MWAC Attack


MWAC Attack Episode 1

MWAC Attack Episode 2

Good morning. I thought we’d start this with two quick videos to get you all started. After all, becoming a professional photographer isn’t that difficult.

Videos from MWAC Attack.

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155 Comments

  1. Anonymous

    Feels like sarcasm – I must believe its sarcasm.

  2. She’s surely not real??

  3. The funny thing is that she is becoming the norm in what used to be a profession

    • Wsroadrunner

      Unfortunately, you’re right. Who needs to actually know anything about photography when one can spray and pray and get one out of 100 that are useable?

      I like the ones that say on their website “Why have your photos made in a studio with a back drop when all of Mother Nature is available for that moment?”

      Yes, why have your portraits done in a professional studio with proper lighting, thousands of dollars worth of professional backgrounds and proper equipment to control lighting to make you look your best when you can have a snapshot taken outdoors in unpredictable lighting, insects, wind, and other elements which can enhance your shot?

      • That’s what I say to owners of very high end DSLRs that will shoot at upwards of 10fps. “Takes all the skill out of it – you’re BOUND to get one shot that’s ok” 😉

      • I had a studio and hated it. I had great results but it bored me to no end. I ditched my studio for straight up locations because that’s what I loved. Challenge, change, anything being possible and every session being unique. So I take offense to your incredibly snooty comment about studios. For me, studios offer little creativity without funding a fortune worth of props and space to store them and then after one or two uses ditching them again because otherwise you end up with same image over and over again with different clients. Studio is so lubriciously easy Walmart/Sears/etc… hires non professionals off the streets, do minimal training, and have them sit in a “studio” with set backgrounds, some props and a rebel camera and get “professional” results every time. I am a location photographer and I am a professional. I do not put on false airs because I happen to have high end equipment or a studio. And yes, I do have professional equipment and even still occasionally break out my studio setups for in-home(theirs) sessions.

      • Twila, I take offense to your offense! Ok just kidding, I’m not really offended by much these days. But I do want to chime in here. I’m a professional who started in studio with pro lighting, went to location/natural light only, now going back into the studio with a collection of speedlights and homemade equipment/modifiers. I’m finding “real” studio photography (as opposed to walmart/sears which are now out of business btw) can be just as challenging as shooting on location. I like having to come up with innovative props and backgrounds that I can vary for each session. There’s an amazing amount of variety that can be achieved with light alone. Plus it forces me to get back to the roots of the profession and deal with controlling the light, something I got away from when I went the “natural light” route. Oh and I shoot with a rebel. And am a licensed business. And actually do make a profit.

  4. Scary

  5. I believe you’ve found the Sarah Palin of pro fauxtographers.

  6. Wow I have to watch her videos.

  7. Arrogant, ignorant naive and insulting to people who really studied photography! “You dont have to know this …. how is it called… shutter speed! You just turn the camera to P that stands for professional and click”

    • You know she’s joking, right?

      • Michelle

        no she is utterly serious. She doesn’t have a single other ‘humorous’ video uploaded about a single other profession. MWAC stands for Mother With A Camera and she REALLY does have a facebook page offering that same advice to anyone who will ‘friend’ her. The only thing I cannot find is her website with her ‘work’ on it. I’d LOVE to do a critique. It is incredibly insulting to anyone who has studied photography.

      • I love it when people totally miss satire. It’s totally more hilarious then.

        ha.

      • Anonymous

        I find it scary that people miss the satire and think this MWAC is legit 🙁

      • 13 videos comprising 80+ minutes of satire? That’s some serious commitment. Seems unlikely to me.

      • Georgia – I totally agree :o)

  8. Anonymous

    her voice made it entirely impossible to watch the 2nd video… just turn the dial to “P” LOL

  9. She’s quite obviously joking…

  10. LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA. Does seem fake – I hope it is!!!!

  11. “so um I talked it over with my husband and we decided I would be a professional photographer”…..

    ok actually I think she’s being sarcastic – unfortunately she’s not far off from other fauxtogs I’ve met recently.
    The other videos are clearly (I hope) a joke as well. YANAP please friend her on FB https://www.facebook.com/MWACattack?sk=wall

  12. Turn you camera onto P for Pshit…..

  13. Also shes been pro for 3 years…and still couldn’t remember what shutter speed was…

    • See, but she doesn’t NEED to. Don’t you see? You don’t have to know stuff like exposure… why deal with that trivial nonsense? 🙂 I’m really hoping it’s satire.

