As an alternative view to yesterday’s popular post, there’s nothing wrong with being an amateur.
I’m an amateur soccer player, an amateur cook, an amateur skier, designer, racecar driver, and flyfisherman. And I’m happy to be an amateur at all of those things. Actually I LOVE being an amateur at all of those things – it allows me to dabble, make a ton of mistakes, goof around, drop the ball, not care when something else might be distracting me etc.
Being an amateur at those things means I can be comfortable. It’s safe. There is no fear of success or failure. In each case actually becoming a professional overnight at ANY of those things above SOUNDS fun to me, but I know enough that the process of going pro at my hobbies above does NOT sound fun. The workload is too great, the road too steep. The path sounds too damn hard and the rewards don’t outweigh the effort enough to dedicate my life to it.
Being an amateur is the opposite of going pro. Going pro is….…uncomfortable, challenging, and requires laser focus. That’s not to say it’s not incredibly rewarding, but you catch my drift. Going “amateur” is cush.
Now if you’re out there wondering if you have what it takes to be a pro photographer, dancer, chef, whatever and this thought of keeping it amateur sounds the least bit tempting – stick to being an amateur. Someone who has what takes to be a pro and wants to do it would likely never be tempted by such a proposal.
Which one are you? Be the judge for yourself.
Thanks for writing this Chase. Without putting my finger on why, the “turning pro” post left me a little irritated. This, the flip side, needed to be written and I LOVE the discussion it’s generated. Pro’s and Cons to both.
I’ve been a pro since the early ’70s when I taught myself photography. I shot for a photo credits and $1 (so I could say I was a pro) for local weekly newspapers all around my town.
Over the years I have always shot pro for dailies, weeklies, national magazines (I ended up a community newspaper and national mag editor and photographer).
You send me out with any camera and I will come back with something publishable and an invoice. 🙂
Now I’m trying (Yoda says there is no try) very hard to become an amateur! Why?
It’s in the word amateur which comes from the old French (and ultimately Latin) and means “lover of.”
I still don’t mind if somebody pays me for my services but there’s no amount of money that will keep me shooting all day in the rain or snow and then spend all the next day sitting in front of my computer working Lightroom to get the images just right.
There is no greater calling in my mind than that of the amateur shooting for the pure love of photography. It maybe too late for me at my age but I’m working my way to amateur status.
But being pro gets you that needed respect in your profession.
I’ve heard “Turn your passion into your job and you’ll never work another day in your life” but for me turning the things I really enjoy into my job means that over time they will likely become only that, my job.
+1 to shooting what you want when you want Mike.
Having said that I enjoy the energy that you show for your craft/passion/job Chase which is why I continue to visit your blog.
I’m really good at being an amateur …