20 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD BE A PHOTOGRAPHER

question “What first got you interested
in photography?”. With 250 responses
we were able to get an amazing peek at
what makes p

hotography so special for
lots of folks. So we read all the
responses, took notes, and pulled out the
common themes. That’s what makes up
this list! So credit for all these awesome
reasons goes to our fantastic readers.
Thanks for sharing so openly everyone.
You rock.
1. CAPTURE A MEMORY THAT
YOU CAN HAVE FOREVER
With a photo you can capture a moment,
and have it forever. I think we take that
idea for granted, with photography being
so ubiquitous these days. But seriously
just take a second to appreciate that. If
you did that in Ancient Greece they’d
call you a sorcerer. Or a god.
2. NOTICE THE DETAILS
Photography changes the way you see
things. It’s actually quite an incredible
transformation to experience. Suddenly
you notice light, shapes, colours,
textures, people, bulidings, trees,
flowers…Everything around you looks
different when you start to see the world
as a photographer.
3. SEE THE BEAUTY IN THE
EVERY DAY
Once you start noticing details, you
inevitably start to see how much beauty
is all around you. Every day is filled
with it—in the most ordinary or
unexpected places. When you start to
derive happiness from seeing some
particuarly awesome light, you’ll realize
that photography has changed your
everyday experience.
4. LIVE IN THE PRESENT
And to round out this theme,
photography, through it’s ability to help
you see details and notice the beauty
around you, helps you to truly live in the
present. When you shoot you have to be
aware of everything if you want to
capture it. You can’t be thinking about
the movie you watched last night, or
what you’re going to have for dinner.
Photography focuses you on the now,
which is incredibly valuable!
5. FORGET YOUR WORRIES
Photography is something you get
immersed in (see above!). You lose
yourself in shooting, and all your worries
and daily stresses just melt away.
6. SHARE IT WITH THE
IMPORTANT PEOPLE IN
YOUR LIFE
One of the top ways people got into
photography ( according to our results)
was through someone important to them.
People credited their mother, father,
aunt, uncle, grandmother, grandfather,
sibling, friend and even great-
grandparents. Photography is a passion
that you can share with the important
people in your life. You can pass it down
to the next generation, and spur their
love of this amazing art.
7. DOCUMENT YOUR FAMILY
And the MOST common reason folks got
interested in photography was because of
family—particularly having their own
children. Photography is a way to
document the lives of your kids, and that
alone is worth learning all you can about
it. One day you may also be
documenting the lives of
your grandkids!!
8. CAPTURE THE AMAZING
RANGE OF LOVE AND EMOTION
IN KIDS
Whether they are your own, a friend’s, or
a client’s, kids are an amazing
photographic subject. They see the world
differently, and often express a lot more
love and emotion than adults. Being able
to capture that is both a fantastic
photographic challenge, and a profound
learning experience.
9. IT’S A CREATIVE OUTLET
Everyone should have a creative outlet.
There’s no use pulling the excuse that
you’re “not creative”. Anyone can push
the button on a camera, and point it at
something they think looks cool. It’s
honestly that simple to be creative.
10. MAKE ART
And the result of that creative act? You
can create art. That just flat out rocks.
11. A GREAT CHALLENGE
Now, there is actually a lot more to
photography than just pointing the
camera at something and pressing the
button. That’s where you start. But
learning to become a great photographer
is a serious challenge. You’ll always be
learning something new, have new
directions to explore, and new challenges
to face. And that’s a good thing! This is
a pursuit that you will never be
bored with.
12. SHARE YOUR PERSPECTIVE
Everyone sees things differently. Put 100
photographers in a room and you’ll get
100 different photos. The way you see
the world is unique, and photography lets
you share that perspective with others.
13. EXPRESS YOURSELF
Your unique perspective can go further
than just showing people how you see a
scene. Photography also lets you express
yourself—your opinions and beliefs.
You do this by choosing what you
photograph, and how you represent it.
This aspect of your photography is ever-
changing as you change. You get a sense
of what a photographer is like as a
person by looking at their body of work.
This part of photography is absolutely
fascinating as a viewer, and fulfilling as
a shooter.
14. TELL A STORY
Photography is a fantastic story-telling
medium. Whether you’re telling a story
with one image, a sequence, a series, or
an entire portfolio, the possiblities are
endless. Just ask yourself what story you
want to tell, and photography can get
you there.
15. CAPTURE AN ADVENTURE
One very common way people get
interested in photography is through
travelling. Who doesn’t pack a camera
with them on a trip? The more you
practice and learn about photography,
the better you’ll be able to document
your adventure.
16. THE BEST SOUVENIR
Photographs are the best souvenir from
your travels. They are personal,
beautiful, and have a story behind them.
The trinkets you buy in markets
inevitably break, or clutter up your
home. A stunning photo on the wall is
personal art that puts a smile on your
face as it reminds you of that
exciting adventure!
17. TAKE YOU SOMEWHERE
YOU’VE NEVER BEEN
Maybe you haven’t been to an exotic
locale, but photos can practically
transport you there like a Stargate. They
can show you the people, the food, and
the sights. Or maybe you want to share
your own travels with friends and
family. They get to come along with you
when you take awesome photos!
18. GET CLOSE TO WHAT YOU’RE
INTERESTED IN
Photography is a fantastic gateway into
anything else you’re interested in. Really
fascinated by the music world? Become
a music photographer and you’ll get to
meet the musicians and observe the inner
workings of the industry. We are really
into coffee, and got to spend an entire
day touring a local coffee roastery and
shooting it. We loved the experience and
they loved the photos—win-win
all around.
19. MAKE YOU FEEL EMOTION
Photos make you feel. They can produce
every emotion, from happiness, to
sadness, fear and excitement. There is so
much contained in one small frame—
learning to produce them, and read them
certainly opens you up to feeling.
20. CAN MAKE OTHER PEOPLE
FEEL EMOTION
Your photos can make people happy.
They can make people sad. Through
simply showing your images you can
evoke an emotion in someone else. With
the internet you can affect so many
people at once. Photography can really
connect people in that way.