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Photography vs Videography: The Dillema
10 years ago
General
I'll try to keep this short... I guess I just need some direction...
I've been a Photographer in the Fandom for some seven years or so; whether officially or unofficially. Although I don't post a lot of photos up when I do (espically on Twitter) my Fursuit stuff tends to get a decent amount of attention/praise/etc. It means to me that I should probably post more...
On the flipside, I've also dabbled with Videography since 2013. That doesn't seem to get nearly as much attention compared to other furry videos on Youtube even stuff that was taken with a go-pro or a pocket camera which I can obviously see a lot of technical flaws with. I have decent, not Pro level gear but Decent gear for Videography. I threw a good chunk of money at the gear I currently have even though I looked for deals and Used equipment when I could find it. Much the same with my Photography gear...
Lately I've been LUCKY if I can get 300 views and more then 5-10 likes whereas go-pro video gets 1k-3k views and 50-100 likes; RTs and Praise on Twitter. I Don't get it....
There are some Videographers in the Furry Fandom that deserve the praise and attention they receive. Others I have absolutely NO CLUE why they are getting attention, and mine are being practically ignored...
When I do a video it takes anywhere from 8-14 hours of Real Time to import review my footage, make cuts, title cards, slide in transitions etc. And while I do have a lot of fun doing it; it does admittedly cut into time I COULD be editing or taking more Photography instead.
So I'm at the crossroads of what to do. Whether I should take a break from Videography except where its part of my job (IE
furrymigration ) and focus almost entirely on my Photography which seems to get more attention as-is from people... or to figure out how to market myself so that my work is actually being viewed and shared beyond a handful of people.
I'm happy with my Photography, infact I know I need to do more of it. I know there are more photographers in the Fandom then Videographers which is WHY I started wanting to get into Videography. That said... when my Photography is what people watch me for and tend to ignore my Videography... maybe I should take a break from the Video for awhile and focus my efforts into doing more Photography instead...
I've been a Photographer in the Fandom for some seven years or so; whether officially or unofficially. Although I don't post a lot of photos up when I do (espically on Twitter) my Fursuit stuff tends to get a decent amount of attention/praise/etc. It means to me that I should probably post more...
On the flipside, I've also dabbled with Videography since 2013. That doesn't seem to get nearly as much attention compared to other furry videos on Youtube even stuff that was taken with a go-pro or a pocket camera which I can obviously see a lot of technical flaws with. I have decent, not Pro level gear but Decent gear for Videography. I threw a good chunk of money at the gear I currently have even though I looked for deals and Used equipment when I could find it. Much the same with my Photography gear...
Lately I've been LUCKY if I can get 300 views and more then 5-10 likes whereas go-pro video gets 1k-3k views and 50-100 likes; RTs and Praise on Twitter. I Don't get it....
There are some Videographers in the Furry Fandom that deserve the praise and attention they receive. Others I have absolutely NO CLUE why they are getting attention, and mine are being practically ignored...
When I do a video it takes anywhere from 8-14 hours of Real Time to import review my footage, make cuts, title cards, slide in transitions etc. And while I do have a lot of fun doing it; it does admittedly cut into time I COULD be editing or taking more Photography instead.
So I'm at the crossroads of what to do. Whether I should take a break from Videography except where its part of my job (IE
furrymigration ) and focus almost entirely on my Photography which seems to get more attention as-is from people... or to figure out how to market myself so that my work is actually being viewed and shared beyond a handful of people.I'm happy with my Photography, infact I know I need to do more of it. I know there are more photographers in the Fandom then Videographers which is WHY I started wanting to get into Videography. That said... when my Photography is what people watch me for and tend to ignore my Videography... maybe I should take a break from the Video for awhile and focus my efforts into doing more Photography instead...
unless you are getting paid....then you do what the one paying you wants (more or less) :-/ )
and make an honest effort and we'll like it or not, and we who like it will still love you for it
and on another note...nope nope, there it is (your youtube link) didn't see it at first
though in my case that won't do you much good, I don't have a you tube account so I can't 'like'
but I like all your posts, for what that's worth
I think that the real questions are the ones you have to ask yourself: WHY do you do photography & videography and WHAT do you want to get out of each? Do you do them for the personal satisfaction? Do you do them for the attention (be honest here)? Do you do them to make money? Most likely it is a combination of those reasons and perhaps others I haven't thought of. In that case which is most important to you?
Since you are doing videography as a profession, then certainly any you do within the context of this fandom will help you improve yourself outside of it. You'll be honing your technique, hopefully learning some new skills, and building a portfolio. All of that can contribute to your income somewhere down the line.
In the end, you have to be happy with yourself.
For the record, I have no idea why 80% of the content on YouTube gets the attention that it does.
I know a lot of Pros (atleast in Photography) that are kinda well... assholes. A few that are good people, but it seems a lot of people doing Photography as a Profession tend to loose something and think of themselves as "better" at it then people who do it as a Hobby regardless of how many years and hours said hobbiest has put into it.
My Photography is not in question, other then I want to do more of it. Yes I know I'm not the best known photographer in the Fandom either... but that is slightly different.
There are more Photographers in the Fandom... so its harder for me to wrap my mind around why some videographers get very little notice when there is a lot less competition... With Photography I can atleast acknowledge its hard to get attention because its a flooded market...
Definitely do not get discouraged by something getting more RTs than something else. People's attention is difficult to capture, if it was easy, everyone's video would be viral!
The point is I'm still shooting despite the fact I've thrown my hands up a thousand times saying things like "Why is this grainy wall better D:!!" People flock to those who drew them in.
Let's be honest here, your average person doesn't really see a photograph. They don't understand the depth of field, the contrast, the color shifts, the this and that. The same must then indeed be true for videography yes? People don't understand what it is they're seeing.
So, while these go pro videos gain popularity, the person behind the camera doesn't understand production value, it's only a matter of time before they get over it, walk away, or get better. You have an interest in it, and therefore have a bit of spark of passion for it [At the very least]. Who cares if they don't notice, do it for fun, enjoy the challenge. Take it from a fox who works 60-80 hours a week and still finds time to shoot mediocre photos to plague the fandom with.
Volunteering as staff for Non-Profits for my Photography both for Furry events as well as more professional venues (such as the local Zoo and the Alzheimers Foundation) did give me a fresh perspective on things.
So while my Photography might not get that much more attention, realistically, I view the attention I do get as more valuable simply because the competition is a lot more fierce. But at the same time... there seems to be a demand for it... while I've seen a lot less direct demand for the video other then just the lack of people doing it....