The beauty of digital cameras is that they have essentially revolutionized the way that photographs are taken. The invention and then mass distribution of digital cameras has undoubtedly been the biggest revolution and change in the industry since the invention of photography and has changed the face of photography forever.
Long gone are the days when you would send off your film to be developed and wait for two weeks to see whether you’d managed to get a photograph of the thing or person you wanted to photograph or whether you managed to capture an image of your own thumb.
Also long gone are the days of receiving your prints back with a warning sticker from the developers because of poor lighting, shaky-cam, or an out of focus object which might have been a drink, a statue or a cactus.
Losing the Professional Touch
With this revolution in camera technology now complete, and a host of reviews readily available to tell you which is the best quality and value camera, many people now believe that they no longer need a professional photographer as their technology and ability to see exactly what they just captured will eradicate any errors which they might have otherwise missed and give them flawless results.
The question then is do you really need a professional photographer anymore?
The Benefits of Do-It-Yourself Photography
As has already been stated, the technology is there to be used and there’s no reason, in theory anyway, why you can’t capture stunning images with a digital camera. There are digital camera reviews and articles online and offline in magazines to help you select the exact camera you need to do the job you want and with instant uploading and image viewing, there’s no need for a dodgy shot to ever see the light of day again.
Then there’s obviously the cost factor. Professional photographers for weddings, family shoots and studio sessions are notoriously expensive and buying additional prints or framed mounts can also significantly add to the cost. Many people are of the opinion that if they’re going to be paying upwards of $300 for a single photography session and the evidence of it afterwards then they might as well just buy the camera and shoot it themselves.
The Benefits of Hiring a Professional
Whilst there’s nothing wrong in theory with taking your own photographs or asking someone else to do it consider the number of times you’ve looked at a photograph which is out of focus, blurry, has the light in the wrong place with people either fading into the background because the light is behind them or blinking rapidly because the light is in their eyes. Consider also the number of times you’ve seen definition being lost because the photographer is too close or too far away from the subject to give them the best impression.
Now further consider the occasion at hand? Maybe it’s a wedding, a graduation, a new arrival? It’s all very well and good trying to save costs with your own photography but with no guarantee of the results, even though the camera in question might be excellent – is it worth leaving it to chance and the hands of someone without the experience and knowledge?
Charles Reybreck is a freelance writer with an interest in consumer issues, such as laptops and digital camera reviews.
Credits: Photo courtesy of Hossein Ghodsi.