Thinking about the word "amateur." According to the dictionary it means one who engages in an unpaid pursuit. It's usually a negative term, meaning someone who isn't very good; but I'm thinking of it differently. I am a professional writer, which means I publish and even occasionally make some money at it. But I am an amateur photographer. I refer to myself as such because I respect how difficult it is to be a professional photographer, how the business end of it can be daunting, and how hard it is to be noticed in a world glutted with images. But there is another meaning of the word "amateur" that comes from its relationship to "love." One who loves; "lover," from the Latin root "amator." Then I have no problem with being an amateur photographer; I love what I see, what I shoot. I celebrate. I make love.