a dirty little secret about photography associations

"Should I hire a photographer who belongs to a photography association?"

If you look around, you'll see that some photographers sport the logos of various photography associations on their websites, while others don't. There are many - the PPOC, WPPI, APPA and so forth, and the simple truth is, for most part all it means is that some people pay to have memberships while others don't. While some associations require an application and peer review process before you can become a member, many don't require anything more than your dues being paid each year, and often all those dues allow a photographer to do is attend events and enter competitions within the organization. These competitions usually require an additional entrance fee, and placing in or winning the competitions can increase your profile as a photographer. Although becoming a member of high-profile and internationally recognized organizations may show dedication to the art of photography and a desire to become world-renowned, the cost of memberships may do nothing more than drive up the cost of the photographer because their overhead is higher. Unfortunately, it does not guarantee that they are skilled or professional.

For what it's worth, in Canada there is no requirement to have any formal education or training to be a photographer. Unlike most trades and professions there is no standard level of achievement or accreditation such as a bachelor's degree or technical certificate. In Canada the only recognized professional photography association is the Professional Photographers of Canada (PPoC) and its provincial chapters. They endeavor to ensure a standard of excellence by requiring applicants to apply for accreditation through a peer review process for a variety of subjects (portraiture, wedding, animals, landscape, etc.) to become a Master of Photography. In addition to providing accreditation, the PPoC runs contests, presents workshops and conventions, secures industry discounts, and offers a group health and dental plan for accredited members only. They also try to ensure photographers receive fair wages for their work. And, unlike many organizations whose logos you are free to use once you have paid your dues, you are not allowed to sport the PPoC logo until you have achieved a minimum number of credits. If you'd like to read up on the PPoC and how they work, you can visit their site here. Anything else you see is likely a paid membership for the right to attend conventions or workshops and enter photos into contests.

Peer recognition is, of course, extremely important, as is having a network of like-minded folks to bounce ideas off and share knowledge with. It's fun hanging out with people you 'click' with, especially if you can click with them. (get it? click? I slay me. but I digress.) Should it be a consideration when you are hiring a photographer? Not necessarily. As with all things, it is up to the consumer to check out what the association stands for. Is it a paid membership that you are seeing, or has the photographer actually been accredited with something? If it's a paid membership, have they entered and/or placed in any competitions or are they just displaying the logo because they can? And, would you be willing to pay more for that photographer because they have placed in competitions or have passed a peer review of some sort?

At the end of the day, whether a photographer belongs to a paid association or a peer reviewed association, your best measure of whether you should hire them or not is if you like their work and find you 'click' with them. Everything else is simply a logo.