Is Photography Still Relevant?

Photography has changed drastically over the years — it went from being a luxury for rich people to being a powerful tool for everyone with a camera. Cameras are ubiquitous and offer free services, like iphones, cameras on social media sites like Facebook and Instagram, and more. Encore technology 3cd stereo system with turntable manual is a good example of this. Photography has now become a social phenomenon.

What is interesting about photography is that it is always changing. In order to keep up with the competition you have to adopt new technologies and skill sets. It’s a fast moving industry if you are not innovating and learning new things, you are doing yourself a disservice, because others will pass you by and take your business away from you. Photography is also evolving as our society evolves. Things like privacy, copyright infringement, and ethics are all dealing with modern day issues that are coming up as people take more photos than ever before.

Some might say that photography’s time has passed because of this democratized access to images — but is that really true? In some ways it might be argued that photography is still relevant because these “cheap” cameras have gotten so good at capturing low-light scenes or moments in time.

Reasons Why Photography Is Still Relevant :

1. Instant Gratification

Cutting edge camera technology is so good that pictures can be posted right after they are taken. Meaning that if you have a device on-hand and you capture a moment or scene, it can be shared immediately with friends, family and peers. Some cameras even have wifi options available to share the images live as they are being shot.

2. Filtered Reality

Social media has affected the way we interact with one another and how we see others around us. Using mobile devices such as cell phones, digital cameras and tablets to take pictures of our experiences with our friends at parties, bars, etc., and then posting them online for all to see can alter reality in some ways. Suddenly, not only is the picture real but it’s a part of everyone else’s reality too. It doesn’t just look real — it is real.

3. Sharing is Caring

Many cameras now are equipped with social media apps like Instagram so that many people can share their images on-line for others to see instantly. Social media has brought photography into modern day life as it gives instant gratification to those who are needing to capture a moment in time and share it with friends, family and peers. Social media is also great for sharing images because you can easily put tags on your image that tell someone where you took them for others nearby to find them later online.

4. Baby Boomers Love Cameras

It is interesting to note that the baby boomers, who grew up in the 60’s with SLR cameras and film, are now coming into their golden years — retirement age — and are looking to share their legacy and experiences with their own children and grandchildren. This means more pictures than ever before as they look back on their family history. In addition, more families are providing more devices for picture taking because of technology advances.

5. Capturing the Moments in Life

People have always wanted to capture the most special and precious moments of their lives. A wedding day, a baby’s first birthday, a graduation after years of hard work in school — these are just some of the memorable events that people have always wanted to capture for posterity. Having access to an instant camera and social media lets people share these memories with others who couldn’t be there for that event or experience. It also gives them a chance to see it later on when they were not even born or may be too busy with other things going on in their own lives.

6. Yet Another Way to Experience Art

One of the reasons that people love photography is that they can bring a whole new level of experience to an art form when they share their images on-line with others. Take the great masters, who came before us and sought out so many different changes and innovations in the arts. Being able to take a picture and share it instantly with friends, family or colleagues is a way for people to experience art as it was created. In addition, sharing your work online can also act as a creative outlet for many people. It’s like having your own studio where you can develop ideas and work on your artistic skills.

7. Unplugged

People are constantly looking for ways to get away from it all and get unplugged. Technology is starting to have a profound effect on our lives. More people than ever before are putting their digital devices down in order to focus on real-life experiences and spend time with those around them. Photography allows people to slow down their world, take a breath, reflect and then capture the moment. The only issue with this is that many of these people do not want to share these moments online because they want some things just for themselves.