Our Moral Obligation to Newcomers to PhotographyWriten by Eric Hartwell
It is easy for the newcomer to photography to feel a little intimidated when thinking about getting a camera. There is such an array of models to choose from and such a lot of information available about each camera. Unfortunately, there is also a lot of techno-babble talk which can scare the living daylights out of even a hardened enthusiast.
Unfortunately, photographers themselves do not help the cause sometimes. Scaring off novices with complex jargon and undecipherable chatter can only make it more difficult to attract newcomers and these latter people are the ones that can make the hobby even more interesting and widely available.
Luckily, digital cameras are simple to use. The complexity of the instruction manual is tempered by the facts that (a) nobody reads them and (b) you can take a decent picture without ever opening it. The beauty of the instruction manual is not helping someone to use the camera in the first place, but by encouraging them to advance themselves once the basics have been mastered.
There is a moral obligation on all of us to ensure that the rapid progress in photography over recent years doesnt backfire to the extent that novices are overawed by the prospect of joining in. It is fortunate that commercial pressures are such that good and trustworthy cameras are targeted to novices as well as the more experienced.
Eric Hartwell runs the photography resource site http://www.theshutter.co.uk and the associated discussion forums as well as the regular weblog at http://thephotographysite.blogspot.com