Many people pursue photography as a hobby. That’s good, because you document your life and your environment with photos. And above all, it’s fun. You are happy about successful pictures and of course also about the new camera or the new lens. You invest money, but above all time, in your hobby. Always with the goal of taking even better photos.

Everything used to be better…

When I started taking pictures around 1970, I was the first in the family (and I had 13 cousins) with a “real” camera (though one or two already had a pocket camera…). Of course, I bought every issue of the German magazine “Color Foto” and, when pocket money allowed, the “Fotomagazin”. Later also the magazine “Photographie”, which at that time was published in Switzerland. I was feared in the local public library because I borrowed all the tangible books on photography and, of course, did not return them in time. Photography was just my hobby and therefore I “sacrificed” my free time for it. But it wasn’t a sacrifice at all. On the contrary. It was fun and that’s why I was so intensively engaged in photography.

Of course, I was not alone. Those who had made photography their hobby were there with heart and soul. But all in all, we were a manageable bunch of dedicated hobbyists.

And today?

Nowadays, everyone has a camera and takes pictures. At home, on vacation, or just to post it on Facebook and the like. Photography has become a mass phenomenon and the number of photos taken every day is probably astronomical.

This has been accompanied by a general loss in the value of photography. I’m not even talking about the monetary loss of value (although that’s dramatic, too), but rather people’s appreciation of photos. And interestingly, the attitude of many amateur photographers to their hobby has also changed considerably.

More and more often Simone and I hear from the participants in our photo courses:

I don’t have that much time for photography. One also wants to do something else!

Tripod is too cumbersome for me.

I don’t want to lug around heavy equipment.

I don’t want to sit in front of the computer for so long.

and so on…

As much as I can understand all this, I’m surprised at the same time. I increasingly get the feeling that a hobby should not be a chore. It should just be done on the side, like listening to the radio or drinking coffee. As soon as it requires patience and perseverance, it apparently doesn’t feel like a hobby, but more like work. And work is no fun, is it?

Naturally, there should be no frustrating experiences. Only top photos should be taken, but without any effort. That’s why you bought the top camera. It takes photos in Professional Quality (as if that were a quality feature…). As soon as you then notice that the top photos are mostly missing, then you are quickly satisfied with very little.

But that’s good enough for me.

or

But I think that is good

are perhaps the most common reactions when you remark that a photo might still have a little room for improvement here and there.

This attitude seems to be widespread, especially among hobby photographers. I can’t imagine a hobby musician buying an instrument and not realizing that he or she first has to learn notes and play scales before you can give a concert. And from my own experience, I can say that the first steps in music can be quite tedious.

Conclusion

It’s not just photos that have lost value due to the mass distribution of cameras. The hobby of photography has also fallen victim to the masses. But fortunately only in large parts and not completely. There are still committed newcomers who spare no effort to make their hobby exciting and varied.

What are your thoughts on this topic? Please feel free to leave a comment.