This is a question that has been weighing on the minds of many of us in the industry the past few years. Last week, long-time industry professional, educator and Zookbinders client David Ziser tackled this very topic on his Blog, Digital ProTalk. What Ziser found by interviewing several key people within our industry is shocking to some and sadly old news to others. Comments he collected include the following:

“The wedding profession is going through its biggest disruption ever!”

“Budgets are half what they used to be.”

“It’s impossible to survive as a wedding photographer only these days!”

“There are mass quantities of mediocre “Crap” out there these days masquerading as wedding photography!”

Ziser finishes his first post on the subject by stating, “What I read here speaks to the “death-knell” of wedding photography as we’ve known it.”

But as with many complex issues, there is no one person, institution or event to blame. Look at what’s happened to the industry over the past few years. Digital photography has made it quicker, cheaper and easier to take photos and output images. The Internet has let everyone post images and promote themselves to the entire world. The “mystique” of creating a photograph has all but disappeared. The expectations for “quality photography” have dropped. Our culture has become more interested in flash than substance. And the faltering economy has cut the photography budgets of consumers and pushed many who are out of work or underemployed into photography to “earn a quick buck.”

In my opinion, however, all is not lost. The economy will turn around. “Weekend warriors” will realize that good wedding photography takes more than just a few hours on a Saturday, a $1000 camera and a DVD burner. Brides will realize they are being short changed by these nonprofessionals and brides’ expectations for more and better products and services will swing the pendulum back toward that of the true professional.

The professional of tomorrow though, will not be the same as the one of the pre-digital revolution. Tomorrow’s professional photographer will still need to master the craft of photography but they will need to be much smarter business people and marketers. They will also need to be well versed in the needs of the modern bride and how she finds her vendors through the Internet and social media. Her needs will include full service from planning to photography to various presentation options; receiving over-the-top customer service; quick turn-around; great value for her dollar; and, being fully integrated into all aspects of social media. There will always be those consumers who only look at price and don’t care about quality, but those won’t be the customers that will allow true professionals to survive.

Scott Patrick, Zookbinders Marketing and E-Community Planner