Bay area Photographer ~ Artist ~ Painter

I’ll never forget the first time someone told me they loved my work. The fact that a photograph I took was referred to as “work” took my breath away. It was the recognition that I didn’t just push the button on my camera to take a photograph but that I actually planned, designed, and produced an image that reflected experience and artistic ability. It made me so much more confident to say to people, “I am a photographer.” To me when you say you are a photographer it means you have experience, education, and skill in producing images worthy of being referred to as “work” or “art.” I wasn’t always confident that I was worthy of this title.

Last night I attended a fundraising event where as a group you are taught to paint on canvas. While I was surprised at how much better my painting turned out than I expected, I found myself thinking, “Artist I am NOT.” I planned on posting a picture of my painting with a humorous saying about the difference between and artist and a photographer to which I turned to good ol’ Dictionary.com. I was surprised at what I found.

Artist: 1. a person who produces works in any of the arts that are primarily subject to aesthetic criteria.

Photographer: 1. a person who takes photographs, either as a hobby or a profession

Needless to say I was a little offended at the lack of reverence in the definition of Photographer. Not to mention that I could have been referring to myself as a photographer since I was 12. But the flip side is that while I did have the assurance to refer to myself as a photographer I was far from calling myself an artist. And now? Well no one can argue with the dictionary and according to definition I guess I can now refer to myself as a photographic artist. Or better yet a painter!

Painter: a person who coats walls or other surfaces with paint  (Yep that’s me!)

Thank you for a fun evening for a good cause  www.relayforlife.org/oakleyca