The findings of this survey indicate that for most photographers, honing their skills, gaining recognition for their images, and making meaningful contributions through their photography work hold more importance than financial achievements.

Despite the well-known challenges in the photography industry - navigating its competitiveness, gaining the knowledge and confidence to sell and market images, and addressing the evolving role of technology like AI - it's encouraging to see that the passion for photography, learning, and the creation of beautiful images remains the primary driver for most photographers. The optimism of the Picfair photographer community is truly inspiring.

The survey findings also bring to light the complex relationship between photographers and social media. Many photographers view these platforms as essential for showcasing their work, and gaining recognition, but also see them as being highly useful for finding inspiration, too. However, many respondents also feel that social media has made photography even more competitive and has become less supportive of photographers' needs, with traditional platforms offering fewer opportunities than they once did.
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Despite these challenges, social media still remains a vital tool for validation and for getting exposure in photography. Many photographers use these platform in order to connect with their audiences, promote their photography work, and to stay motivated; even as they express concerns about competition and social media’s overall impact on the industry.
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The photographers’ relationship with social media also reflects a much broader issue with photography marketing, with many respondents expressing frustrations about lacking the skills, confidence, or knowledge to successfully promote their work.

Identifying the right audience for their work, or selecting images with some kind of commercial potential feels daunting for many photographers. These survey findings underscore the need for more accessible tools, guidance, and resources to empower photographers to be able to market themselves with confidence, both online and beyond.

Photographers have generally negative feelings about the role of artificial intelligence in the world of photography.

While many photographers appreciate AI's ability to enhance images subtly, significant concerns exist about its broader impact. These concerns most notably include fears around deepfakes and disinformation, alongside concerns that the artistry and creativity of photography may be overshadowed in the long run, or even lost entirely. For these reasons, many photographers view AI as both a tool and a threat.

However, some photographers remain open to exploring AI’s potential, which we believe emphasises the importance of taking a balanced approach to it; one that respects creativity and authenticity.

The findings demonstrate that photographers want the medium to be more accessible to all, inclusive, and valued. Simply put, photographers want to see greater recognition for their efforts, as well as wanting simpler ways to showcase and sell their images, and access to affordable gear and resources to support skill development. All of which, photographers believe, can enable them to grow creatively and professionally.

There's also a strong desire to see the photography industry revitalised, with a renewed emphasis on originality and artistry in photography, along with more sustainable practices. But above all, photographers want a sense of community; one with collaboration, and inspiration, that fosters creativity.

Only 14% of those who answered this question said making money from their images was the most important factor in their photography practice.
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The vast majority of photographers, roughly 78%, said that other things like taking a great photo, getting positive recognition for their work, documenting their lives and memories through photography, and escapism through photography were more important.

The vast majority, 73%, said they had been taking pictures for a long time and still loved to do so.

18% said they were relatively new to taking pictures and still discovering photography.

Only two respondents said they were not interested in photography and cared more about making money than anything else.

What’s driving photographers and making them feel good about themselves and their work? We asked photographers to answer this question freely.

Many photographers said they measured success with the pictures they’d taken that they are proud of and are getting recognition for. Examples included winning awards, selling them, or receiving positive feedback. They also included photographers taking a one-in-a-million snap in everyday locations or travelling to a special area for a photo.

Here are some response highlights:
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Other responses on what drives them as photographers included seeing their skills improve over time, completing photography courses, and feeling inspired to take their photography more seriously.

57% of photographers said that their dream scenario was seeing their images on the walls of an art gallery.‍ 38% said that the idea of their images featuring in big-ticket image campaigns, such as advertising campaigns, would be a dream photography scenario.

Roughly 50% of the respondents also said that seeing their images on the walls of friends and family's homes or seeing their pictures published in the media would be a dream for them.
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For the open-input option, most photographers who answered in this section simply said that ‘selling their images’ in some way would be a dream scenario.

Photographers still value social media as a place to showcase and market their images. However, many photographers agree that social media is a changing landscape.  We asked a number of questions, and these were the standout results:

59% said that social media is still a huge source of inspiration for photography.

44% agreed that posting their images on social media validates their work as photographers.

30% believe that the traditional social media platforms for photography aren’t what they used to be in terms of their offering to photographers; 35% say that social media is getting poorer as a place to promote their photography; and 38% say it’s generally made photography more competitive.

8% cited that social media made them feel worse about their photography; also, 20% said that they feel other people’s images on social media are better than theirs, and 30% said they felt that social media has undermined the photography industry in general.

While some photographers saw the benefits of AI in small measures, most photographers felt negatively about it. Again, we asked a range of questions, and these were the standout responses:

73% said that they were worried about the impact of deepfakes and disinformation with AI and photography.

77% also agreed that the line between what’s real and what’s fake within photography will become increasingly blurred in the years ahead due to AI.

Photographers generally welcome using AI to make minor enhancements to their images, with 20% agreeing that AI positively affected them.

‍35% of respondents also said they’d used AI for minor image enhancements, such as for noise reduction in their photos. However, photographers who answered weren’t keen on using AI for significant enhancements or to create brand new images entirely. 58% of photographers who responded hadn’t used AI with their images at all.

