Peter Parker: Photographer

[Mighty Roman]

Again I guess I find it odd that so many people seem to look down on a career in photography for Pete. He was one of the top photographers for one of the largest papers in New York city. That is actually kind of a prestigious position. He doesn't need benefits anymore now that he is an Avenger. The only reasons he was generally so poor during this period were:

1. JJJ is cheap as hell and paid him incredibly poorly. Pete stayed out of loyalty to the Bugle. It was established a few times that other papers knew who Pete was and were willing to pay him WAY more.

Heck, JJJ didn't pay Peter at all for reprints of his photos (as seen in Brand New Day). I do think that if Peter was going to go back to being a photographer, he should stop working for the Bugle, and instead work at The Front Line. Firstly, Working at The DB has no benefits and Peter would probably eventually quit anyway. Secondly, the Front Line had a more interesting cast for Peter-Randie, Phil, Robbie and Ben. Also, before Big Time, you see that the Front Line is a small, pretty poor/ unknown paper. If Peter loses his company it could be an interesting comparison-he had everything, but now him and his friends are barely scraping past the breadline.
Also, they could revive the old Front Line title as Peter Parker: Front Line, which has Peter and Ben as reporters who are present during major superhero events.

[Hypestyle]

I'm surprised that no one has done a story where Peter invents a new camera model, patents it and tries to sell to a manufacturer. He's certainly got the skills to do it. Of course, in the story, something would go wrong, but in any case...

[stillanerd]

I was asked a question about Peter Parker being a photographer during a Q&A for the Spider-Man Crawlspace podcast, and my answer boiled down to that it worked and would still work for Spider-Man for several reasons.

First off, it's a great storytelling vehicle. You've got Peter, desperate to earn a living, having to take pictures of himself and his heroic exploits, sells them J. Jonah Jameson, who then uses those pictures to twists Spidey's acts of heroism into "proof" that he's a menace. In other words, Peter ironically contributes towards the general public's suspicion and distrust towards him. Also, considering how it's a freelance gig and he's selling his work to someone as violate and difficult as Jonah, it creates added drama and comedy, and underscores the idea that Peter is a superhero who doesn't have it easy.

Second, if you consider Spider-Man's origins, him being a photographer ties back to when he started out as an entertainer. Before he became a crimefighter, Spidey was putting on live performances in front of cameras; as a crimefighter, he's still putting on performances in front of a camera. Yes, as a superhero who has learned the value of using one's powers for the greater good, he's not nearly as motivated by self-interest as he was prior to his Uncle Ben's death, but he is playing to the cameras, in this case his own camera, in an attempt to literally sell himself as a hero. Notice how Peter, prior to going into a fight to stop the bad guys, sets up his camera in a place where he knows he can get the best angles and shots; in addition, it's been established that he placed a tracking device in his costume so that the camera will always follow and focus on him. He may no longer be doing stunts in a TV studio, or engaged in professional wrestling bouts, but he's still making himself center-stage.

Now you might argue that selling pictures of himself to a newspaper seems outdated what with the decline of traditional print journalism. However, in the age of the 24-hour news cycle, the internet, social media, YouTube, selfies, etc., Peter selling pictures of his exploits as Spider-Man is far more relevant today than it's ever been. Especially when you factor in how today's economy and how the "millennials" and younger generations are struggling even harder to make a living than those of their parents and grandparents. Just take a look at the movie Nightcrawler (no relation to Kurt Wagner from the comics) and you make a case that Jake Gyllenhaal's Louis Bloom is an amoral, sociopath take on Peter Parker. All you have to do is substitute Los Angeles with New York, freelance camera-person with freelance photographer, and the TV station with the Daily Bugle, and it's essentially a version of Spider-Man without the costume, super-powers, and moral compass. If Marvel was serious about revamping Spider-Man for a modern era, they could just give Peter Parker a video camera and have him sell the footage to a news station where J. Jonah Jameson rants about him on his own prime-time talk show (In fact, Jonah already has his own prime-time talk show on a faux Fox News channel in the comics).

In short, I think Peter being a freelance photographer worked not only because it allowed for all kinds of stories to be told and for him to interact with his supporting cast, it also fits with who Spider-Man is as a character and the themes of personal power and responsibility.

