ASSIGNMENT FOUR: CRITICAL REVIEW

I have written my critical review and will be emailing it to my tutor today.

I originally didn't include it here until my tutor had seen it and written my feedback but now that th's been done, here is my original Critical Review submission.

Is advancing technology threatening traditional photography and the market of photography?

“The advent of the digital camera had changed the traditional camera, but it's most revolutionary aspect has been the advent of the camera phone.” (Tom de Castella, 2012)

As with many things through time, the technology and processes of photography have evolved. The introduction of the photograph and the process to develop a single image to print in the 1800's was a major breakthrough during it's time and this created a new public demand for photography itself and for the practise of photography.

Jump three hundred odd years to today's market and an even bigger breakthrough has occurred; the digital age. This has brought with it dramatic changes to photographers and the art of photography alike. Technological advances have created vast changes to how we create and market photography but will these developments see the end of traditional photography and the market of photography in general?

Photographs have been known to have been introduced in the 18^th century but it wasn't until the early 19^th century that the breakthrough of the daguerreotype process was introduced by Louis Daguerre (1787-1851). This was then experimented with to create a more mobile process, the daguerreotype view, which opened the market for photographs from around the world, inspiring photographers to travel with their cameras.

“Printsellers had already proven there was a market for a visual travelogue – prints were mementos for people.... and served armchair warriors.” (LJS & Hacking, 2012)

LJS (2012) continues that “the announcement of the daguerreotype in 1839 captivated the publics imagination about the new art and paved the way for a photographic exploration of the world......but for the first 15 years of the art, the daguerreotype view dominated” (LJS & Hacking, 2012, P.29)

As well used as the daguerreotype was, it had long exposure times and therefore was initially used for landscape images. However a development to the process included the invention of a F3.6 aperture portrait lens by Joseph Petzval (1807-1891) in 1840 along with a new idea to add bromine to the iodine to make the plates more sensitive by John Frederick Goddard (1795-1866) later that year. This reduced exposure times significantly allowing a new breakthrough in portrait photography. This meant that photographers opened studios to meet demand for public portraits.

Another boost for the publics growing interest in photography came in 1888 when Kodak invented a box camera under the slogan “You press the button, we do the rest”. This allowed the public to take their own pictures and return the camera for Kodak to do all the developing work and then return their prints to them. A process that is still in use today with the aptly named 'disposable cameras'.

The 20^th century saw a continuing improvement in the development of photography as well as in the market for photography. 1907 saw a revolution in colour photography and the introduction of the “rotogravure” process in the early 20^th century, provoked an increasing demand for advertising and publishing photography.

“The introduction of rotogravure enabled quality halftone reproductions to be printed cheaply and at high speed on a variety of inexpensive paper stock on a large scale. Opportunities for commercial photography rapidly expanded and a mass market advertising was born”. (Pamela Glasson Roberts & Hacking, 2012)

The press also played a huge part in the market for photography. The end of the war saw an increase in candid photography in the press, with the public having an increasing fascination with celebrities and the famous from the likes of Hollywood. And the press also always had a need for documentary photography to illustrate event coverage and stories, much like press coverage today.

The mid to late 20^th century then saw an influx of rival companies creating more competition in the photographical market. Each would develop their own cameras which then saw AGFA create the first fully automatic camera called the 'Optima'. More advancements in the technology saw the additions of the Polaroid camera, the APS (advanced photo system) cameras and eventually the digital camera.

These developments were important to keep up to date with societies needs and wants. The progression in photography as well as other factors in society have brought us into a digital age. For photography, that meant huge changes to not only the technology but also to the processes to produce physical prints. The very first digital camera was invented by Kodak and Steve Sasson in 1975 and the developing technology only made more of a contrast to traditional methods. This saw film almost being made obsolete and allowing the photographer more control over their images. It also allowed more photographs to be taken without the worry of 'running out of film' and even the ability to check and delete photos from the camera itself. Tom de Castella of BBC news magazine (2012) acknowledged that “The impact on professional photographers has been dramatic. Once upon a time a photographer would not dare to waste a shot unless they were virtually certain it would work”. This meant that the volume of photographs being taken could also be increased, with images now being stored onto small memory cards as opposed to the film alternative. The cameras/memory cards could then be connected to computer devices, where the images would be uploaded and stored to the computer without the immediate need to physically develop any prints at all.

