http://kenrockwell.com/tech/death-of-photography.htm
Interesting read. Sadly, I kinda agree with him. And its not just photography.
Interesting read. Sadly, I kinda agree with him. And its not just photography.
http://kenrockwell.com/tech/death-of-photography.htm
Interesting read. Sadly, I kinda agree with him. And its not just photography.
I enjoy reading his site when people post links to it. I don't check there regularly for articles, and some of what he says is really nonsense, but some of it is interesting for sure!
Will post some thoughts about this particular piece later. I have mixed feelings...
Ken should post threads on dpreview - he obviously has plenty of practice in creating a catchy headline
I think that photography is stronger now than it has ever been - it's a fantastic time to be an enthusiast, with all the tools you need to take wonderful images and present them to your peers for review / C&C / encouragement.
His style is a bit obvious - to present common sense ideas in a sensationalist "I'm a genius, you're an idiot for not noticing" manner is great for winding up the casual enthusiast reader... thereby encouraging debate and further traffic - he may yet return to 'a proper job' in due course
I'd rather read The Online Photographer, for the comments on there... or any number of posters whom I respect on forums as helpful, respectful, passionate photographers who want to be a part of a community.
I suspect that Ken Rockwell and other populist bloggers are looking at their own demise, rather than the demise of Photography to 'hobbyists' - with the arrival of new blogging tools and forum software, enthusiasts are able to share their own personal views, help each other and grow together... we don't need 'luminaries' of Ken's ilk to show us the way anymore... we can help ourselves thanks, and without the rockstar attitude
Cheers
Brian
Don,
It's difficult for me to find too much of either in this particular posted article. It is less interesting to me because it rehashes themes from other Rockwell posts.
It also seems a bit dull to ignore the fact that there is no shortage of amazing photography being done today, in the 21st century. To be sure, there are a lot of people caught up in gear analysis, computer work, etc, but there are plenty of others making great photos, and the entire premise about a threat to or impending death of photography is simply unfounded.
Who waits for the perfect time to take a photograph anymore? Who waits for the right lighting? Who waits to take a picture of a subject at the right moment the scene becomes engaging?
Djarum,
I think Ken R's post has a reasonable purpose, which is to remind people to worry less about processing and more about vision, planning, timing, and so forth. However, the premise that photography is dying is unsubstantiated IMO.
I'm going out and take some pictures (hopefully acceptable ones, wait a minute, they only have to be acceptable to me as long as I just 'share' them with family and friends, right?)
Djarum,
The total number of people enjoying photography has skyrocketed, and it's safe to say that the majority of those enjoying it do not emphasize vision, patience, and getting the photograph right in the camera. I think that these masses and the magazines which are marketed to them give the appearance that the number of photographers who do wait for the right time/lighting/moment and have vision is waning, but I think that is an artifact of dilution.
If one takes the time to sift through the bulk, I think there are as many talented photographers with vision as ever there have been. I see them in certain publications (eg, Lenswork or B&W magazine rather than Pop Photo and Shutterbug), photo books (such as the ones recommended periodically on T.O.P.), and also even in places like online forums and Flickr (though the dilution factor is certainly in effect in those places).
The masses are not planning, are taking tons of photos, and overprocessing them, but I believe that amongst us there is great work being done, and likely more of it than ever before.
In our own albums here at mu-43, which is just getting started, I can point to examples of photographers who have waited for the light to be just right, for example Blair's album here.
I think Ken R's post has a reasonable purpose, which is to remind people to worry less about processing and more about vision, planning, timing, and so forth. However, the premise that photography is dying is unsubstantiated IMO.