Is the most egalitarian form of photography, ‘street photography’, being destroyed by its own popularity? Is such a thing even possible? I won’t profess to have a clear answer to this question, but I do have some thoughts. Those thoughts may turn into a rant, but I'll try to contain myself!
After nearly 80 years, Popular Photography announced that the magazine would publish its final issue on March 10, 2017 while simultaneously ceasing updates to both PopPhoto.com and AmericanPhotoMag.com.
The New York Times just reported an incredible story of how a 23-year old recent college graduate created a fake news story about fraudulent Clinton votes in Ohio and netted $22,000 on a fake news website from ads.
Burhan Ozbilici’s stunning photo of a gunman moments after assassinating the Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov spread like wildfire over social media. While many within the photojournalism community quickly declared the image as the “photo of the year,” and worth of top prizes, one voice offered dissent.
So, time to stock up on bottled water and canned goods -- the apocalypse is upon us. The iPhone 7 is here, and with its new and improved high res, dual lens, RAW shooting imaging system, it’s going to kill the consumer/enthusiast camera industry.
It may seem counterintuitive, but even a sports action photo can tell a story in a 1/1000th of a second, and the Rio Olympics men’s 200m butterfly final provided a perfect opportunity to analyze the role of not only the decisive moment, but decisive position in telling a story.
On April 3, The New York Times Magazine photography critic Teju Cole penned a piece largely dismissing the work of renown photographer Steve McCurry. The piece caused a minor ruckus in photography circles with people (like myself) writing in his defense, while others castigated his imperialist eye and amplified whispers of staged scenes.
The selfie. Generally maligned by anyone older than 30 as a narcissistic (and sometimes dangerous) pursuit, the selfie has become enmeshed with all forms of Millenial self-expression. The younger generation isn’t content to just photograph their surroundings, they need to be present in the image or video to enhance the authenticity.
New York Times Magazine photography critic, Teju Cole, recently penned what could only be construed as a takedown of National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry. Cole is no lightweight. Since its launch, his column On Photography has illustrated his deep understanding of photographic history – not to mention he’s an award-winning writer with a PhD in Art History from Columbia.
Although so far the stories of Flickr's death have been greatly exaggerated, there's no denying the photo-hosting leviathan is in a difficult situation. At best, it will be taken over by a company content to keep things ticking over and just claim the subscription fees, but I'm guessing that it will change.
Companies like Facebook and Instagram have turned photo sharing into an industry dominated by smartphones and "Likes." Nikon's new DSLR ad campaign pushes back against this exploding culture.
Dear Photography,
You have been around long before I ever picked up a camera, and you will undoubtedly be around long after I fire off my last exposure. Photos resonate with people, which is why I, like so many others, love your craft.
Vogue magazine sparked controversy earlier this month by recommending that brides say "I don't" to "hiring a professional wedding photographer." Needless to say, the suggestion didn't go over well in the photography community.
Now one bride is hitting back at Vogue by posting an Instagram photo that shows why you should hire a pro wedding photographer.
Dear Vogue,
I just read your January 6, 2016 article on “The 10 Wedding Rules to Break.”
Every year, millions of tourists flock to Banff National Park in Canada to see and photograph the gorgeous landscapes. Photographer Meghan Krauss was fascinated by the crowds of tourists shooting selfies and other photos in these pristine locations, so in 2013, she began to shoot panoramic photos of those spots and then composite large numbers of tourists into a single frame.
John Green of vlogbrothers made this interesting 2-minute video in which he talks about his favorite photo: a picture titled "Young Farmers" by German photographer August Sander. Upon first glance, it may look like a simple snapshot of three nicely dressed men walking along a road, but there's so much you can learn about the photo by examining it closely and by looking at the cultural context.
The first time I witnessed a camera detect a face to aid the autofocus system, I was amazed. In part because the technology seemed magical and the highlighted rectangle tracking faces seemed like science fiction, and in part because I seem to possess a talent for taking out-of-focus photos.
Photographer Eric Pickersgill has a photo project that has the Web abuzz this week. Titled "Removed," it shows what smartphones and tablets have done to our daily lives and the "intimate" moments we share with friends and family. In each scene, the devices themselves have been taken out, resulting in strange photos that force us to reflect on our interactions with technology.
Talk show host James Corden went on a 4-minute rant about selfie culture on The Late Late Show earlier …
Filmmaker Woody Roseland made this short 2-minute tongue-in-cheek video titled “5 Photohacks to …
I firmly believe that photography is a powerful force for good in this world.
As reportage, it opens our eyes to tragedies we might otherwise ignore; as landscape or wildlife photography, it reveals a beauty we too often take for granted, and encourages us to treat the planet with the respect it demands; as portraiture, it reminds us that each person has uncharted and unfathomable depths to their humanity that we may never truly understand.
Bangkok, Thailand-based photographer Chompoo Baritone recently created a clever series of images that pokes fun at how Instagram users often use carefully framed photos to make their lives seem more glamorous or exciting than they actually are.
Each of the photos in the series shows a picture-perfect Instagram snap, except we get to see the less-perfect world outside the little frame. The project is titled "#slowlife."
Canon's latest press release has confirmed some of the rumors that have been floating around the Internet for a while now; that it has decided the megapixel war is not over and is preparing to drop its "nuclear option", a 120-megapixel behemoth.
Photographers are used to being behind the camera, but the prominence and rise of photography – particularly through social media – has created emerging opportunities for photographers. No longer relegated to pimping camera gear and workshops, the contemporary photographer has many more possibilities to endorse everything from cars to credit cars.