  14. LOL WOW I think if she would stop using the word ‘PROFESSIONAL” photographer! I drive a car everyday but that doesn’t make me a PROFESSIONAL race car driver.

  15. Caroline

    Am I the only one who thinks that it is obvious that this is a joke?

    This is very funny, and sadly, very true.

  16. Love sarcasm!

  17. She’s a freakin’ genius. This, my friends, is how satire is done.

  18. A canon.. D-S-L-R… that’s a professional camera!

  19. I think this is satire. It has to be. Between her voice and the ridiculousness of what she’s saying, it must be. Though sadly, I have actually had fauxtographers say exactly this sort of thing to me before when I’ve tried to critique their photos.

  20. I bet when she went to make dinner, she just set the oven to “C” for Cook… or does it mean Chef… not too sure…

  21. Mary Anne

    That is so funny and soooo true, I know several women and MEN around here just like that! One guy started a blog to share all his learning with others. It’s hard to know anymore who to go to for really good photographs!

  22. It should be a profession that requires a degree…something. I am a student for photography right now and this is heart breaking. I don’t think she is joking based on her other videos. Has anyone seen her work? She doesn’t have it posted on her FB page and she doesn’t have a website that I could find with examples of her work.
    And to know all I had to do was buy a camera and start photographing people and things to become professional…if I don’t have to go to school then why am I wasting my money? Oh yea so that I don’t end up on sites like this one….

    • Take heart. MWAC of course is an acronym for Mom With A Camera, so It’s pretty likely this is satire. Even fauxtogs don’t really call themselves that typically. They call themselves professionals with 3-6 months experience.

      • Kerensky97

        You can also tell it’s satire because she slips up and uses actual photographic terms in a few place where a new photog would’t know the word. At the very least she has been educated in basic photography and is ignoring all that to tell people to use “P” on their camera.
        It could be a really funny site if she can slip some good jokes that photographers would get while still playing the ignorant Fauxtog.

    • I can’t wait for her to post fake work.

      It is a joke, did you really watch her other videos? They are HILARIOUS and very obvious she is joking.

    • My husband always says I am gullible…I have a hard time telling the difference between serious and satire.
      Thanks and I feel better…seeing that many people believe it is satire that is.

  23. Oh wow, I really HAVE to buy her actions, attend her workshop and watch her talk at WPPI. Can anyone please tell me how?

  24. OMG…she CAN’T be for real…it HAS to be a joke on wannabe professional photogs! She probably really is a pro and is raising awareness about those who do exactly what she’s recommending. I must say it is great thinking cuz I will recommend all my potential clients watch this before making the decision to go cheap.

  25. So Funny..is there anyone here that is not getting that this is brilliant satire. The posing guide is straight out of the MWAC guidebook. This is obviously a pro having a blast cutting up on Fauxtogs.

  26. The Sarah Palin of photography.

  27. Watch this while playing “Barbie Girl” in your head….you’ll get it.

  28. No. Tell me this is fake.

  29. OMG!
    I hope this is a joke, but I fear that it’s not.

  30. What is scary to me are the people who think this is real. It’s probably actually a very talented photog or maybe even one of the creators/contributors to this page! I know it is hard to read sarcasm on the Internet but this is a VIDEO. It is very clear parody.

  31. Surely this is a joke??!!!

  32. ahhh… i had to pause it a few times just to get through it… but it is either the best or worst thing i have ever seen in my entire life. not sure yet.

  33. I love her sense of humor!

  34. Punderstruck

    She’s a cutie! And hilarious.

  35. Hah! All you pros out there have been exposed! Everyone, turn your cameras to P and become a pro! The truth has set us free!

  36. “Everybody just lay down on each other” at a park… uhhhhh… sure.

  37. Don’t you just love pro photographers that have “brain farts” during their sessions?

  38. This is hilarious!

    And very obviously a joke.

  39. very clever, great comedy!

  40. can’t tell if shes trolling or being serious

  41. Kerensky97

    She’s a got a third video up too where she talks about Photography Accessories, more specifically making sure your camera strap, your camera bag, and your outfit all coordinate!
    Love it!

  42. …ok, it has to be a joke…. it’s a joke….. right?

  43. ithurtswhenipee

    It may very well be satire, but for many fauxtographers out there – she is speaking the gospel.

  44. of COURSE it’s a joke, people. it’s hilarious. how are any of you confused?????

  45. I know exactly what she is talking about. I have made thousands of dollars with my little point and shoot just last year.

