Why is it that all of a sudden every teen on here wants to be in business?
But when photographers in the field give them advice, they just fly off the handle at them?
I have had two girls ask questions that were simple enough about starting a photography business, and in the process of answering they immediately fired off several emails at me, blasting me for pushing my suggestions onto them. Isn't the whole idea of Yahoo!Answers that we share these opinions? Those that know something share that knowledge? And then it is the choice of the asker to decide if they want to listen to those with more knowledge.
I know that some of you know exactly who I am talking about, these girls have deleted questions in which people told them the "ugly" truth, blocked someone that responded poorly against them, and so on. But it is not like we were uninvited in our attempt to answer the question. We are all here for the same purpose I believe, to help others.
How can we take back this photography section so that it is truly just people that are looking for honest (and sometimes harsh) criticism and compliments on their work? I know sometimes I have a simple question that I can't figure out, but I take all opinions into consideration and really look at all the answers. Even if the person answering makes the answer seem so simple, I don't get pissed at them. Maybe it is because I have left my early 20s and am now too "old" at 27. Maybe I just have matured enough to not believe in fantasies and fairyland of everything will be good and everyone will want to come to me as a photographer because I give everything away for free.
So anyone have suggestions on how to clean up this photography section!!!????
2011-04-04T10:17:56Z
I agree with the not answering anymore of these nonsense questions, but then I will spend way too much time researching the person. It is funny because one person in question had all these previous questions about being married and having a kid at the age of 20, and then when someone made a statement about them being young, married with kids, they went off about never being married and stuff! If they are going to make up stuff they should at least keep it straight!
And yes Photog, that is one of the peoples in question!! Darkroom, exactly... I got questions on everything, answered them all nice and then got ripped because they disagreed. So much for being helpful!
2011-04-04T21:12:43Z
It is one thing to answer the question, which I am totally fine with. I give answers to completely crazy questions all the time (even when they asked it like 5 times, and received many great answers). What I don't like is when I receive e-mail attacks from these people. One of the girls after several e-mails even threatened to call the police on me! I was not the one to impose on her. I just find it ridiculous!!!
2011-04-05T14:30:51Z
I have no idea who did it... but whoever is behind Alleye Wanted is hilarious!!! You have a few too many minutes on your hand, but such a great way to bring a laugh to all.
Just don't follow through with the other end of the craziness by blocking everyone and sending harassing emails!
Ara572011-04-04T10:58:20Z
Favorite Answer
Short answer: You cannot. We cannot. To borrow a phrase from another answerer (sorry I can't remember who or what question) even Captain Kirk cannot! Maybe Spock....
These new camera owners are here to stay, I am afraid, both here in Y!A and out in the real world. Of course, they won't be in business in the real world for long, but as one has a demise, another rises to take the place. But here on Y!A, nothing is stopping them from asking as many questions as they like, asinine or otherwise, and firing off hateful emails to the Infidel answers who are not on board with their business plan or photography skill. Eventually they will get bored and fed up, but it seems to take a while for some. As a side note, it is not only the photography section that is filled with this stuff, it is in other sections as well. If you want a more mature forum, try Photo.net. Way better pictures, too!
I keep at it because every so often one comes along who is worth the time wasted in typing an answer. (For me, that is a lot of time because I type slow!) Although still I read many of the questions, I am much more selective in the questions I answer. I never bother with the can I model, am I pretty, which one looks better, how do I do this in Picnik, how much should I charge questions, and seldom with the which camera should I get, what lens, etc etc etc. I do still like to look at beginner's work, and offer critique and pointers, plus I like seeing how kids look at things through a lens. So I still do some of that.
Age does indeed have quite a bit to do with this phenomena. Today I had an interesting conversation with my dentist, who has a HS senior and a college sophomore. Things are different for them. They have come up in a world of social networking and massive connectivity, and expect instant results and gratification from many endeavors, not just things like photography. You, as a late 20-something probably have a different view and outlook than I do, being several decades older. I guess every generation thinks that about the previous and the following generations.
