Over the years I have seen the profession going from a male dominated profession to a female one. Yet here on FM, it seems that most of the members are males. Why ? And why is the profession changing to a female dominated one ? At least from what I see in my area.
Your thoughts ?
hm interesting question. i was at Cliff Mautner's workshop the past few days and he spoke about this and how it's now a "women's world," and men may be at a disadvantage.
I think it's most likely due to the advance in technology that creates cameras/equipments that are easier to use and less expensive, thus a low barrier to entry. So more stay at home moms and younger women can now pick up a camera and earn some money "on the side." Also since the wedding is usually more about the bride than the groom, it's easier for women to relate to each other in that sense. I'm not sure why there's more dudes on FM though haha
Guys tend to congregate on forums, in my experience...particularly those that target the acquisition of tech goods. I'll definitely agree that MWACs are far more common than DWACs.
I'd like to see some quantitative data to support your premise. Anectdotal observations may not be truly indicative.
I had a female photographer work for me. This was back in the early '80's. She shot some weddings and I acted as second, I shot some weddings and she was my second. Whoever booked the wedding was prime. Some brides related better to her, some to me.
There may be as many females surfing here on FM, they just can't get a word in edgewise.
Photography is a technical and artistic profession. Where yiu once had to know some basic chemistry, you know have to know some basic computer skills. Most women in this age, actually most people are now fairly computer literate. Its now a life skill you just need to get by. So most of the technical requirement of photography is gone. All that's left to learn is the art. Women love to be artistic in general. Men, not so much. Being an artist isn't a very masculine trait. In my experience most of the men I see as aspiring photographers do out as an excuse to either buy toys or look at women.
TAGfan wrote:
If you've ever looked through the pages of Professional Photographer magazine you know to the answer to that question.
You can't go three pages without the obligatory mommarazzi spread for one of the print houses. Its really quite funny.
Can you een make it three pages in that mag without hitting an ad?
I canceled my subscription to them when my 2 year subscription got me renewal notices with 12 months left...then quit showing up with 5 issues left. Calling customer service was pointless anyway.
Strangely enough, I feel no worse off for not having it.
marti.g3 wrote:
Over the years I have seen the profession going from a male dominated profession to a female one. Yet here on FM, it seems that most of the members are males. Why ? And why is the profession changing to a female dominated one ? At least from what I see in my area.
Your thoughts ?
It's becoming female dominated because all the other parts of the industry are female dominated so all the women are ganging up on all the men. It's become one great big clique, like high school all over again.
Women congregate. I surmise there are actually FAR more forums chock full o' women than of men. FM is, in my experience, the exception to the photo forum rule. It's just that you guys don't see the forums full of women.
Over time, with that low barrier to entry and easier technical skill acquisition, photography has starte to become more of a service than a technical skill. Services are best peddled through social marketing and women naturally excel at this. Clients are more reachable by us and more comfortable with us, considering the vast majority of the clients are women themselves.
I say it's a non issue. Women are just a lot more independant than they used to be. They are earning higher marks in school then men, earning more money and making their own choices. So of course there will be a lot more women photographers as well. It's all good. And I don't think it's fair to say that clents are more comfortable with a female photographer. I think it's a person by person basis. Of course it all comes down to the photos in the end.
Mark_L wrote:
Slight OT but interesting: David Hobby did a breakdown by gender of strobist readers (multiple polls) and came out 94% male.
I think this goes back to the "guys being into techy kinda stuff".....from my general observations, i notice most female photographers I KNOW like to shoot prime lenses, no strobes, strictly natural lit.....on the other hand, most GUYS i know who shoot generally have some amount of "strobist" gear, and spend the time it takes to learn that type of shooting, etc....
just my observation....i think that's just the male left brain dominance that likes to "complicate" things....although that's my style, so i dont see it as complicated.....
as a side note, i've seen equal amounts of terrible photographers that were male or female, as well as mind blowing stuff from both sides as well...i think brides may be SLIGHTTTTLLY more comfortable with female photographers during the "getting ready" part of the day, but aside from that i think that's a females only REAL "advantage"...everything else just boils down to skill, style, and professionalism...
I could count on one hand how many of my girlfriend photographers have ever even heard of Strobist. It's not a look most women gravitate to and the entire layout and writing style of the site is generally not attractive to women. There's exceptions, but that's just my general observation.
NathanHamler wrote:
I think this goes back to the "guys being into techy kinda stuff".....from my general observations, i notice most female photographers I KNOW like to shoot prime lenses, no strobes, strictly natural lit.....on the other hand, most GUYS i know who shoot generally have some amount of "strobist" gear, and spend the time it takes to learn that type of shooting, etc....
just my observation....i think that's just the male left brain dominance that likes to "complicate" things....although that's my style, so i dont see it as complicated.....
as a side note, i've seen equal amounts of terrible photographers that were male or female, as well as mind blowing stuff from both sides as well...i think brides may be SLIGHTTTTLLY more comfortable with female photographers during the "getting ready" part of the day, but aside from that i think that's a females only REAL "advantage"...everything else just boils down to skill, style, and professionalism......Show more →
Yeah I think this matches what is seen in the industry too, women seem to be mostly natural light and flash/strobe use is more commonly by men. I do think women have an advantage in the sales and marketing side but that is not based on anything other than general impression. I have also had some MoBs get weird about me being around shooting the getting ready shots. I think I'd rather be female as a wedding photographer, but male in advertising/commercial.