Instagram cracked the restrictive barriers of its iconic square format yesterday, announcing to the world that it intends to remain the dominant platform of the visual content world. Initially created so that the every picture could be seen full screen on any device and any orientation, the square frame also incidentally made reference to the Polaroid format, adding another touch of the nostalgia that made Instagram so popular. So why change it?
Now here's a strange and unusual way to share behind-the-scenes footage from a photo shoot: after comedian and actress Amy Schumer recently posed for the cover of Glamour, the magazine released this lighthearted video that reveals what went on inside Schumer's head during the ordeal experience. Schumer, not used to posing for this type of portrait, has thoughts on everything from the wind machines to busting her limited selection of signature looks.
If you're already turned off by the idea of ordinary selfie sticks, you might not want to read on. The "Selfie Arm" is a new selfie stick design that adds an arm to your self-portraits, making them look like photos of you taken by someone who loves you.
In my early teenage years I loved nothing more than gaming and going to LAN parties every weekend. Unreal Tournament, Battlefield 1942 and Counter-Strike were my favorites back then. Although I also liked strategy games like Warcraft 3, I spent most of my time playing Counter-Strike with my friends till early in the morning.
I'm not much of a gamer anymore besides an occasional SNES night, but recently a crazy thought crossed my mind. If street photography were a game, it would definitely be a first-person shooter.
Last year I launched a new initiative called the Streettogs Academy, a biweekly challenge for motivating and sharpening the skills of street photographers around the world. Photographers are given 2 weeks to shoot photos for the latest theme and upload 1 to 3 of them to our Facebook page.
Our latest assignment was "Black and White." The submitted photos that received the most attention from members of the group were those that had the simple basic requirement of a good image: a strong visual hook. Here's a look at photos.
The airways and Internet tubes have been filled with news that Peter Lik has sold a black and white photo of Antelope Canyon for a record setting $6.5 million, raising eyebrows amongst many photographers. This tops the previous record holder, Andreas Gursky, by nearly $2.2m.
Earlier this year, a woman shot a video of a girl at a swimming pool who spent a considerable …
Two recent camera releases have me scratching my head. The first is the M-A, the latest model from Leica. The primary selling point seems to be that this is a completely mechanical camera. No battery, no meter, no LCD, no autofocus, no frills. What the camera lacks in modern features it makes up for in mechanic precision and simplicity. Instead of busy screens you "read the shutter speed and aperture directly from the camera and lens and so fully concentrate on the subject."
'No Cameras Allowed' is an upcoming film that shows the journey of a guy named Marcus Haney who got into Coachella festival with a faked press pass and got exclusive film footage of famous bands.
After that, he got invited by bands like ‘Mumford and Sons’ to join them on tour. The film has gotten quite a bit of hype in the online photo world, but is No Cameras Allowed real or just a faked story to get some money out of kids who believe this is how the music photography business works?
In the space of a few days, two major newspapers have been sold from their corporate entities to billionaires. On August 3, The New York Times Co agreed to sell The Boston Globe to John Henry, the owner of the Boston Red Sox, for a pittance of $70M. And on August 5, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos agreed to buy the Washington Post for $250M.
Earlier in the year, billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch, investigated buying the Tribune Company, which operates the Los Angles Times and Chicago Tribune.
Warning: This post contains somewhat inappropriate viral images of a well-known American talk show host. Reader discretion is advised. Also, please, please look the other way if you're only interested in reading serious articles.
To: Mr. Geraldo Rivera
From: Cheri Frost speaking on behalf of Everyone
Re: Bathroom Selfies
When I was a kid, my school had an end of the year event all students were expected to participate in. They called it "Field and Track Day," which was a fancy way of saying, "Okay kids, we've got to kill a mandatory school day, so we're going to ship you all out to a local park, make you run around in the hot May sun for about 6 hours until you feel like passing out or puking, or both, and then send you home. Have fun!"
Once upon a time, in the days of old, when photographers still used those light sensitive plastic strips in the back of their large black cameras -- cameras with funny names like Hasselblad and Mamiya -- there were photography workshops. They are not a new invention. They've been around for a very long time. But, back in the days of film and cameras with odd names, these workshops were a little different.
(I'm not saying this is how the conversation went down at the Chicago Sun-Times last week, but I'm saying it could have.)
Good morning, everyone.
Is the entire photography staff here? ...26, 27, 28...yes, it looks like everyone is present and accounted for, so let's begin.
We don't need you.
I was a kid in the early 90s and my brother would often drive me around. One day, on the radio, a song came on by the Squirrel Nut Zippers. My brother turned to me and asked, “Can you believe how popular this song is?” I didn’t understand what he was asking. “I like this song,” I said. “Yeah fine, but it sounds like it’s from the 40’s.” This was one of the first times in my life that I had become aware of time.
Not time, like wristwatch time. The grand idea of time. That long incomprehensible string that was here before me and that’d be here after I’ve gone. A pretty heavy concept to be born from listening to a Squirrel Nut Zippers song.
This appears to be a big week for Yahoo! with their $1 billion Tumblr acquisition announcement followed by a number of changes to their Flickr service. Exciting stuff in the tech world. However, amid the Yahoo! hoopla, CEO Marissa Mayer managed to insult the entire professional photography community with her comments, being widely interpreted as “there’s no such thing as professional photographers” anymore.