I have recently read ‘The ongoing moment by Geoff Dyer which is an absolutely fantastic book about photography. You can get it online from amazon or Barns & Noble.
http://www.amazon.com/Ongoing-Moment-Geoff-Dyer/dp/0375422153
and review here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/theobserver/2005/oct/16/art

In reply to your words “yada yada, nothing spectacular” etc. let me reply with a story.

This is the story of the giant ship engine that failed. The ship’s owners tried one expert after another, but none of them could figure but how to fix the engine.
Then they brought in an old man who had been fixing ships since he was a youngster.
He carried a large bag of tools with him, and when he arrived, he immediately went to work. He inspected the engine very carefully, top to bottom.

Two of the ship’s owners were there, watching this man, hoping he would know what to do. After looking things over, the old man reached into his bag and pulled out a small hammer. He gently tapped something. Instantly, the engine lurched into life.

He carefully put his hammer away. The engine was fixed! A week later, the owners received a bill from the old man for ten thousand dollars.

“What?!” the owners exclaimed. ” He hardly did anything!”
So they wrote the old man a note saying, “Please send us an itemized bill.”

The man sent a bill that read:

Tapping with a hammer …..$ 2.00
Knowing where to ……… ….$9998.00

I agree with you. There is nothing special about my pictures but the fact that I know when to take them and how.

oh and
P.S I am also glad there are less of you and more of those that think that my work is actually worth something! You are right in a way though, it is much easier to simply say “WOW” to every picture that I see but I simply can’t.

PS: Just glad there are less of you “selfless”, “caring” & “truthful” people around, God knows we’d have given up eons back on a number of things, if there were.

I've always wanted to be a photographer and I did reach out to a couple of very respected Indian senior photographers about 8 years back. From one I got stone-cold silence and the other told me I definitely had the “eye”. I was shooting film at that time and most of what I had to show was flowers, abstract photographs of a jetty, a few portraits and some shots of lights. I used to spend all my pocket money [ I was a teenager ] on film and getting that film developed – I couldn't possibly think of setting up my own darkroom.

Have a DSLR definitely make life easier for me – as a photographer and when I got a good deal on a new camera – I have a Nikon D90 – I took it. My aim was to make pictures and while equipment does play a part, I don't believe it restricts the quality of photography. When I did not have a DSLR, some of my really good work was shot on a Sony point & shoot.

And while I thoroughly appreciate the idea of having a mentor, it has been impossible to find one – for me. Even conversations with fellow-photographers are usually quite cold. So far, you and Joseph Radhik are the only two photographers who have responded / discussed / had conversations / exchanges with me, that have been constructive.

Being a professional photographer, in today's world, isn't just about being a good photographer – it is also about running a successful practice – the websites, the portfolio, the client-relationship management, social networking and Photoshop. One also needs to know what one is trying to achieve by one's photography – for example, your style of photographs is very different from mine – I use a lot of Photoshop and love dramatic lighting enhanced by Levels, etc. I don't do it because everyone does it, I do it because I love the results and my clients do too – I use Photoshop to enhance the character of the photograph or further solidify the focus on the subject I'm trying to bring forth.

You still have way more experience in photography than I do – but even I get a lot of such emails from people wanting to be photographers. The irony.

If someone ever told my that my photography sucked and that I should think of think of something else as a career, I would not take that opinion seriously. I've been through my phase of shooting flowers and sunsets and I know it was just a phase. I am still finding out where my soul lies.

When, as an individual, you know you want to be a photographer, nothing anyone else says should stop you in that quest. The fact that “Sunil” replied with a thanks probably shows he just might be serious about it. But for someone who wants to turn into a professional photographer, my “advice” has always been one simple thing : Get out and make photographs. Experiment.

And I respect your for blogging about this. Not all of us have the guts to be real and it's quite a feat achieving that & not being fazed by negative comments.

Today, my friend asked me for help. He was getting a DSLR with a 18-55 & 70-300 mm lens at certain price and he wanted to know if it was a good deal. Price was the only thing he asked me about and I assumed that he must have done a fair deal of research before choosing that specific camera model and kit lenses. But after few trivial discussions came the second question,

So what is the difference between a 18-55 and a 70-300 lens ?

That is when I could immediately relate to this post and commenting here now.

Today, my friend asked me for help. He was getting a DSLR with a 18-55 & 70-300 mm lens at certain price and he wanted to know if it was a good deal. Price was the only thing he asked me about and I assumed that he must have done a fair deal of research before choosing that specific camera model and kit lenses. But after few trivial discussions came the second question,

So what is the difference between a 18-55 and a 70-300 lens ?

That is when I could immediately relate to this post and commenting here now.

I said, “Perhaps the simpler thing would be to ask if they could do it all over again with film.” If they can, then move forward with the conversation. Perhaps I’m just more traditional in many ways, and feel if they can replicate their work (or at least some of it) in film, then they aren’t just getting lucky with digital. It’s not so easy to snap 1000 shots and delete the 950 that suck in film, like you can with digital. Which was why I said that.

