Comments on: Portfolio Review

By: Melissa from Magnum

Melissa from Magnum — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 15:25:02 +0000

In life and in your work, you will make a number of investments – of your time and money, that you hope will steer you closer towards your goals. As individuals, we must decide for ourselves the value of such investments, thereby defining our own worth.

For some of you, the investment to meet with Magnum’s Photographers may not have been worth it, or perhaps just not in your budget at this time. Whatever the case, create meaning in your life, shoot with integrity, and focus on being the best photographer you know how to be.

By: alex cossio

alex cossio — Sun, 24 Jun 2007 06:25:32 +0000

Hi there… Yes, it is great that experts in photo area review portfolios, but I think is to expensive the charge of 250 dlls for 20 minutes. In Mexico city I took a work shop for a whole week with Charles Harbutt ex-magnum photographer, it cost me 100 dlls. Then in Tijuana I took another work shop with Maya Goded, magnum photographer as well, that it last two weeks, and it cost me about 30 dlls. So it is a big diference.
thanks and best regards.

By: pierre yves

pierre yves — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 15:31:18 +0000

I find this expensive too. $250 is a lot : it reprsents almost 30 hours of work, here in France…

By: Sergei Isakov

Sergei Isakov — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 18:11:26 +0000

It is not about words- professional, commercial or artist.

For me, living here in stupid Russia, with all this nationalism and criminal-capitalism, it looks so strange that MAGNUM PHOTOGRAPHERS asked 250$ from their young coullegs not for teaching them for a day or week, just for get look at 20-30 pictures. Just for advise.

I hope that I havn’t understanded something with my poor English and Soviet culture… But, I can’t imagine that W. Eugine Smith or Capa ever did it. Something going wrong with it.

By: Alec Soth

Alec Soth — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 14:11:50 +0000

Relax Rodney. I just mean photographers who shoot for money. Teachers normally don’t have time for commercial/editorail work. Commercial/editorial photographers normally don’t have time to teach.

By: Rodney Finister

Rodney Finister — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 14:02:59 +0000

Regarding your May 29, 2007 post:

“Professionals normally don’t have time to be teachers.”

What a strange and loaded thing to say. While that comment may be, at times, circumstantially substantive, when were artists ever “professionals”, other than in the commercial sense (that is to say, in the realms of editorial—magazines and newspapers— and print advertising)? Were the terms “professional painter”, “professional sculptor”, or perhaps “professional artist” ever to be put to use, it would likely be in the context of ridicule.

Miriam Webster’s definition of professional:

Main Entry: 1pro·fes·sion·al
Function: adjective
1 a : of, relating to, or characteristic of a profession b : engaged in one of the learned professions c (1) : characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a profession (2) : exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace
2 a : participating for gain or livelihood in an activity or field of endeavor often engaged in by amateurs b : having a particular profession as a permanent career c : engaged in by persons receiving financial return
3 : following a line of conduct as though it were a profession
- pro·fes·sion·al·ly adverb

And Miriam Webster’s definition of profession:

Main Entry: pro·fes·sion
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English professioun, from Anglo-French profession, from Late Latin & Latin; Late Latin profession-, professio, from Latin, public declaration, from profitEri
1 : the act of taking the vows of a religious community
2 : an act of openly declaring or publicly claiming a belief, faith, or opinion : PROTESTATION
3 : an avowed religious faith
4 a : a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and intensive academic preparation b : a principal calling, vocation, or employment c : the whole body of persons engaged in a calling

“Professional photographer” really means “commercial photographer”, an apt term for most photojournalists, documentary photographers, and editorial / advertising photographers, whose livelihoods depend on the sale of their photographs to commercial entities and / or being hired to take photos for the very same.

Many great artists have made the practice of teaching an integral part of who they are, and as a result, either directly or indirectly an aspect of their own artistic practices. Plenty of educators are great artists and many artists are great educators, in many disciplines. Photographers Stephen Shore, Joel Sternfeld, and William Christenberry, have all had long and esteemed careers as artists and educators. Your Magnum colleague Jim Goldberg also comes to mind. They have time to be a teachers, and they have time to be great artists. With only a cursory consideration of musicians, writers, dancers, painters, and sculptors, etc. etc., and this list would extend well beyond a single blog page.

“… you sit in circles and talk in circles.”

We’ll just leave that one alone.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 20:26:11 +0000

I happen to be fortunate enough (at least as far as the portfolio review goes) to live in NYC, but unfortunately I’ll be out of town during the reviews, so I really hope that it’s a great success and that I’ll have another opportunity to participate. Sadly, I’ll miss out on many of the Magnum events this month–the one month I’m not in the city!!….but this, in particular, does seem like a great opportunity for those who are able to take advantage of it.

By: Melissa from Magnum

Melissa from Magnum — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 19:48:49 +0000

The $250 investment goes towards the logistical expenses incurred to host this kind of event.

By: Thomas Pickard

Thomas Pickard — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 10:05:29 +0000

Just curious – where or whom does the $250 go to?

By: Song from Magnum

Song from Magnum — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 20:51:16 +0000

Hi Alec and Friends!

I’m very please to announce that as of today Jonas Bendiksen and Chris Anderson have also committed to the review.

Thanks!
Song