Pro Forum

I'd like to suggest a pro photographer forum. Someplace where pricing, techniques, marketing, and other business ideas can be discussed. This forum should be heavily moderated and require a password to enter, so that it's not displayed to the general viewing public. Members should be verified as well.

Thoughts?

What about the photographers that want to learn the process to be a pro but are not as yet? How do you define a "pro" and how does someone who claims to be a pro go about proving it to gain access to the forum? I'm not against having such a forum, it's a good idea. I just don't think requiring a password and locking out all the other members of the site is a good idea. Nikonites is an educational site and even those who want to learn to be pros should have access.

The main idea is to lock out the public. Yes, this is an internet forum where the basic premise is the free flow of ideas and information. However, we're talking about trade secrets here. Does the public have access to the boardroom of private industries? No. On the same note, you wouldn't want your customers (or potential customers) knowing how you target them via marketing campaigns or how your prices are set. Keep in mind that someone doesn't have to even be a registered member here to view the content, or even know about this site at all to stumble across information posted here.

It would be very easy to screen members who request access to such a forum, especially if they're already in business.

There is one other side to this that may not have been considered. The self styled "Pro" that knows everything simply because they read it on a forum somewhere.
These people seem to find one nugget of data and then suddenly they are expert.
I am afraid that these genuises will degrade the Nikonite brand, so to speak, by using Nikonites as their justification while spewing their misinformation.

Just a thought that is worth exactly what it cost.

Pete

I agree with Anthony. There has been a lot of threads on how to run a professional photographer's business and would be a good forum. However in my opinion I don't think locking it to only pros will work that well. Defining who can get in and who can't will not be that easy. I also don't think a professional will be revealing any trade secrets on a forum where his competitors may also be members. Also being market targeted is a common event that the general public is well aware of. I don't know that the rest of the membership will take being locked out of very well. There are a lot of retired pros or are no longer pros who could make valuable contributions.

I've come across sites that are aimed solely at the pro, or budding pro. Unfortunately, most of these are pay sites as well. While that may be a good way to weed out the impostors, it's not very welcoming either. Pete certainly has a point...as does Mr. Bautsch.

Internet forums are designed to be open, at least most of them are. You enter some basic info, and you can post your thoughts on just about anything within a matter of minutes. Letting every Tom, Dick, and Harry post about business matters is something different altogether though. It dilutes the real information, and corrupts the value of the forum. Up until a few days ago, I had never posted in, or even looked at the D300s forum because I didn't own one. It wasn't relevant to me. I think most people are that way, but there are some who aren't. If Harry isn't in business, and has no desire to do so, I could care less what he has to say about business matters. And again, I think most people are able to filter out Harry's posts on certain topics and take them at face value...but others are not.

Some of the other forums that I visit have pro photog sections, and they're free-for-alls. They're a mess. I think that could easily be avoided by having access to that section password protected. I'm not saying we have to run background checks, but someone who has 3 posts in 6 months should not be allowed access. This is 2011. Anyone who is serious about being in business is going to have a website. Approving access to a locked forum would be a fairly simple task.

This is truly an interesting discussion. Not that most Nikonite discussions are not, but this one is interesting among interesting posts!

There are a lot of sites that I avoid because of the 'pro' aspect of them. Not because the site has such a section (or is entirely aimed at that aspect), but because the pros get 'snooty'. It usually ends up looking like (in my eyes!) the pros are afraid of the up and coming photographers, because they see their business as dwindling, when the up and coming photographers are viewing their market as expanding, because they have evolved with the times, whereas a lot of the pros don't evolve with the times, which is a huge part of why their business dwindling!

I have worked as a professional photographer. That was 15 years or so ago. I enjoyed it. I have considered it again, as the industry I work in now (IT) is getting more and more outsourced, and the work continues to dwindle and provides less and less satisfaction with every day that passes.

Have I considered being a 'professional' again? You bet I have. And I have thoughts, questions, ideas etc that such a forum would be valuable to discuss. It might be enough to light that spark... or it could also be enough to blow it out.

I personally don't mind paying a few bucks to join a pro site. I'd kick in a few bucks to a 'Nikonites' fund too, just for the site being provided for everyone, at no cost, because I realize not everyone is in the position to be able to do so - but everyone here provides great feedback and food for thought.

