an old Ford LTD that you had to pump the gas to get it started and had his skis crammed in the back...

The first guy was looking down his nose like you can't even imagine.... until we hit the slopes.

At the bottom of the hill after a couple runs he commented to my friend (with the worn out Ford LTD) "Where in the HELL did you learn to ski like that????!!!"

My friend smiled and responded "The olympics"

True story.

Best thing I have heard today.

[magkelly]

My teacher once told me that if I couldn't take a decent pic with a pinhole camera I wasn't qualified to call myself a photographer, and yeah, he made me keep at it till I could do it too. That's his version of the Kung Fu matchbook trick and he wouldn't let me graduate from wanna be to serious student until I went there, lol.

I got the point. A truly great photographer doesn't need all the latest tech to capture the best shot. He/She just needs to be the master of his/her craft. Cameras, lenses et all. They're just tools. Use whatever works. Concentrate on what you want to say and how you take the picture, not so much with what. When it all becomes second nature and the gear is just there to be used, that's when you're really a photographer.

I'm not saying a gear head can't be a great photographer, but I don't think it's necessary to be one to be a great photographer. I'm of a mind that the gear should always be secondary to the craft whether it's a 10K Nikon or a box with a pin hole in it.

That's the Zen of Photography....

[alamo5000]

I got the point. A truly great photographer doesn't need all the latest tech to capture the best shot. He/She just needs to be the master of his/her craft. Cameras, lenses et all. They're just tools. Use whatever works. Concentrate on what you want to say and how you take the picture, not so much with what. When it all becomes second nature and the gear is just there to be used, that's when you're really a photographer.

I'm not saying a gear head can't be a great photographer, but I don't think it's necessary to be one to be a great photographer. I'm of a mind that the gear should always be secondary to the craft whether it's a 10K Nikon or a box with a pin hole in it.

That's the Zen of Photography....

This is almost exactly what my friend who has shot more magazine covers, book jackets, and who is literally a household name in a certain sport (if he's out taking your picture you know its a badge of honor) said. He has had a 30 or 40 year career and has earned a spot in the hall of fame.

His current camera of choice was released in 2008. Its an almost 5 year old design and 'technology' yet he still sells images and makes a living. He still shoots mag and book covers. He is still a household name within his niche.

He even told me privately that if he could he would shoot with a crop camera, but 'because of what I do I have to shoot a full frame'...

For me in taking Q's from those guys you need a basic level of equipment to get the job done, but after that, its almost exclusively 'artistic eye'....its 'being where the action is'...which means by nature these guys ALL live a life that puts them in the mix of world events or exciting once in a lifetime things...

Don't get me wrong, they have all mastered the craft, but they are shooting material that people find compelling. Its nothing for these guys to pick up and fly half way around the world to be in the mix. Sometimes 2 days notice and they are on a plane...

I have been intentionally reading and working on and actually studying art and the artistic side of photography while at the same time practicing taking pictures...Now, (when I have time) 75% or more of my photography reading is about 'artistic' stuff... and trying to bring that side of me out (which is hard since I don't see myself as an artistic person)...

[kefoster]

Let your pictures do the talking....

[magkelly]

Have you ever noticed how people inevitably always ask "What camera/lens did you use to get that shot?" (Like it's just "the camera" or "the lens" that did all the work, lol.) I almost never answer that. If they want to go look at the EXIF that's their call, but I really don't care how a photographer got there. If I like their work, I like it. What gear they use is not even relevant really. The only reason I ever even check an EXIF is to see what aperture or iso someone used if they're taking a type of pic I struggle with. That's it.