Culture

Photography is about far more than capturing an image. How photos are shared and what social issues are impacting the profession are just as important. PetaPixel regularly covers the stories around the culture of photography, how it affects society, and what cultural changes affect the art.

New Doom Mod Adds a Selfie Stick and 37 Instagram Filters to the Classic Game

It's becoming trendy to offer selfies as a feature in video games now. Just weeks after World of Warcraft added self-portraits through a new patch, the classic first-person-shooter Doom is getting the same treatment -- albeit unofficially.

There's a new mod for the game called "InstaDoom" that adds a selfie stick and 37 Instagram filters to the game, opening the door to some strange in-game photo ops.

Forgotten Moon Camera Found Tucked Away in Neil Armstrong’s Closet

After Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon, passed away in 2012, his widow contacted the National Air and Space Museum. Carol Armstrong had discovered a white cloth bag in one of Neil's closets, and it was filled with items that looked like they had been used in space. Among the contents was a forgotten camera that had been used to capture images of the first moon landing.

Photo Booths In Japan Will Quietly Retouch Your Face to Fix Your ‘Flaws’

In Japan, purikura refers to a photo booth in which you can pose for a photo with friends and decorate the portraits before receiving little printed versions.

One interesting thing that sets many of these machines apart from their Western world counterparts is the fact that they will quietly do beauty retouching on photos in an attempt to fix subjects' facial "flaws."

Street Photography in Saudi Arabia Could Lead You Straight to Jail

If you'd like a long and fruitful career as a street photographer, Saudi Arabia might not be the most welcoming place for you to pursue it. Shooting public photos and sharing them online is becoming more and more popular in the Middle Eastern kingdom, but many practitioners are unaware that the country's strict cybercrime law could bring down huge fines and even jail time for their snapshots.

A Blast from the Past: How the World of Photography Was Changing Back in 1887

Back in 1887, a photography instructor named Edward M. Estabrooke published a book titled Photography in the Studio and in the Field. It was "a practical manual designed as a companion alike to the professional and the amateur photographer."

Filled with detailed information on how to practice photography with the equipment and technologies of the time, the book also contains interesting passages that describe how the world of photography was changing.

Pilot Selfies Likely Caused Deadly Plane Crash, NTSB Investigation Concludes

On May 31st, 2014, a small Cessna plane crashed in a field a few miles away from Denver, killing its pilot and passenger. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) just published a report with findings from its investigation, concluding that the crash was most likely caused by the pilot becoming disoriented while taking selfies of himself.

Photographer Brandon Stanton Raises $1 Million+ for Brooklyn School Through Portraits

Photographer Brandon Stanton's Humans of New York has become one of the most influential photo projects in the world since it launched back in November 2010. Tens of millions of people follow Stanton as he shoots portraits of people on the street and shares the images online with their stories.

Here's a great example of how powerful his photos have become: a single photo posted earlier this month has raised more than $1 million for a school in Brooklyn to help send students to college.

The Super Bowl is a “No Drone Zone,” Says the FAA

If you're anywhere near the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona this Sunday while the Super Bowl is going on, you should keep your camera drone stored away. The FAA is warning the public that the Super Bowl is a "No Drone Zone": fly your drone anywhere within 30 miles of the stadium during the game and you're breaking the law.

Crowdsourced Instagram Photos of Snowstorm Land on the Front Page of the New York Times

Yesterday's front page of the New York Times featured a story about the snow that has been falling on the Northeastern United States. Accompanying the article and dominating a large portion of the page were 9 Instagram photos of the snow as snapped by Times readers.

Poytner points out that this appears to have been the first time the New York Times published audience-submitted photographs on the front page of its printed newspaper.

Sony World Photography Awards Adds a Smartphone Category for 2015

Another sign of the times: the prestigious Sony World Photography Awards has announced that they will be launching an entirely new award today dedicated to mobile photography. Organizers say that the new award recognizes "how mobile photography has helped redefine the way in which photographers approach their art."

World of Warcraft Adds a Selfie Camera for Capturing Virtual Duckfaces

The "selfie" has made quite an impact on our culture in the past couple of years. The word was selected as Oxford Dictionary's Word of the Year in 2013 and the keyword grew by over 2000% in the stock photo industry in 2014.