Anthony, we are on opposite sides of the same coin and as usual you make good points. I'm sure jdeg will want to hear opinions from others before chiming in on the discussion.

I'm not a professional, but I am curious to know what makes someone considered a professional? Is it that you are paid for work on a consistent basis? Have a degree? I have been paid for my work, and I have a wedding lined up, but it's not my job by any means. I will be taking another class in a few weeks for advanced photographers but I am not planning on a degree. Just curious....

That's one of the most argued points in photography, Jen. Some people think it needs to be all of your income, some people think it needs to be a certain % of your income, etc. That discussion sometimes (perhaps often is a better word than sometimes) leads to feuds, discontent, hurt feelings etc.

I've never seen a 'degree' make someone a professional. I've seen it get people a practice that led to them being a professional etc.

This is a great idea...and would love to see it implicated...somehow.

In reference to Anthony's last post.....I am on several forums where there is a minimum post count in order to view the classifieds...to help weed out people who are just there to sell stuff. This is a good idea for a pro section, to a point. Now all of a sudden you get "post happies" who will chime in on everything with a "nice, great job and I like it" just to up their count to the required limit, meanwhile, never once contributing anything useful to the site, just so they can get in. I have seen it all over the place, and it is very difficult to moderate. Then, there is the whole debate on what to put the post count at if you did something like this....it can go on.

I have also been on forums with private password protected sections, where you had to pm the moderator for a password....all fine and dandy, but think of all the PMs the mods will get, and have to try and verify....it seems like a ton of work for a free site.....

hrm, I like the idea of private forums, however I do want to keep this place as open as possible (unlike some other sites out there). Perhaps a private group would better accomplish this?

Perhaps a pro photography forum could also be created that is open, but discusses photography from a business standpoint?

Thanks for weighing in, Mr. Admin Guy.

I hadn't even considered the group option...that may be the best way to ease into something like this. Perhaps we can give that a go and see what the reaction is, and somewhere down the road re-visit this and take a look at other avenues.

And on that note, check out the new Pro Photographers group.

The most heated discussions here have always been what defines a pro. I'm afraid that having a separate, locked forum for "pros" may be more of a turn-off for a lot of people. It almost becomes a caste/class system in some people's eyes. Nikonites is a very nice community. You'll notice that "snooty" people don't hang around much, and the "regulars" are very supportive. I belong to a professional organization and stopped using their forum because of their snobbishness. Even the pros on this aforementioned pro forum keep their trade secrets --many times someone will ask a question and the response is "PM me". These are not the kind of people I want to see here.

When we welcome new members we ALL say "we're here to learn and gladly share".

We still have the PM option for "trade secrets"

IMHO

Jedeg had the perfect solution! A section on "business" (the business side of running a photo business) would also be nice.

ohkphoto said:

The most heated discussions here have always been what defines a pro. I'm afraid that having a separate, locked forum for "pros" may be more of a turn-off for a lot of people. It almost becomes a caste/class system in some people's eyes. Nikonites is a very nice community. You'll notice that "snooty" people don't hang around much, and the "regulars" are very supportive. I belong to a professional organization and stopped using their forum because of their snobbishness. Even the pros on this aforementioned pro forum keep their trade secrets --many times someone will ask a question and the response is "PM me". These are not the kind of people I want to see here.

When we welcome new members we ALL say "we're here to learn and gladly share".

We still have the PM option for "trade secrets"

IMHO

Click to expand...

I would have to agree with Helene on this issue. Nikonites is touted as a free site and supportive to ALL photographers, not just the so called pros. I like Anthony's ideas, it's just the implimentation that would be difficult to administer to. Let's go with jdeg's solution for now.......see how that turns out. Who knows what the future might bring.

I agree with Jdeg's idea of a professional photographers group. Next question, will there be any requirements or limitations to joining the group? I would hope not. There are a number of photographers on this site who are good enough to be pros and would like to look into becoming a professional and that group should be the go to place to discuss it and find information.

It seems that the group settings are a bit quirky, and needs looking into. This is a moderated group, so members have to be approved or invited, but the option to approve members isn't working right. And yes, there should be requirements to joining the group...that's kind of the point.

I hope I don't offend anyone with this, but once we start to segregate groups we run the risk of turning into Nikonians. And I am a paying member of Nikonians.

Amen.. Eduard. By doing this we are adding a layer of snobbishness. All forums and groups should be open to everyone.