I don't care what they call me, I just enjoy photography.
Just don't call me Shirley!
I agree that labeling is arbitrary even though ones sense of identity is often relative to the labels others put on you.
I also think that there is a difference between being a professional and an amateur photographer. It is possible to exist somewhere between the two. One can make photos just for his own enjoyment, to be shared only with family and friends. One can sell a few photos for extra money or one can make his entire living from photography. It's a continuum.
We all agree, pretty much, that one is a photographer when he has a camera in his hand. What about the times when your camera is in the closet? What is it that allows one to retain his identity as a photographer, whether it is a self-assigned identity or an identity assigned by others.
First, you must have produced photos that others appreciate. They appreciate your photos for what they are. They stop complaining that they are only black and white, even if you do make color photos. (Or, like me, intend to make color in the future but not at present.) Others appreciate your photos well enough to display them in their own house. And, hopefully, you will appreciate your own work to display it in your own house.
I was chatting to a guy on the phone this afternoon who must be a "real" photographer by this criteria. His story was exactly that quoted. He told me he takes so many photo's he ill find himself driving in the country and see a beautiful vista but just not have the spark to stop and get out of his car.
I like where this is going.
Basically, a photographer is somebody who thinks about photos even when he doesn't have a camera in hand. You don't need to think about exposures and equipment or the process of making photos but you need to be able to think about what would make a good photo even if you don't intend to make one at any given moment.
So, it is important to have produced photos that others appreciate but it is also important to THINK about photography even when you are not doing it at the moment.
How's that?