38% felt that photographers would become lazy because of AI developments in photography. 38% also felt that AI will have a significant, if not devastating, impact on the industry. 28% even went so far as to say that AI would destroy the photography industry entirely.

However, a small number also stated that they were curious about what’s in store for AI and photography; 18% hadn’t ruled AI out completely, and 15% also said they were generally confused about AI, the jargon and the buzzwords.

39% of respondents said they planned to upgrade their camera gear. However, 43% also said that expensive camera gear was one of the biggest obstacles in improving their photography. Meanwhile, 45% were happy with the camera gear they had right now.

25% of respondents said they planned to invest in software for their photography.

55% of photographers plan on buying an accessory to complement their kit, such as a tripod or new filter, with 20% of respondents actively saying they are always looking for new photography gadgets.

7% of respondents also said they would purchase a film photography camera.

We also received some interesting open-input responses regarding desired additions to photographers’ kit bags, such as “Underwater housing”, “Aerial lightweight drone”, and “Telescope and microscope”.

Here’s what respondents say they are taking pictures of:

Over 80% said that they focus on outdoor and nature scenes as the primary genre for their photography.

More than 56% said travel photography was a significant area of interest for them.

44% and 28% of photographers also worked in street and portrait photography, often working in both genres in tandem.

28% cited macro photography, 23% cited fine art, and 12% cited aerial photography as other popular subjects.

Interestingly, 15% of respondents mentioned that they do not work in any specific genre

Only 11% selected 'commercial' photography.

Photographers draw inspiration from various sources:
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76% of respondents cited the great outdoors as the most significant source of inspiration, with outdoor activities as their primary inspiration.

60% of respondents identified online sources, including social media, blogs, and websites, as the second most popular source of inspiration.

40% of respondents are inspired by physical photography materials, such as books and magazines.

25% of respondents are inspired by galleries.

Approximately 90% of respondents to our question, “Are you planning on taking any trips for your photography next year, if so, where?” indicated that they do indeed plan to travel for their photography.

The destinations mentioned were diverse, but popular destinations included natural areas in the USA, Canada, Europe, and Asia, where we received multiple responses.

Noteworthy locations cited were Abisko in Sweden for viewing the Northern Lights, Ghana, the war zone in Ukraine, Antarctica, Ladakh, the train route between Auckland and Wellington, and Uzbekistan.

Many respondents also intended to travel within their own local areas or home countries.

Only 10% of respondents said they were not planning to travel anywhere for their photography.
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This question was an open-input answer - we wanted respondents to articulate their frustrations freely. Here are some of our observations and notable responses:

A frequent response was frustration with their lack of sales due to not knowing how to market themselves or simply not wanting to promote their images.

Others felt the expense of photography, particularly travelling to take images or the cost of kit, makes the medium inaccessible.

Finding time to discover what software or kit was worth learning about to enhance their images were common frustrations for others.

Here are some selected response highlights:
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By giving our photographers multiple choice questions and open-input input options, we received  some surprising results; here are some of the notable points brought forward:

43% of the 423 respondents who answered our question, “What statement closest describes you when it comes to your photography and work/making money?” said they wanted their photography work to become a ‘reliable side hustle’.

19% of respondents either wanted photography to be their full-time career or it was currently their full-time career.

Roughly 21% of those who answered wanted to keep any revenue purely casual and weren’t motivated by sales -  there’s a strong correlation between photographers who answered this way and those who said they used photography for escapism or to document their lives and memories.

With the additional question, “When making money from your photography, what statement feels most appropriate to you?” we put forward several revenue-generating scenarios.

53% stated that they know making money from their photography is tough, but they are willing to make an effort of it and are aware they need to put in their own marketing efforts.

17% were disappointed with the money they had made from their photography efforts.

26% felt that any money for their photography was appreciated, but the kudos of having someone appreciate their photography was more important.

We gave respondents a series of statements on the photography industry and asked them if they agreed:

48% agree that the photography industry is declining and that making money from their images has never been more challenging. Given photographers' perceptions of the industry's decline, it’s unsurprising that many also answered that they feel demotivated when trying to sell and market their images.

12% said the industry was getting better.

25% did agree, however, that it’s positive that more and more people were pursuing photography.

28% agreed that AI could potentially destroy the photography industry.

23% of respondents said they weren’t informed enough about the industry to make a valid opinion–which we assume is particularly true for beginners and hobbyists, who may not be interested in how things are going in the overall industry.

We also received some interesting open-input responses; here are some of the highlights:
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Picfair photographers have been busy working on their craft and photography; here are some of them:

53% have learned a new editing skill for their photography practice, and an equal amount also tried photographing something different to what they normally would.

45% learned a new in-camera skill (i.e. out in the field) to improve their photos.

38% tried new techniques to market their photography.

Using these survey findings and our internal research, we’ve been working hard to gain a deeper insight into what’s happening in the world of photography and an informed analysis of what’s coming next.

We’ll soon release the second part of this feature, listing our trend predictions for 2025, in early January.

Stay tuned!

For the purpose of this survey, we’ve rounded percentage points to the nearest whole number.

Image credits
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‍Pexels:
Gije Cho
Wouter de Jong
Nejc Košir
Sebastian Palomino
Vlad Bagacian
MART PRODUCTION
cottonbro studio
Bob Ward

‍Picfair:
Maie Vaks