13.11.09
Are there too many professional photographers?
Crudely one might say if someone gets paid for taking photographs, then they can be termed ‘professional’, but we, rightly, demand more from anyone claiming the title ‘professional’.
We expect expertise, quality of service and duty of care in all circumstances. These are also the areas of concern for a professional body, which must not only represent its members but look to the status and perception of the profession itself, which is inextricably linked to the standards of work and conduct of its practitioners. Poor practice brings down the perception of the profession as a whole.
Photography has always been an attractive, even seductive activity, now even more so. With the almost immediate production of images, the ‘I could do that’ attitude is seemingly easily attainable, alongside the ‘bonus’ of the potential to get paid. Thus being a ‘professional’, as well as the term ‘creative’, are, unfortunately, too often used to cover sloppy work. It must be remembered that photography is also a craft, requiring dedication and long practice. There is no ‘quick fix’, no way to ‘be a professional photographer in a weekend’. No one would be classed as a professional musician if they were unable to play the correct notes, in tune, at the right time. Every profession needs the strength and resilience given by the hybrid energies of a constant intake of new members bringing a wide variety of ideas, aspirations, backgrounds and viewpoints; sometimes challenging the bodies representing professional
photography to question and reassess their own attitudes and responsibilities. As Mozart said, “Art without innovation is a corpse”, and the same can be said of photography and its representative bodies.
One of the primary responsibilities of a professional body, in my opinion, is to provide verifiable, realistic standards and qualifications to prove professional competence, then to provide the training and guidance for candidates to achieve those standards. This mutually informed qualification and training policy applies to new members, while also providing the encouragement and stimulation to already good photographers to be even better. The initiative for proper training is falling ever more on the profession itself, the traditional ‘apprenticeship’ or ‘assistant’ route
has largely disappeared. The opportunities for ‘day release’ and part-time training are very few.
Many photographers now operate as sole trader enterprises without any other staff. A significant number of entrants to the profession are now mature, possibly embarking on their second or third career, from diverse backgrounds, motivations, experiences and enthusiasms. Very often, they are desperate for proper training and thrive when
given the appropriate guidance. Even large and medium-sized corporations have done away with permanent in-house photography sections. HM Forces and the Police services are among the very few organisations to run inhouse training facilities with links to a professional photographic body and its qualification structure. The situation within Further and Higher Education is complex and variable. There are a very large number (too many?) of photography courses being offered. Some do indeed produce graduates with the skills and qualities necessary to have a viable chance of success in a photographic career. However, a great number of courses are detached from the realities of professional practice, such that they have little relevance as career pathways. There is an acute need and appetite for good, specific, profession-enhancing training. The providers of much of this training now need to come from within the profession itself. This initiative to train and qualify its members is central to the process of evolution the BIPP has undergone in the last several years. We have developed and continue to develop training for photographers at all levels of experience and achievement. To ensure the standards and consistency of training and mentoring are as high as possible, trainers and mentors are, themselves, trained and evaluated. This is a long-term investment for our members, and the profession.
The steady increase in new members and their eagerness to take up training opportunities proves the policy is working at this level. Training at ‘masterclass’ level encourages and supports those wishing to progress to the highest levels and again, candidate numbers applying to train for higher qualifications are increasing significantly.
We are strongly encouraged that this policy is raising the status of the profession of photography. We have links with Skillset and contribute to and draw from its resources. We constantly revise and examine our programmes and practices in the wider context of the industry, as any regression to an inward-looking perspective would render a professional body irrelevant. We must always remember that we practice within socio-economic circumstances which constantly change. The imperative to constantly raise the standards of our profession and the body that represents it is demanding, but our experience is that it is also among the most stimulating and rewarding challenges of our history.
Russell Baston
Education advisor & director, British Institute of Professional
Photography
www.bipp.com
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