Explaining the difficulties of photography to people who refuse to get it

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

I'm having difficulties coming up with my own reasons on this one. How do I explain the difficulties of photography to people who refuse to get it?

 

[BrianShaw]

I don’t try.

 

[DonJ]

Why would you want/need to do that?

 

[MartinCrabtree]

Yeah what he said. Explaining myself to others has grown tiresome and I won't do it anymore. Been called a dick a few times but caring what others think has bit the dust as well.

 

[Andrew O'Neill]

You heading says, "who refuse" to get it. Your post says, "who don't get it". Two different things.

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

You heading says, "who refuse" to get it. Your post says, "who don't get it". Two different things.

Problem fixed- I'm tired after a day of stocking shelves.

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

Why would you want/need to do that?

Getting tired of getting picked on at work from a coworker who thinks I have such an easy life.
It probably won't exactly work but it'll help me feel better about myself.

 

[BrianShaw]

Problem fixed- I'm tired after a day of stocking shelves.

What don’t they get; or what are they refusing to get; and why?

 

[Adrian Bacon]

You can’t please everybody. That being said, picking on somebody is generally frowned on in the workplace. The other person obviously doesn’t care about you, so you shouldn’t care about about whether he/she keeps their job as a result of their behavior. I’d gather evidence and report them.

You have every right to come to work and do your job without being harassed, and have every right to lose your job if you harass somebody else.

 

[Ariston]

I don't understand what the complaint is. Are you upset because they think you have an easy life, because they don't understand photography, or something else?

If they are acting like they are in grade school, who cares? If you are hoping to find a job without any annoying people, good luck with that. I wouldn't try to explain anything to them. Then again, I don't know exactly what you are trying to explain... what are the "difficulties of photography"?

 

[removed account4]

What are the difficulties you are trying to explain? Photography is only as difficult as the practitioner wants to make it.

 

[John Koehrer]

Trying to explain the challenges to your hobby is like explaining your favorite color.
If you know what their interests are, ask them why they do it.

 

[BrianShaw]

Orange. Because...

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

Maybe I'm just being overly self conscious and don't like people criticizing my interests even in a joking way sometimes(?). Maybe I'm the one who doesn't know what he's talking about? Perhaps I don't realize there's things about people I can't change? Maybe I'm just trying to vent something I don't really need to??
Either way, I want to be able to explain why photographing stuff is as legitimate of a profession as working in a Styrofoam factor/ a retail position.

You can’t please everybody. That being said, picking on somebody is generally frowned on in the workplace. The other person obviously doesn’t care about you, so you shouldn’t care about about whether he/she keeps their job as a result of their behavior. I’d gather evidence and report them.

You have every right to come to work and do your job without being harassed, and have every right to lose your job if you harass somebody else.

The stories I could tell...
too bad they're not photography related.

Trying to explain the challenges to your hobby is like explaining your favorite color.
If you know what their interests are, ask them why they do it.

What are the difficulties you are trying to explain? Photography is only as difficult as the practitioner wants to make it.

Thank you both, this is what I was looking for.

I don't understand what the complaint is. Are you upset because they think you have an easy life, because they don't understand photography, or something else?

If they are acting like they are in grade school, who cares? If you are hoping to find a job without any annoying people, good luck with that. I wouldn't try to explain anything to them. Then again, I don't know exactly what you are trying to explain... what are the "difficulties of photography"?

Maybe I'm fed up with other's immaturity and at least want to feel better about myself?

 

[AgX]

I too do not understand what the topic is.

Is it about the complexity of photography as such, not realized by others, who just release their fully automated cameras?
Is it about the complexity of analog photography in contrast to digital photography?

Why should we explain something to someone who refuses to be enlightened? What would be our benefit in doing so?

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

OK, I will try and explain myself.
Why do I want to explain photography as not being an easy thing? I don't like how photography is perceived as an easy process, when I want to take the time and effort to produce something meaningful.
My workplace is populated by numerous people twice my age and half my maturity, and I can never seem to accept it.
I have problems with some things people do there, but can accept others. Since photography is probably the defining thing about me now, I don't like (even jokingly), being told I'm taking an easy way out.
After two video projects and pursuing some ambitious ideas for myself this school year, I want to justify the work I've done.

I'm tired, I expended a lot of energy today hauling water skids and stocking paper towels and a little candy, so my brain isn't functioning at 100%

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

I too do not understand what the topic is.

Is it about the complexity of photography as such, not realized by others, who just release their fully automated cameras?
Is it about the complexity of analog photography in contrast to digital photography?

Why should we explain something to someone who refuses to be enlightened? What would be our benefit in doing so?

I want to explain the amount of work that goes into producing an image- what goes beyond the simple smartphone snapshot.

 

[Ariston]

Do you mean "legitimate" as in real? Or do you mean photography is as "respectable" as retail?

There is no doubt that you can make a living doing photography. As to whether or not it is a respectable medium... probably not, or else they wouldn't let someone like me do it!

 

[MattKing]

First you have to be able to explain a lot about your photography, to those who may not have your interest in it.
Explaining things to people who don't understand them is often referred to as "teaching", and teaching is something that actually benefits from talent and aptitude and experience - and not everybody has those attributes.
Over the years I've encountered more than one talented and inspiring photographer who couldn't teach their way out of a paper bag. They might be wonderful photographers and people, but you ought not to go to them for understanding.
I've also encountered photographers who early in their photography couldn't explain what they do, but as they gained experience their explanations became more usable.

 

[TheGreatGasMaskMan]

Do you mean "legitimate" as in real? Or do you mean photography is as "respectable" as retail?

There is no doubt that you can make a living doing photography. As to whether or not it is a respectable medium... probably not, or else they wouldn't let someone like me do it!

Legitimate- as in no matter what the person behind the camera is trying to do, it is not an easy career to pursue.

 

[Ariston]

Legitimate- as in no matter what the person behind the camera is trying to do, it is not an easy career to pursue.

It's definitely not an easy career to pursue, especially these days.

But it is really easy to take an image these days. Some of my favorite shots are "smartphone snapshots," because they are shots of my family. It is hard to assign value to different images, because different people like different things. I hate a lot of what many people call "art." I suggest you do what YOU enjoy, and ignore the "haters", as the kids say...

 

[BrianShaw]

If they “don’t get it” then it’s likely that they never will because they don’t want to... so don’t worry... be happy and satisfied with yourself.

 

[Kino]

Maybe it's time to find others to talk to about photography...

 

[BrianShaw]

Amen

 

[MattKing]

I have had people (other photographers) say to me that when they first saw some of my black and white work they wondered what led me to choose such a restrictive medium.
But after a while, and after they saw a fair bit of my photography, they started to get a sense of what I saw and why I was doing what I did.
Not an exact parallel with what the OP seems to be struggling with, but it might help to know that some people come around to appreciating what you do.
And by the way, it really helps to not talk about the difficulties, but rather the successes, along with the challenges of achieving them.
What sort of difficulties are you referring to? The sort of difficulties inherent in most small businesses (attracting customers, pricing your work, maintaining equipment, collecting monies owed to you, ...), or technical difficulties (poor light, mixed light sources, equipment maintenance ...)?