I think globalisation has made the role of the professional photographer change. Go back 20 years and most department stores had a marketing department that did their catalogues, they often had a small studio, local models and did their own catalogue shoots. Now they buy in the clothes from China, India etc and the catalogue shots come with them.

Car yards would employ photographers to shoot the glossy brochures, now the manufacturer supplies it *overseas model shown.

However, there are some photos that cannot be shot overseas. Weddings, people, etc. You have to be on the ground, in front of the client to take their photo. They cannot contract it out to someone overseas. So there is a market for professional photographers, you just have to know what it is.

Your own post also hints at the issues facing professional photographers. You hope to make some pocket money as you move into retirement. So you decide to start shooting weddings. There are only so many weddings in Australia each year and in fact the number of weddings annually has been declining each year. Yet, there are a lot more photographers, who think they can make some pocket money, shooting these ever decreasing number of weddings. Perhaps if gay marriage had been successfully dealt with by our politicians, the wedding market would once again have boomed. If nothing else, it would have well and truly boosted that economy sector.

So, in summary, my thoughts are that professional photography is still a great career.. for some. Though they have to fight for the limited $'s with all the semi-professionals out there, in a tighter and smaller marketplace.