Dark rooms have been replaced with computer software such as Photoshop, which allow photographers to edit their photographs to create the desired images. These images could them be stored or printed at home or sent via the internet to more professional companies who, like Kodak once did, will print a higher quality print for you. The internet has been a major development for every corner of society. It has played a massive part in the technological and marketing advancements. Early photography saw photographers shooting photos and making prints to meet local demand. The internet has now created endless demand and possibilities worldwide.

All these inventions and progressions through the last two centuries have evolved photography to keep with a more digital society but have they really had an impact on traditional photography and the market for photography?

Back in the 19^th century, the photograph was highly marketed for public demand. There wasn't as much competition as there is today with regards to the amount of professional photographers as well as the procedures for creating the prints. And this procedure was far from simplistic and very time consuming. The public's imagination created the demand for collections of landscape images as well as a desire for a professional portrait. This allowed photographers to set up studios and others to travel the world to capture new images to meet these demands. As time progressed and photography became more widespread, it became more of a personal expression for individual artistic style which also heightened interest for more less-conventional art. These factors are still valid today. Professional photography studios are still well used outlets where the public can visit and get customised requirements taken to a high professional standard. However, the advances in both the equipment and the processes now allow a very different experience to how they were centuries ago. But the fact that professional photographers are still very much in demand and being commissioned to create specific requirements of their customers shows that the technological advances have not threatened this aspect of photography. In fact, they may have complimented it. The fact that photographers have studios that are very modern with an abundance of props and lighting selections can only help create the desired images with less effort. The same with the cameras themselves. Cameras now allow custom settings or a selection of automatic features which create more effects without the photographer having to do all the work themselves. Even the processing stages allow a lot more diversity in creating the final images which can then be saved to USB sticks or CDs or printed on a wide variety of products such as canvases, mugs, t-shirts etc. The possibilities are endless. All these choices allow for a much bigger market for photography.

The media is also an area where photography is still in high demand. The extensive range of magazine and newspapers nowadays allows for competition between stories and photographs especially when it comes to big stories. This means photographers are commissioned to undertake assignments to illustrate big stories with ever decreasing deadlines. The developments in the technology not only allow more compacted equipment for the photographer to possibly travel around easier but you will find that most nowadays will have the ability to edit and transfer their images on location directly via the internet to meet those tight deadlines. The papers also desire candid or paparazzi shots, mostly through the tabloids, to accompany stories on celebrities which are still in high demand today and with such a high volume of readers, fashion photography and advertising photography are more in demand than ever before. So I can't see any negative impact in these areas from the advances in technologies.

One of the casualties of the new digital progression in photography is the actual processing of prints and the companies that once strived on it. The influx of rival companies have pushed the limits of older more prominent photography companies such as Kodak, who had been a leading competitor of the scene for over a century. However, these new advances were too much for Kodak, amongst others, have faded slightly in the photographical market. The Economist (2012) reported that “It (Kodak) built one of the first digital cameras in 1975. That technology, followed by the development of smart phones that double as cameras, has battered Kodak's old film and camera-making business almost to death”. The article explores how “they did eventually make a hefty business out of the digital cameras but it lasted only a few years until the camera phone scuppered it”. The advances in the technology and the cameras themselves were something that Kodak didn't keep up with and where other rival companies adjusted to suit the new technology, Kodak failed. The Economist (2012) stated that “Unlike people, companies can in theory live forever. But most die young, because the corporate world, unlike society at large, is a fight to the death. Fujifilm has mastered new tactics and survived......Kodak, along with many a great company before it, appears simply to have run it's course.” However, you will find many a photographer who hasn't made the switch to digital cameras and will still shoot with film cameras, although their choices of equipment are now limited. Cha (2014) stated “film is great because there are so many different types of cameras and stocks of film to choose from” but then he goes on to say “Most of the gear I use aren't in production anymore”. This shows that even amongst all the new technology and developments in photography , there is still a market for the traditional way.

“Any photographer who still shoots film today knows all too well the meaning of the phrase “slim pickings” whether it be in regards to film, developing labs, chemistry, dark room equipment and even cameras” (Istillshootfilm.org n.d)

There are still photographers who choose to shoot in film despite the high tech advances to the equipment and there are numerous websites and facilities online to now give these photographers the opportunity to find and purchase the older technology that they still thrive for. So yes, here we can see that there have been casualties to the new developments in technology but there is still a, albeit small, market for the traditional way.

