Why I Consider Myself to be a Photographer

Really, I only need one legitimate reason to call myself a photographer and I’ve got an indisputable one: for me, taking pictures is a passion. It’s more heartfelt than a “hobby”. It’s not just a trend for me. I don’t take pictures because of a “phase” that I’m going through or because it’s “what all my friends are doing” or because it’s “cool”.

I have been actively taking pictures since elementary school. That is, I have been taking pictures with a specific purpose for over twelve years. I remember where I was when I first realized that photographing my surroundings was going to become a part of me. It was at a Book Fair in my school’s library. I can’t remember what grade I was in though I think it was third. Third grade seemed to be a very important and defining year for me. My class had gone to look around and I found a book on photography. It even came with a camera. The book went over all of the camera basics: how cameras work, how to take a picture, etc.

So that was my moment. I began taking hundreds and hundreds of pictures. I’ve already got more pictures (printed pictures, not including pictures I have stored on my computer) than most adults have at the end of their lifetime. Granted, most of these pictures are “bad” pictures. They are out of focus or pointless. But the fact remains: I took pictures and I got better.

I don’t claim to know much about photography as a science, I only know it as an art. There is an incredible amount of information that I don’t know but I wish I did. I can take a good picture, but I could take a better picture.

I’ll be honest, it’s almost a waste that I have a DSLR because I hardly venture from its automatic settings. But you know what? I bought that camera myself. I saved up my money for it. Do you know why? Because, despite the fact that I asked for a “professional” camera for every birthday and every Christmas, I never got one. I even suggested that it could count for both since it’s so expensive. I asked for a DSLR for years. Once I reached a certain point with my 35mm, I couldn’t get better until I upgraded to a digital camera. Then, I got to the same point with that camera. I got to that point about two more times with better digital cameras until, finally, I could no longer improve with what I had to work with. I literally needed a DSLR.

Now I’ve got it, and I can improve. I am improving. So next time you see me walking around with my Nikon, before you automatically jump to conclusions and presume that I’m just some spoiled kid who wants to keep up with the latest trends, try to remember that there are people out there who are taking pictures because it completes them. I am a photographer— not because I have a fancy camera, but because I put my heart behind every click of the shutter and because I open up my soul every time I focus the lens.