Love it or hate it, you have to admit that Instagram is making a huge impact on the world of photography, changing the way images are snapped and shared. Among the 80+ million users who have shared 4+ billion photos are many of the world’s most renowned photojournalists. Olivier Laurent over at the British Journal of Photography recently chatted with some of them, asking them about their thoughts on how Instagram is transforming photography as we know it:
Speaking with these photographers, it quickly becomes apparent that Instagram, more than any other social network in past years, has allowed them to form a deeper connection with the general public. For John Stanmeyer, another VII photographer that uses Instagram, it’s all about “communication, communication, communication,” he tells BJP. “In the decades – let’s hope far less – to come, the entire discussion of whether to use this thing called social media will be a moot – archaic – point of view, no different than it was centuries ago when previous commonly used means of information distribution where invented and debated – ‘Should I write on papyrus leaf or this new fangled material called paper, or a typewriter instead of block-type printing presses, etc.’”
[...] “We are no longer looking at content creation as the only means of income and creative expression,” say Peveto and Slaby. “How content is displayed and distributed are critical in reaching broader audiences, finding more creative ways to engage that audience and in inviting them to participate in the process.” And Instagram, they say, help them achieve these goals. “It helps us connect with our audience organically and offers different options for sharing such as creating parallel narratives with larger projects, sharing behind-the-scenes experiences, opening a dialogue with our audience, and cross-platform geo-tagging and mapping integration.”
The New Economics of Photojournalism: The rise of Instagram [BJP]
If you keep up with the world of photography, chances are you have at one point or another read The British Journal of Photography; if it’s one of your main reads you may even have their popular iPad app. And now you’ve been given a smaller, more portable option, because the magazine has officially released its first iPhone app, an app that the creators say will “change your expectations about how a magazine should look on an iPhone.” Read more…
Last month there was quite a bit of buzz among photographers when photographer Michael Wolf‘s Google Street View “photographers” (or screenshots) were awarded Honorable Mention at the prestigious World Press Photo 2011 contest. A month later, the British Journal of Photography tracked him down and interviewed him regarding the work.
While you might not agree with the World Press Photo’s decision to award him Honorable Mention, Wolf does have some pretty interesting thoughts on Google Street View and its place in photography. He points out that Google Street View will be a treasure trove of imagery in the future, when people will look back on our time and place in the same way we look back on Atget‘s documentation of Parisian streets.
Michael Wolf welcomes World Press Photo controversy (via Photoxels)
The British Journal of Photography announced recently that South African photographer Michelle Sank’s image “Man asleep on the Golden Mile, Durban, South Africa.” had won the single image category of its International Photography Award.
The image, which shows a man asleep in a park just off the Golden Mile in Durban, was described by judges Nick Galvin, Bruno Ceschel and Diane Smyth as both surreal and disturbing, and was picked out from 338 other entries because of its quiet, enduring intensity. “The more I look at it, the more powerful it becomes,” commented Galvin, who manages the archive at Magnum London.
Read more…
The Impossible Project’s new instant film for Polaroid cameras will go on sale later this week, but the British Journal of Photography has already gotten their hands on a pack of PX100. They were mailed a comprehensive press kit that included a box of the black and white film, and promptly exposed the film with a SX-70, publishing the results on their blog.
Of the eight exposures they had to play around with, only a few of them produced semi-recognizable images. Olivier Laurent writes,
But my initial impressions are that PX100 behaves like a expired pack of 669 or Time-Zero. You’re never sure of what you will get. To be fair, Impossible did warn us about this during its press conference yesterday. A slight change in temperature or pressure can ruin or enhance your image. One thing is sure, do NOT use this film outside in the winter or early spring, when there is still a cold breeze. Also, in some situations, you will need to keep your ND filter on.
Apart from some disappointing results (especially when shooting outside), it feels good to load a SX-70 with some new film.
$21 a pack means this is some seriously expensive experimentation. However, lets wait until the film is in the hands of the masses before coming to a verdict on this new film. Here’s to hoping the film is a success!
Image credit: Photographs by 1854.
