Has anyone else noticed that most photography forums outside of Reddit have some very opinionated, bitter arsch-holes as members? I cannot find a single forum outside of Reddit that offers positive / constructive criticism, just people who are toxic beyond belief…
I find many hobbies where there’s an expensive entry expense, there’s an overabundance of toxic behavior. I saw a ton of it in the scuba community as well. I want to pin it on folks trying to justify spending even more than the small fortune it takes to even get the bare minimum amount of gear to start up. Like, “I spent a thousand bucks on a good quality telephoto lens; you couldn’t possibly waste your time with a $200 kit lens” kind of energy.
Pair that with zero ramifications for anonymous snark and gatekeeping tendencies on reddit.