Companies have also been riding the selfie's popularity to make their products more "hip" -- Fujifilm's latest mirrorless camera is one example. The latest brand to do so is Blizzard, which is incorporating new selfie cameras into its popular World of Warcraft video game.

Camera Drone Crashes Onto White House Lawn and Causes More Wariness of Drones

Photographers have long been grumbling about the FAA's tight regulations for camera drone usage, and the actions of one operator over in Washington DC aren't going to help the cause. An anonymous DJI Phantom owner and government employee crashed his DJI Phantom quadcopter on the White House lawn yesterday morning, causing a lock down of the President's residence.

Call of Duty Ad Imagines the Crazy Man Behind the KillCam Camera

A common feature of first person shooter video games is an instant replay that pops up every time your character is killed, showing you exactly how you met your demise. Above is a new ad for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare that features Randal Higgins, the imaginary cameraman behind the game's "KillCam". (Warning: There's some strong language).

Disabled Photographer Petitioning Canon to Make a DSLR for Left-Handed People

Throughout the history of photography, cameras have mostly been designed with right handed people in mind. For DSLRs in particular, the shutter button and camera controls are usually on the right side of the camera, making it difficult to operate without using your right hand.

Florida-based photographer Sylvia Cacciatore is on a mission to change that: she's currently petitioning Canon to consider developing a camera that's designed specifically for left-handed people.

The Importance of Contracts: Wedding Photog in a Dispute Over Album ‘Cover’ Charge

Update: There are new developments in this story. Please see below.

There's a dispute going on over in Texas that shows the importance of getting your contracts right as a photographer. A pair of Dallas newlyweds are going public with their disagreement with wedding photographer Andrea Polito over an album "cover" charge that Polito is asking for -- a charge that doesn't specifically show up in the contract.

Hippo Lunges Out of the Water At a Photo Safari Boat

Hippos are huge, but they're deceptively fast underwater. Photographer Craig Clive Jackson was recently on a photo safari in Botswana when the boat he was sitting in was charged by a gigantic hippopotamus. He caught the whole experience on camera in the video above.

Re: If You Don’t Want Your Photos Stolen, Don’t Post Them on the Internet

“If you don’t want your photos stolen, don’t post them on the Internet.”

This is an argument I have heard over and over again, mostly from people who have never had their work borrowed. Which of course is like saying, “I know you were home, but if you didn’t want your belongings stolen, you shouldn’t have left your door unlocked.”

Arkansas Bill Criminalizes Capturing and Possessing Certain Camera Drone Photos

Update: There have been new developments. Please see below.

There's a new bill passing through the Arkansas State Legislature that may be concerning to photographers who operate camera drones. The bill is titled, "Concerning The Use Of An Unmanned Vehicle Or Aircraft That Captures Images; To Create The Criminal Offenses; To Provide For Civil Liability," and it criminalizes certain camera drone usage and the possession of photos captured during that usage.

A Proposal Done Through a Fake Jewelry Commercial Shoot

This isn't very photography related, but it could make for an interesting 8-minute break to your day. The video above is the story of how commercial videographer Dave Wallace of British Columbia proposed to his girlfriend by putting together a fake and elaborate shoot for a jewelry commercial.

Idea: Make an Annual Video of Your Family Reviewing a Photo Book of the Past Year

Here's a nice idea for an annual family tradition (especially if you're a parent with young kids): take your family photos from the past year, create a year-in-review photo book, and then record some video of your family looking at the book and talking about it.

That's what photographer Tim Kyle started doing this year with his two young daughters. The video above shows the three of them looking over their 2014 family photos "with expert commentary."

Jewish Newspaper Photoshops Female Leaders Out of Charlie Hebdo March Photo

Millions of people -- including many world leaders -- took to the streets of France this past weekend to show solidarity in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack. The gathering in Paris, the largest in the history of France, made the front pages of major newspapers around the world.

One ultra-orthodox Jewish newspaper decided to cover the story a little differently, though: it's front page photo was a manipulated one that left out female world leaders.