[ViewtifulJC]

The photographer thing worked because it allowed Peter to have a flexible schedule, a fun supporting cast, something he can do off-the-cuff doing his Spidey thing, and it gave him a reason to go out into dangerous situations. If the Lizard is tearing down main street, Jonah wants Peter to get down there and take pictures. This doesn't really work when he's a teacher, which I think was one of the big failures of that position. Sure, it uses his knowledge, but he's either A) skipping class CONSTANTLY/coming up with excuses about his beat-up look, or B) just kinda stuck in school teaching with peers that don't get into news-worthy, exciting situations every day like the DB.

That's why I think the Horizon Labs/Parker Industries was such a good idea. It combines the science part of Peter with the DB's strengths(flexible schedule, fun supporting cast, the place is ALWAYS getting into dangerous experiments/is a magnet for exciting situations). Just as a plot device standpoint, something writers can use continually, it really works. And it doesn't risk going out of style like print, either. Its really the best job he's ever had.

[Metamorphosis]

Second, if you consider Spider-Man's origins, him being a photographer ties back to when he started out as an entertainer. Before he became a crimefighter, Spidey was putting on live performances in front of cameras; as a crimefighter, he's still putting on performances in front of a camera. Yes, as a superhero who has learned the value of using one's powers for the greater good, he's not nearly as motivated by self-interest as he was prior to his Uncle Ben's death, but he is playing to the cameras, in this case his own camera, in an attempt to literally sell himself as a hero. Notice how Peter, prior to going into a fight to stop the bad guys, sets up his camera in a place where he knows he can get the best angles and shots; in addition, it's been established that he placed a tracking device in his costume so that the camera will always follow and focus on him. He may no longer be doing stunts in a TV studio, or engaged in professional wrestling bouts, but he's still making himself center-stage.

Now you might argue that selling pictures of himself to a newspaper seems outdated what with the decline of traditional print journalism. However, in the age of the 24-hour news cycle, the internet, social media, YouTube, selfies, etc., Peter selling pictures of his exploits as Spider-Man is far more relevant today than it's ever been. Especially when you factor in how today's economy and how the "millennials" and younger generations are struggling even harder to make a living than those of their parents and grandparents. Just take a look at the movie Nightcrawler (no relation to Kurt Wagner from the comics) and you make a case that Jake Gyllenhaal's Louis Bloom is an amoral, sociopath take on Peter Parker. All you have to do is substitute Los Angeles with New York, freelance camera-person with freelance photographer, and the TV station with the Daily Bugle, and it's essentially a version of Spider-Man without the costume, super-powers, and moral compass. If Marvel was serious about revamping Spider-Man for a modern era, they could just give Peter Parker a video camera and have him sell the footage to a news station where J. Jonah Jameson rants about him on his own prime-time talk show (In fact, Jonah already has his own prime-time talk show on a faux Fox News channel in the comics).

I noted the Parker similarity in the Nightcrawler film also. I'm a bit surprised they didn't play up an angle like this in the Webb Amazing Spider-man films. Peter carries around a camera in the film, and even received an email from JJJ as an Easter Egg in ASM2, but it's unclear what the extent of his Bugle involvement in the new movies is.

[SilverWarriorWolf]

Now you might argue that selling pictures of himself to a newspaper seems outdated what with the decline of traditional print journalism. However, in the age of the 24-hour news cycle, the internet, social media, YouTube, selfies, etc., Peter selling pictures of his exploits as Spider-Man is far more relevant today than it's ever been. Especially when you factor in how today's economy and how the "millennials" and younger generations are struggling even harder to make a living than those of their parents and grandparents. Just take a look at the movie Nightcrawler (no relation to Kurt Wagner from the comics) and you make a case that Jake Gyllenhaal's Louis Bloom is an amoral, sociopath take on Peter Parker. All you have to do is substitute Los Angeles with New York, freelance camera-person with freelance photographer, and the TV station with the Daily Bugle, and it's essentially a version of Spider-Man without the costume, super-powers, and moral compass. If Marvel was serious about revamping Spider-Man for a modern era, they could just give Peter Parker a video camera and have him sell the footage to a news station where J. Jonah Jameson rants about him on his own prime-time talk show (In fact, Jonah already has his own prime-time talk show on a faux Fox News channel in the comics).

That's a great idea. Mind if I use it for an upcoming project?

[blackspidey2099]

That's why I think the Horizon Labs/Parker Industries was such a good idea. It combines the science part of Peter with the DB's strengths(flexible schedule, fun supporting cast, the place is ALWAYS getting into dangerous experiments/is a magnet for exciting situations). Just as a plot device standpoint, something writers can use continually, it really works. And it doesn't risk going out of style like print, either. Its really the best job he's ever had.

100% agree. Well said.