This week we spoke further about photography as art versus photography as a social practice and also explored what potentially can separate ammeters from professional photographers. We touched on the most revolutionary event in relation to photography and ultimately identified it as the creation of the internet. Whilst earlier I would have argued that camera phones providing easy access for almost anybody around the world to capture moments was probably the most revolutionary moment, this class made me realise just how insignificant those photographs would be without the invention of the internet.
In Photomediations: A Reader, Kamila Kuc, and Joanna Zylinska suggest that what separates ammeters and professional photographers is the transaction when being commissioned for their work, however, I would have to disagree with this. With the rising popularity of careers on social media platforms like Instagram, this “transaction” isn’t so black and white and it is becoming increasingly more difficult to define the line between the two.
‘To live is to be photographed, to have a record of one’s life, and therefore to go on with one’s life oblivious, or claiming to be oblivious, to the camera’s nonstop attentions” (Sontag, 2004).
I really enjoyed this quote from the reading this week as it really identifies our need to take photos and be photographed in order to feel relevant and significant. At this point in time, as dreary as it sounds, the prospect that photographs on the internet are all that will be left of us in a century from now is actually quite realistic and further recognises photography as a means to remember each other and our social transactions and less for art’s sake.
I really enjoyed Sean Tucker’s “How To Nail Exposure Using Manual Mode”. Even though I have studied photography before, the correlation between aperture, ISO, and Shutter speed was always a little cloudy for me. The way Sean Tucker explained it made everything click for me today and I really enjoyed going out to take photographs using this new understanding of how my camera functions. I experimented mainly with aperture and shutter speed today in order to get the photograph I was looking for and, overall, I was really impressed with the photos I took today.
I also really enjoyed looking at Ricky’s photographs today. I love the way he experimented with shutter speed to create this motion blur effect, I think it’s just absolutely stunning. I also really love the colour story he creates throughout all of his photos with the reds and the light blues, they compliment each other so well and really capture the eye. Now that I understand how to correctly expose my shots, I would really love to experiment with more colour and find a colour story that I identify with to create my own personal style of photography that other students have already demonstrated.
Reference
Kamila Kuc and Zylinska, J. (2016). Photomediations : a reader. Open Humanities Press
Photos By Ricky (5/11/2020), https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1x7BRzHLRQqH1EsL2XwEWjyCDeHRBAKFm