Well, first off, most of the people who dismiss Poser as "not real 3D" can't make a distinction between modeling and art, and can't seem to accept that if 3D models are used, regardless of their source, then the final product is also 3D. I've seen 3D modelers who were incredible at modeling and couldn't make an artistic scene to save their lives - on the other hand, I've seen some who truly are artists. I've also seen Poser users who couldn't make a model to save their lives but who can make some truly beautiful and moving images, and I consider them artists - and I've also seen a lot of crap made with Poser where they really do seem to just load a Millennium figure, a texture set they've purchased, a ton of props and clothing sets, a couple lights, and the result is, IMHO, quite sad. Are they artists? Not in my opinion, but if they enjoy doing it and sharing it, then I think they have every right to do so that the really talented and skilled superusers do.

Art is about emotion, and even though I can get emotional about a mesh I've worked hard on, that's not the same thing as evoking emotion ("wow, that's cool!" doesn't count, I'm afraid ;)) in a viewer with an image I worked equally hard on, despite the fact that I didn't model a single piece in it, and may not even have done postwork on it, besides compositing (I'm admittedly lousy at digital painting!). 3D 'snobs' who think it only qualifies if you created every single polygon are mostly just trying to puff themselves up, and usually wouldn't know what art is if it fell on them; the ones who do know what art is almost invariably know that it's the artist, not the tool, that creates art, and while they may not choose to use the same tools as Poser users, they generally can appreciate what the artist is trying to accomplish.

Art, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder - modeling is, IMHO, more a craft, skill as much or even more than talent. Without modeling, Poser images wouldn't exist, and even though Poser isn't as capable in most aspects as a product that costs 5-10 times as much, no one in his right mind should expect it to be so, nor should one expect an artist to invest 5-10 times as much simply to qualify as an 'artist.' Good or great Poser artists I've seen can generally make art with a variety of media, while many of the skilled 3D modelers I've dealt with actually bitch and moan about unfair circumstances when asked to create anything outside their modeling programs.