  46. Virginia

    She is either a fauxtographer or a faux-comedian. Either way…

    Once upon a time moms were respected, as were photographers. She has insulted both!

    • AMEN!

    • I agree with this wholeheartedly. Admittedly, I laughed…but I’m kind of tired of the whole MWAC thing. It’s almost as if one can’t be thought of as a decent photographer just because she has given birth. Yes, there are certainly people who buy a Rebel and start charging, but, come on, let it die.

      • Moistn00bcake

        “It’s almost as if one can’t be thought of as a decent photographer just because she has given birth.”

        Any ‘photographer’ who uses the fact that she’s popped out a few sprogs as a reason to hire them deserves all the derision they get.

        Not one of the good serious professional female photographers I know even mentions being a ‘mommy to a simply precious baby boy’ in their marketing.

        MWAC is genius. Best thing is watching all the self indignant ‘not a not professional’ photographers get wound up by her. 😀

  47. This has to be a joke. I honestly don’t believe its possible for someone to be so completely and utterly inept. It’s absolutely hilarious except for that little voice in the back of your head saying “hey, they remind me a lot of this person I know”

  48. Anonymous

    no way! she’s being sarcastic! no fauxtographer even know the term “f/stop”.

  49. At first I thought ihis was a joke, when I realized she was serious, I wanted to kill a puppy! All I know is i’m in no way worried about her taking better photos that I do, because clearly she has no clue about some important things, but I am worried when people pay for ‘professional’ photography from these idiot MWACs that it degrades the expected quality of real professionals.

    • She IS joking. Watch all three vids and you will know for sure.

    • I agree,, I know several in my area, stating they are “NOT” professionals. but promote them selves as one. and said that the Professional Photographers Association accepted them as a Professional photogapher because of their awesome work.. yeah, they paid the yearly fee!!! and people are paying for a “professional” for quality work, and get sub standard work, what would happen if a person posed as a professional hair dresser, and messed up someones hair. just because they have a pair of hair clippers.. ugggggggg

      • Photography is much easier than cutting hair. I am a “professional” photographer. Big deal, it’s not that hard to learn. Photography is a “skill”, not a profession, like plumbing, you just need a license. Yes, some are more “skilled” than others, so what! Photographers need to get over themselves. This MWAC woman happens to be married to a “Pro” photographer and she’s obviously just angry that anyone can pick up a nice camera and go into business, charge less than a real “Pro” and compete with them. It’s just the way it is, move on.

  50. I had to watch her third video to make sure she is faking it, and I’m convinced. Just earned herself another subscriber!

  51. I’m impressed with how she was able to make her voice crack when saying “f-stop”. Very well done. And we’ve all seen the true life version of this obvious satire. That’s what makes it so funny.

    Watch video 3. The part where she says all the lens compartments in the bag are for bottled water and scarves is great.

  52. It physically pained me to watch this . . . I couldn’t even watch the second one

  53. She’s obviously very smart and being very sarcastic and I think she’s hysterical! If you can’t see that you need help. From a professional who shoots 30 weddings a year I would love to bitch slap half the people I see who think they are something.

  54. make sure that telephone pole is sticking out from the back of the head too, because that will make it real. lol

  55. i bout puked…. her friends didnt want to “hurt” her feelings so they said the pictures looked good.. thats the problem. yeah,,, she is a professional photographer?? and didnt know what the “term” was for haveing a blurry background.. yeah… yuck,,,,,,

  56. Haha!! Of course it’s a joke – she says the opposite of everything! Very clever!

  57. Oh my word! I am changing my name!

  58. Bahahaha! OMG, funny! Sad people are taking it seriously.

  59. I have to believe this is satire as well. Unfortunately, there are so many people online now who are EXACTLY who this woman is pretending to be that it’s easy to accept the videos as “authentic”. Which is in itself a sad commentary on the state of photography these days…

  60. I have loved photography my whole life. Because of circumstance and just financial problems, I was never ever able to go to school for it, I sort of had to go where I could make the most money for my family. In the last couple years, my husband and I finally got to a place where I could actually do my photography as my job. I never went to school, or got a degree. Everything I learned was from either just from experience or reading everything I could get my hands on. I have also been inspired over the years by a family member who is a brilliant photographer. It makes me sad to think that there are people would would call me a fauxtographer, or dismiss me because I’m a mom with a camera. I completely admire and respect anyone who has gone or is in school for your art, and yes, you do probably technically know more than me. But I love what I do just as much as you do. I have as much repect for the art as you do. I couldn’t go to school for it. I had to put my life on hold for years. It wasnt’ my fault, or what I wanted to do, I just had to do it.

