TFA: "Mirco Wilhelm has the original files saved elsewhere, but the photos from his extensive Flickr collection had been linked to from all over the web, including the official Flickr blog. Those links will now point to deadspace. Additionally, the followers he had accumulated, tags, photo captions and copyright information have been wiped out and may not be restored"

Beyond that, I have well over 2000 photos in my photo library, and I'm by no means a serious photographer. A professional might take several hundred photos in a single day. (Not all will be useable or worth publishing, but the idea that you might just never delete any photos off your memory card just doesn't work for a lot of people.)