The main thing to note about the changing market due to these technological changes is the fact that nowadays, everyone can be a photographer. Traditional photography was more time consuming and an expensive profession. Tom de Castella (BBC News magazine, 2012) explained that “today photography is cheap and effortless”. Smart phones with exceptional quality cameras have made a convenient alternative to compact cameras as the vast majority of people will have a mobile phone at all times. The growing technology in regards to these smart phones as well as social media websites, eg Facebook and Twitter and 'apps' , such as Instagram, allow the masses to not only take a large quantity of photos but will also allow them to edit them and then share them from their phones. The internet also offers hosting websites such as Picasa and Flickr for people to not only store their photographs but to be able to showcase and share with other photographers and people from around the world. Although, these sites can also be used by the media and stock photo companies to locate new images as opposed to commissioning professional photographers at a cheaper cost to themselves which will obviously impact someone along the way.

The internet has also seen an introduction to a different kind of photographer. Jon Rafman and Michael Wolf made names for themselves by creating award winning photographs from frames that they have screen – shot from Googles' street view, without leaving their homes, although critics will question whether this is really classed as photography.

The new advancements have allowed easier access to photographs and photographers alike, as well as allowing a lot more creativity to the photographers themselves. The newer technology has managed to create a public fascination with the camera and photography , through 'the selfie' and 'tweet what you eat' to name a couple, but it's the fact that so many people now have access to high quality, affordable cameras means that new aspiring photographers are born every day. This has allowed the market for photography to thrive. So do I think that these new technologies have threatened traditional photography? Yes. Purely due to the fact that the old way of photography is not as commonly practised anymore and some of the older generation of companies have had to bow out or take a back seat. Some professional photographers are adapting to the new procedures whereas some prefer the old conventional way so there is still a small market for this minority. But do I think that the new advances in technology have had an impact on the market of photography? Yes but not in a negative way. There is still a huge mass market for photography and photographers alike. The new technology has opened numerous doors in the photography world, creating new photographers and new means of marketing photography. As with most things, there are some who welcome change and some who find it difficult to adapt and this can create losses but the opportunities for photography and photographers are endless in contrast to even a few decades ago. As time evolves, things have to evolve with it and I think photography has well adapted to the change.

References:

WIKIPEDIA TIMELINE OF PHOTOGRAPHY TECHNOLOGY (2015) Timeline of photography technology [online]. Available at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_photography_technology [accessed: 20^th July 2015]

WIKIPEDIA LOUIS DAGUERRE (2015) Louis Daguerre [online]. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Daguerre [accessed: 20^th July 2015]

LJS, GLASSON ROBERTS, P. & HACKING, J. (ed.)(2012) Photography, the whole story. London: Thames & Hudson

WIKIPEDIA JOSEPH PETZVAL (2015) Joseph Petzval [online]. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Petzval [accessed 20^th July 2015]

WIKIPEDIA JOHN FREDERISK GODDARD (2015) John Frederick Goddard [online]. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Frederick_Goddard [accessed 20^th July 2015]

ECONOMIST (2012) The last Kodak moment? [online] Jan 14^th 2012. Available from: http://www.economist.com/node/21542796 [Accessed: 20^th July 2015]

CHA (2014) Why film is still better than digital [online] Jan 17^th 2014. Available at: http://www.slrlounge.com/film-still-better-digital/ [accessed: 20^th July 2015]

DE CASTELLA,T (2012) Five ways the digital camera changed us [online] Feb 28^th 2012. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-16483509 [accessed: 20^th July 2015]

I STILL SHOOT FILM (n.d.) Which film cameras are still being made today [online] Available at: http://istillshootfilm.org/post/68284060176/which-film-cameras-are-still-being-made-today-a [accessed: 20^th July 2015]

ZHANG,M (2010) The worlds first digital camera by Kodak and Steve Sasson [online] Aug 5^th 2010. Available at: http://petapixel.com/2010/08/05/the-worlds-first-digital-camera-by-kodak-and-steve-sasson/ [accessed 21^st July 2015]