    I just get really upset when I hear people say that because I don’t have a degree or I didn’t go to school for it, I’m less of a photographer.

    • I completely agree with you. Having a degree in photography doesn’t make a person a photographer any more than owning a camera does. I learned photography. While deployed in Iraq as an Army photojournalist and as a Post Gazette intern. No formal education. I’ve run into photographers with degrees and 30 years experience, and it makes me sad to look at their work.

      However this series of videos makes fun of mommy photographers who clearly don’t know hwat they are doing.

  61. She’s a nice lady… not doing nothing

  62. Troy Coleman

    This is the same crap graphic designer have to deal with. Just like any mommy can buy a camera, any ass hole can buy a Macbook pro and a copy of CS5.5 and BAM! Instant designer. Fuck it. I’m done. Someone put a god damn bullet in my head now.

  63. Oh my word!! She is hilarious except that she makes me want to cry. Too many are *really* like this!

    But I do enjoy her bittersweet satire.

  64. Anonymous

    I have embarked on a journey to shoot this bitch down.

  65. Anonymous

    I honestly can’t believe how many people are wondering whether or not this is real.

    Really?

    Really?

    It’s a joke. I didn’t think it could get any more obvious. (short of her coming out and explaining the sarcasm)

  66. Anonymous

    OF COURSE IT’S A JOKE!!!!

    If you know enough to use the term “MWAC,” then you obviously aren’t a MWAC.

  67. Gourmetguy

    This has to be a spoof…

    please let it be a spoof…

    :-I

  68. if its real or a joke, i dont find it funny because there will be people out there that think its real, and with having to already deal with fauxtogs daily this isnt helping

    • Gourmetguy

      I can’t see anyone taking this advice seriously

      Fauxtogs don’t take advice anyway 🙂

  69. This is hilarious! Episode 3 is accessories. Even though this is sarcasm at its finest it, how many fauxtographers do business.

  70. Wsroadrunner

    f-stop is NOT a rap star dammit!

  71. I am laughing SO hard. She is SO obviously making a joke of this so the people who think she’s being serious…watch it again.

  72. It’s tragic that cameras have become so cheap !!! Because of this cheap technology every “Tom,Dick and Harry ” are all of a sudden professional photographers !!! Remember all you do is put the camera to “P” thus you become a Pro (…Damn !!! I wish I thought of that before I bought all my Nikon stuff)
    I work as a photojournalist and I have seen some of the crap that gets delivered to the news desk with IPhones,Blackberrys and other camera phones (….Nothing beats a 2 megapixel pic with a filthy plastic scratched lens …. almost like David Hamilton’s style) !!!

  73. Anonymous

    I’d LOVE to see her work! hahahahah!!!

  74. Disgusted and amused at the same time! Another chapter in the dumbing down of professional photography. Very sad!

  75. Brilliant – absolutely brilliant. Obviously she isn’t serious, but by the same token, so many people function on that level. Bravo – someone needs to satire what is happening in our field. I appreciated it Missy I thought it was good sport!

  76. Best troll since Ken Rockwell. I LOL’d heartily.

    Also, B = Blurry Mode.

  77. Reminds me of the bitchy chick from Romey and Michelle’s High School Reunion.

  78. My goodness she’s annoying.

  79. I have never left a comment on this site, although I’ve wanted to. Most of the time you lovely people cover my thoughts. But this just gets on my frickin nerves!!!!
    Its like saying, “OMG surgery is not that hard, you just sanitize the scalpel and start cutting away” or “OMG baking is not that hard, you just throw a lumb of crap in a bowl with some choc chips and you get cookies.”

  80. No way. No. These videos made me squirm in my seat, literally.

  81. no this isn’t real. this isn’t real. it’s a very funny spoof and a goof. it has to be. noooo

  82. meatballpie

    i was fooled the by the first video. lol

  83. This is hilarious.

  84. If this is genuine then she really needs to get off her high horse,she is just a snap happy Mom that has way too much time on her hands.I find her insulting and sarcastic regarding photography and I think it would be safe to say that she should stay out of the medicine cabinet!

  85. Did a little searching and it appears it’s fake. Funny has hell but fake. And sadly not that far off. We’ll I’m going to buy a hockey stick and some ice skates (nice ones) and join the NHL.