These young people will mature in turn. The School of Hard Knocks is a harsh teacher. Since we can't change Y!A, my advice is to ignore those questions that you know will raise your BP. Or continue to contribute with a less caring attitude. Many of our more knowledgeable and experienced regulars no longer participate as they once did, they are suffering from Y!A burnout. Tilting at windmills causes some casualties. I have made some friends here, and probably a few enemies as well. Honesty is not always appreciated, both here and in the real world. I still participate because I get more satisfaction than irritation, and it helps keep my writing and thinking skills going in my remaining brain cells. When that scale tips, I will say farewell to here, too.
First, my compliments to WCG for starting an interesting discussion. This is one of those times when a message board would be a better forum than a Q&A. Most of the points I would made have already been covered in answers above, so I'll just toss in a few new items.
I have the *contact by email* turned off for Yahoo Answers, so I never get any replies from people. It sounds as though that was a good decision.
The "going into business" phenomenon is not limited to teens and photography. I'm an accountant by profession, and its rife in that field. You would be shocked at the number of untrained people who buy Quick Books and Turbo Tax, and then attempt to go into business.
The ads of the accounting and tax software companies imply anyone can produce expert results without having to know anything about the subject. In photography, we have all seen the ads showing celebrities waving cameras around while taking one National Geographic quality shot after another. Evidently regardless of the product, the "buy this and you don't have to know anything" marketing line works very well.
Ha, I totally know what you mean. Some girl blocked me because I answered: "Photos can go on either CDs or DVDs. However, when you purchase a RW you run the risk of your images being written over. CD-RW stands for re-writable. So anyone can accidentally erase all the images with a couple of clicks."
I think that these people don't have enough attention in their lives and come here to bother others and try to get noticed. If they would post their work, show off what they do, then maybe we can give constructive criticism on how to do better or if they are super good, then let them know and maybe they won't ask 20 lame questions each day.
I like one of the answers from a recent question - "Here on Y!A, there are a lot of gushers who feed the notion that the most mediocre and beginning level work is great and amazing. Many of these business hopefuls get all defensive when told anything resembling the truth, send nasty emails and often delete the question to get rid of the ugly truth they can't seem to face." The answer was Ara57, who then goes on to say hopefully this girl isn't one of those people. But unfortunately that is the same person that blocked me for my simple answer!
This is an excellent question, but there is no answer. I hardly answer questions any more. I don't bother with most of the "how much do I charge," unless it is from someone I know already. You might ask how I got to know some of these people and all I can say is that it happened over time. We "old timers" in the section remember when there was very little traffic over here (Cameras got it all.) and it was easy to get to know who was who. I guess I have closed myself off to new friends and relations, but there are better ways to spend my time.
I just read an interesting article in the new Shutterbug magazine and I have no idea where would be a good place to share the info, but your question seems to lend itself to that purpose.
In one of the concluding remarks, an event photographer being interviewed said (more or less), "If you want to start a business in photography, you have to love running a business even more than you love photography." The other two being seemed to share that sentiment, even though they did not articulate it quite so directly.
Maybe we can tell the wannabe business owners that they can take their love of photography and HIRE someone who has a love of running a business so they can devote themselves to photography while the other person devotes themselves to running and growing the business. Nah... That makes too much sense.
I feel the same as you all when I see "How much should I charge for a wedding?" and the likes but I usually take the time to answer anyways, no matter how annoyed I feel because we need to inform them of the reality of the situation so they don't devalue the market by offering unsustainable prices.
I've considered just nuking my account on here.
A perfect example of a person not willing to learn is in a question I answered recently:
"Canon White Balance Icon-The lightning bolt (flash) Not sure when to use?"
This is a question they could have answered themselves if they had taken 3 seconds to rwead the manual. I take the time to answer anyways ...
different light sources have different colored light.
Incandescent lights emit a orangish light (this is what's called a warm light). Fluorescents have a much whiter/bluish light (a colder light source). Flashes have a very white light.
When you take a picture with a white balance setting, you are telling the camera what colored light there is in the scene so that it can compensate for the color emitted by the light so that the scene isn't heavily tinted in orange or blue.
AWB = Auto White Balance. By setting it to that setting, you are telling the camera "You figure it out!"
... and this is the Additionals the person adds:
"Additional Details After a few answers I've received, still haven't heard what the difference is between AWB and the FLASH pre-set."
You volunteer your time and get **** on for it ... it's hard to stay motivated. If Y!A doesn't shape up and offer a "Already Solved... check here" category and crack down on posts that violate the ToS, they'll lose the people who make the system work ... all of you here currently answering this question.