Photography and YouTube
For an emerging/developing photographer looking to expand their knowledge via YouTube there are good channels, there are bad channels, there are even blah channels. I will parse through the deep ocean that is the YouTube photography community to emerge with the pearls on the platform.
The bad. These are channels that I do not like and believe make the photography community worse as a whole for having their content. These channels tend to focus on gear and click bait. Their channels are not so much about technique or photography as much as they are about the latest camera or lens they just tested and is purchasable through their many affiliate links. Although I could drill into each channel and explain exactly what I dislike about them, I will not since I don’t want this to be an overly negative post. The offending parties in alphabetical order:
The next type of photography channels are the ones I am neutral on. Most of the content these channels produce is actually very good, and often quite enjoyable. What stops me from outright recommending them is that they are not necessarily that helpful for a beginner, as they tend to not be focused enough on photography and the actual photographic process for my taste. This category is mostly gear reviewers as well as “professional photography YouTubers.” By that I mean photographers who come across more as charismatic YouTubers than they do as actual photographers. They are not bad, it is just that I wouldn’t recommend them as a place to start learning as a young photographer. Some of these channels separated by subject matter are:
Corporate Camera Reviews:
Independent Camera Reviews:
Photography Personalities:
Now comes the good. This will be far and away the largest section of this post. There are so many photography channels that are worth celebrating and appreciating, it would be impossible to name them all. For now, this is a list that touches several d
Firstly, we have the photography philosophers as I call them. They are photographers who produce videos focused more on the concepts and ideas surrounding photography rather than their gear, so much so that you might not know what sort of camera they were using unless you were highly interested in knowing that information. This group includes:
The next group of photographers are the “Professionals.” These photographers are all current or former professional photographers who produce a good deal of high quality content geared towards helping an aspiring young photographer break into the industry and make photography more than a hobby. Additionally these channels feature regular tutorials and an occasional bit of advice about gear, but that is not the main focus. These are
Next group is the portrait/model shooters. There are so many of these photographers on YouTube. Who would have thought that making videos about how to take picures of scantily clad women would be so popular?
Next are the landscape guys:
Finally there are the “Filmy guys”
This is quite a list. Some of the creators on this list are not really active on their channels that much any more which is unfortunate, but most of them, especially in the “good” category, have excellent back catalogs of content that is no less insightful or helpful than it was when they published it.