  86. I hope this is one of the women that run this yanap website. That would be the funniest thing ever. I just friended her on facebook. :0)

  87. In her recent video, she thanks the people from this website 🙂 I want to see her real work, she’s probably a very talented pro in real life. The videos are genius!

  88. This is soo hilarious! I’m in stitches laughing. 🙂

  89. What is really revealing about her videos is the number of “avid” photographers that don’t instantly recognize the comedic nature of her videos.

  90. I almost chocked when she said you don’t need to know about exposure and the p is for photographer! Some people don’t deserve to own a camera.

  91. Professional photography isn’t that difficult???! WTH! Really hoping it’s a joke…not funny.

  92. it is clear satire. anyone who thinks she’s serious is missing the entire point!

  93. The woman is very funny and is obviously joking, but the part that is not is the fact that everything she is saying is a true problem. I have seen far to many of this type of people that think just because you buy an exspensive camera you are an instant “Pro” you are far from pro. Yes, you are a photographer any one using a camera is a photographer in all honesty, but pro is another story all together. I have been photographing people for 10 years and studied through that entire time before just recently starting a legit business and even thinking about calling myself a pro. I don’t agree that you should have to go to school and spend thousands of dollars but you should have to study your craft and learn what needs to be learned before ever charging a soul. But the clients are also the problem. These Fauxtogs will continue because there is a market for it. I get turned down for weddings because I’m to exspensive and they can have Jill down the street with her Canon Rebel do it for crumbs. And personally I am fine with that, you keep your crappy photos and the disk of your horrible images while my clients keep their quality and their prints that will last long past their lives and will be passed down to their great grand children. Keep up your Costco printing and crappy business ethics. Makes me feel better knowing I am not that type of trash!

  94. I cannot believe that there are many on here who believe she is genuine.

    I guess “septics” just don’t get satire.

  95. this is her site which is actually filled with knowledgeable information

    http://mwac101.wordpress.com/

    Satire people! Though I believe there are people out there like this.

  96. I’ve been looking for her website. But I guess she doesn’t need one….hah

  97. Am I the only one that thinks she is really hot???

  98. I like it:)

  99. this makes me want to hurl. i hope she becomes an reporter for cnn.

  100. It’s brilliant satire. SATIRE. It’s a sad commentary on the state of education when this many people can’t recognize it when they see it.

  101. The_Animal

    Geez…this is satire plain and simple. if you go to her website MWAC101.wordpress.com, She goes into heavy detail on f/stops, etc. And the quality of her photography shows that she’s been doing this for a while.

    As far as the idiot who said that you need a degree for this “profession”. Let’s cut to the chase. You don’t need a degree…unless you want to throw good money after a crappy education based on following one leader like a deluded lemming. What we need in this profession are people with TRUE talent and not hackjob wannabes with degrees in marketing who look at other people’s websites and go…”Ooh…good idea. Let’s see what I can do to copy the same mold”. A degree???? Give me a friggin’ break.

    At least I went into wildlife photography instead of this dog-eat-dog miasma of ego and world class -peeing contests. You try and get a bunch of deer or a cougar to “pose” for you without running the risk of getting gored or eaten. Then you’ll know the meaning of REAL talent. It doesn’t take a damn rocket scientist to get a human to pose for you.

  102. isabella

    This is so frustrating. I want to punch her.

  103. Does MWAC stand for MAD WOMAN AND CAMERA?

  104. Thanks for the comedy

  105. It’s satire! I heard a rumor that her husband is a photographer and these videos are sort of a response to how flooded the market has become with feauxtogs.

    (also, it is my understanding that this is possibly his site: http://www.frankfrost.com/#)

  106. Lots of legit comments, but no one stating the obvious. If you’re educated in photography, you know you’re craft, are you really in the same league as a MWAC?
    I for one am grateful for them, as they offer a price point I don’t care to cater to in the first place.
    Please don’t spend your time worrying about them, spend it building relationships with your great clients, and cultivating your business to survive for decades!
    Namaste! 🙂

  107. Intelligent Design

    She is being sarcastic, people…………. Lighten up.

  108. Royce Bennett

    Oh my Lord, this is horrible. “ummm what is that called the other fstop, the uhh….. you know…. uhhh, the uhh…. oh yeah the shutter speed…”.
    Apparently she does not know the exposure triangle. Should be the first thing you learn just to even pick up a camera. Arrgggghhhh this is horrible.

  109. Shooting in nature is superior. Do not reply to me.

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