This Pro photographer "status" is getting humorously out of hand.

shayneyasinski wrote in post #10137147
Anyway today I get a frantic call about how one girl broke her camera and can not come and how the other girl lost her memory card at walmart when she was getting dressed rehearsal pics processed ......

Well, right there is the problem. Everybody knows real pros go to Costco!!!!

No no...some places it is Sam's Club.

Still, I gotta say...yeah. I ha this same problem only worse. Instead of being paid up front they wanted me to printed a bunch of photos then let parents buy them after I spent tons of money on prints! The lady barely mentioned what I was doing and I was assuming, as she has a reputation for being hard to work with, that she was keeping them and selling them later and not telling me.

I decided to go out on my own and shoot and hand out cards and let people know where to find the photos and purchase them online. Worked out, got a paid enough and that was the last time I did that. It was fun but the organization of it was impossible and they wanted the cheesy team borders and all that jazz and if that's the direction I was going, sure but it was the end of summer to fall (football) and I wanted/had weddings and not little league football.

Mark1 wrote in post #10142151
Well, right there is the problem. Everybody knows real pros go to Costco!!!!

Joke if you want, but apparently those Walmart employees are quite discerning. Link.

shayneyasinski wrote in post #10137147
I am not able to do them as I am busy installing a lift on my jeep

this would def. take priority for me too.

and, on a side note, if you all are not familiar with how installing a lift works, it involves essentially removing the axles of your vehicle from the chassis, so, even if he wanted to, the thing ain't moving till its done; so how would he get there, and..

if i could chose between working on a truck and taking pictures of an event that we were passed over in lieu of said "professionals" i would take working in my garage anyway

I did stop in at the gig last night and a nice young girl was shooting with her dads xti and 18-55 so I gave her some pointers and she was doing fine, no backdrop or flash other than the camera.

These clubs are all going through this and this one will be back after they learn .

We all start somewhere. Some folks never make money at photography. Those that do seem to fall into three categories: Those who make their entire living wth the camera; those who supplement their income with photography; and those who start photography businesses because they like taking photos and have a DSLR, and it seems easy enough...

Let me just point out what seems evident:
- You don't do this full-time.
- You have a daughter who attends the facility. (This basically makes you appear as a Dad With Camera.)
- You told them you were unavailable to do the job, and then you showed up there anyway...?

Are you really all that different than the people who took that work from you?

shayneyasinski wrote in post #10137147
Anyway today I get a frantic call about how one girl broke her camera and can not come and how the other girl lost her memory card at walmart when she was getting dressed rehearsal pics processed ......

Funny thing is both the moms are professional photographers and have facebook groups to prove it!

Sorry to jump into this a bit late. But you'd think that the "pro" mom who lost her memory card could have just bought a replacement memory card. Her business would be up and running again, and she would have been available for the job!

The solution *seems* easy enough.

haha I totally agree with the pro photographer thing getting out of hand. Everyone these days has a freaking Facebook page with a nifty name like "Jane Smith Photography" or, if they're 21 "Mind's I Photography" and think they're pros. It pisses me off, but it's amusing at the same time...

canonboy2003 wrote in post #10163778
Sorry to jump into this a bit late. But you'd think that the "pro" mom who lost her memory card could have just bought a replacement memory card. Her business would be up and running again, and she would have been available for the job!

The solution *seems* easy enough.

This. I mean, memory cards are cheap these days.

asysin2leads wrote in post #10141840
I've had a cousin of a co-worker ask if she could borrow my gear (ALL my gear) for a wedding because her XT broke and didn't have money to buy another camera. I had never met the chick before. I found out some time later that she got mad that I wouldn't loan her my gear for the wedding. Come to find out that she charged $200 for the wedding and gave all the pics on a CD. Oh, the wedding was shot on a P&S.

I'm not saying that I am ready for the Trump wedding or anything, but I know what I am doing.

Not according to a tv commercial I saw just last night. Two photogs out in the wild... the DSLR guy is fidgeting trying to get his settings right... the second guy nudges him aside and gets the "money shot" with his Lumix P&S.

What some define as pro is.. someone who gets paid for their services.
So as long as they do. The quality of their photos or how organized really doesn't matter. There are good pros and bad pros.
I would have taken the job. They may realize paying more is worth it.