I said, “Perhaps the simpler thing would be to ask if they could do it all over again with film.” If they can, then move forward with the conversation. Perhaps I’m just more traditional in many ways, and feel if they can replicate their work (or at least some of it) in film, then they aren’t just getting lucky with digital. It’s not so easy to snap 1000 shots and delete the 950 that suck in film, like you can with digital. Which was why I said that.

This discussion is not about how many begging on street or how many dumping their money in foreign accounts, it will open entire new debate.

I feel Sephi’s reply to Sunil is brutal truth.. It might save his couple of years wasting time in taking picture or make him a pro. It’s amazing to see how digital photography changed people’s perception about taking pictures. When I go out to shoot some events, I saw storm of DSLRs shooter around me. Canon’s rebel and Nikon’s D40/90 made all this possible. Everyone can afford to buy tools to be pro but making carrier in photography still remains tough.

This discussion is not about how many begging on street or how many dumping their money in foreign accounts, it will open entire new debate.

I feel Sephi’s reply to Sunil is brutal truth.. It might save his couple of years wasting time in taking picture or make him a pro. It’s amazing to see how digital photography changed people’s perception about taking pictures. When I go out to shoot some events, I saw storm of DSLRs shooter around me. Canon’s rebel and Nikon’s D40/90 made all this possible. Everyone can afford to buy tools to be pro but making carrier in photography still remains tough.

I live right in the middle of corn country in the good ole US of A. The few local pros in my area are as I said, off limits to anyone approaching the business as a newbie. For me, their work is well below par anyways, which probably comes across as a very snobbish thing to say, but if you saw it, you would probably agree. Their industry is not even one I want be involved in, so their reception to my reaching out was a little frustrating to me, and I have branched out further to photographers within a reasonable distance to me, but received similar responses. Stone cold silence.

This all happened over the course of many months two years ago, and I have since taken a long step backwards with my work thinking that perhaps I was the reason for the silence, my personality, my work, I have done a lot of soul searching, a LOT of learning, etc since. I pulled my entire portfolio offline, disappeared so to speak and have not put it back online. I have evolved and grown. I have changed. I have given up the quest of finding a local photographer to talk shop with. I didn’t even want a mentor, despite that I knew it would be a highly beneficial route to go down.

Now, I’m slowly coming back out of the woodwork, down a route that feels more at home to me, but as an underdog. One who has no elder to turn to for advice, but only what I find out here, what I find in my heart, and what I find in blogs of those I admire, books, lectures, and learning tools available. (And there are many of them out there.) I’m not who fell into the megapixel trap, or the shoot and click trap. I know my equipment, inside and out. I know I have what it takes. I know what obstacles I face. I know what I need to do to get from point A to point B. I also know I face it alone. And it’s okay.

It’s been a 9 year long journey to get where I am today, which is almost right where I was 9 years ago, minus a couple of cameras. But I’m okay with that. It’s how my life goes. These 9 years have shown me exactly everything I don’t want to do. What I shouldn’t do. What I’m not good at. What I am good at. What I LOVE to do. In 9 more years, hopefully I’ll finally be where I want to be.

Sorry for the ramble.

I live right in the middle of corn country in the good ole US of A. The few local pros in my area are as I said, off limits to anyone approaching the business as a newbie. For me, their work is well below par anyways, which probably comes across as a very snobbish thing to say, but if you saw it, you would probably agree. Their industry is not even one I want be involved in, so their reception to my reaching out was a little frustrating to me, and I have branched out further to photographers within a reasonable distance to me, but received similar responses. Stone cold silence.

This all happened over the course of many months two years ago, and I have since taken a long step backwards with my work thinking that perhaps I was the reason for the silence, my personality, my work, I have done a lot of soul searching, a LOT of learning, etc since. I pulled my entire portfolio offline, disappeared so to speak and have not put it back online. I have evolved and grown. I have changed. I have given up the quest of finding a local photographer to talk shop with. I didn’t even want a mentor, despite that I knew it would be a highly beneficial route to go down.

Now, I’m slowly coming back out of the woodwork, down a route that feels more at home to me, but as an underdog. One who has no elder to turn to for advice, but only what I find out here, what I find in my heart, and what I find in blogs of those I admire, books, lectures, and learning tools available. (And there are many of them out there.) I’m not who fell into the megapixel trap, or the shoot and click trap. I know my equipment, inside and out. I know I have what it takes. I know what obstacles I face. I know what I need to do to get from point A to point B. I also know I face it alone. And it’s okay.

It’s been a 9 year long journey to get where I am today, which is almost right where I was 9 years ago, minus a couple of cameras. But I’m okay with that. It’s how my life goes. These 9 years have shown me exactly everything I don’t want to do. What I shouldn’t do. What I’m not good at. What I am good at. What I LOVE to do. In 9 more years, hopefully I’ll finally be where I want to be.

Sorry for the ramble.