I absolutely consider it an artform. Some photographers can take a photo and present it as is. I am not one of those photographers. I'm at the complete opposite spectrum. I will take hundreds of photos on a single shoot and maybe pick a handful that I am happy with, bring it into Lightroom, make my adjustments and if needed, into Photoshop.
I try to promote the idea that art is subjective. Not everyone will like your work, but they should at least respect your process.
There's always going to be critics 🤙🏼