A vast number of people take possibly millions of photographs every single day. With the advent of the modern full-featured smart phone, essentially a hand-held computer, many have easy access to a very capable camera. In fact, some smart phone cameras can be used to shoot high quality short films and to take (and edit) excellent photographs. While there are many photographs shot with smart phones, not everyone who does that is a photographer. In my view, a photographer has a specific vision of how they see the world around them and they use their camera (however they define that) to record that viewpoint.
In addition to that vision and the means to record it, often photographers spend considerable amounts of time working to refine that vision. This is one of the things that separates a photographer from one who shoots snapshots on their phone. It is hours devoted to practice, more hours for sorting and editing, and time studying our own photographs and the the photographs of others. Like any skill, the best way to become a better photographer is to devote time and effort. The process may not be quick or easy but it is rewarding and gratifying, even if only to the photographer.
Photographers often go beyond a way of recording the world around them by choosing a specialty, a type of subject that they return to photograph again and again. One of the most common is the photographer who records a specific day in someone’s life – the wedding photographer. A wedding photographer develops a specific skill set to produce beautiful photographs in a very high-pressure situation. Similarly, a baby photographer, although working in a more relaxed setting, still must have specific skills to produce beautiful images of every baby. Not every photographer is cut out to work well under those types of conditions. But I am glad there are people who clearly enjoy those specialties and excel at them.
Some photographers, myself included, prefer to work in solitude among the wild places of the world. Those preferences lead photographers to specialize in genres such as wildlife, landscapes, sunrises or sunsets, barns, rivers or streams, cemeteries, seascapes, and many other outdoor specialties. Other photographers record great images of architecture, travel destinations, boats, or vehicles because that brings them joy. A photographer must look within themselves to determine which specialties will bring them the most joy and growth (and perhaps even income).
Photographers often produce images in areas outside their primary specialty, and those images can be stunning, depending on the skill of the photographer. Many who want to earn a living with their camera will take on jobs that can pay the bills. That doesn’t mean they abandon their specialty, it just shows a practical side. Each photographer must look inward to assess their various skills, interests, and needs to determine a genre they choose as a specialty. Just as every person is different, so is every photographer. Two photographers will rarely shott the same image in the same way. Developing a specialty takes time and effort but the joy shows through in the final images.