This thread was interesting (in the beginning) as it displays the same two sides of the coin that I used to read in Vray threads. One category of users wants more control as they experiment more and is more personally invested in and interested in the technology. They may be pros going for cutting edge realism, or they are just very interested in this part of the process. The other category is more focused on generating the result, the compositing and the actual content. They want to spend time on the design of the image.
This whole thing is a little like the old days when some photographers loved the development part and spending time in the darkroom, tweaking the picture. Others loved the photography and the camera and dreaded the darkroom work, trying to get consistent results with as little effort as possible.
There are obviously concepts in Corona that requires understanding, just as all art. However, something like video editing in order to tell a story is extremely straight forward compared to even the simplest 3D tools. There are of course those working with special effects, but these individuals are interested in the technology and the effects themselves, pushing boundaries. For some reason the video editor and the sfx artist have very different tools and accept this, but the pragmatic viz artist that just wants to develop his picture always have to defend himself towards the more feature focused artist. A guy that produces 40 jobs a month is not seem as professional enough because he hasn't had time to learn all the complex intricacies and possibilities of Corona? That is absurd. For every new generation of 3D tools like Corona, a new generation of creators will enter, simply because it is now worth their time. You really shouldn't have to be a technician, an argument many find very healthy about Corona, but there is certainly a long way to go before it is a question of just pressing a button.