The ease of digital photography and social media posting has allowed a new breed of photojournalists and photographers alike to develop and share their work solely online. As discussed by Palmer in the reading, “Camera phones are now the default consumer camera of choice” (2014, pg 245) meaning that everybody who owns a phone with any sort of camera is able to shoot images and become a photographer. This term within the last 10 years and through the advancement of camera phone technologies means that the word ‘photographer’ is thrown around loosely.’

The iPhone cameras capabilities have increasingly become more and more user-friendly with portrait modes and zoom features which eliminate the hassle and bulk of digital cameras. In a quote by Palmer on camera capabilities, “The quality of recent models [of phones] is now comparable if not better than the point-and-shoot film and digital cameras they have made absolute” (2014, pg 247). Yet although this may be the case for amateur photographers, there is still a demand for traditional photography methods to be utilised and shared to audiences. The latest trend in photography seems to point to Instagram, where people uploading images to their pages have gained notoriety, followers and been recruited by the rich and famous.

Who is the practitioner (what is their name?) and when were they practicing?

The photographer I will be examining is Rayscorruptedmind. He is a mainstream American hip-hop/rap photographer who is Travis Scott’s personal photographer and has worked closely with artists such as Playboi Carti, Bloody Osiris, Sheck Wes, Quavo, Lil Yachty, Lil Uzi Vert, Rich the Kid etc.

With the photo or video you are examining when was it produced (date)?

This is a photo taken of rapper Travis Scott featuring him wearing a new diamond chain he had custom made.

 

The photo was released on the 17th of July 2018.

How was the photo or video authored?

Being uploaded on Instagram, a social media platform specifically designed for image sharing, the quality of Ray’s images would not be compromised as the photos are only able to be viewed on smaller screens with lesser pixels than that of a digital camera. It seems that as this is the only platform Ray uses to distribute images, the image quality is high due to an unwillingness of having non-HD photographs.

Although it is unclear what camera he uses (as he has never revealed this explicitly), people have speculated that he uses a Canon T3i and effects in post production. Some believe he uses flash in every image to give a stark exposure, which is his signature aesthetic, aside from a warm, saturated filter.

How was the photo or video published?

The image was uploaded to Rays Instagram account where he has over 420,000 followers.

How was the photo or video distributed?

Considering he began uploading to this account in 2016 and only features his own images taken of artists and the occasional self portrait, his following has significantly increased and so too has the status of the celebrities photographed. By using an image sharing platform such as Instagram, Ray is targeting a niche aesthetic and/or hip-hop audience which directly links his works with artists. I myself discovered his works through Travis Scott’s Instagram page where he frequently tags Ray in images posted taken by his photographer.

References:

Palmer, D 2014, ‘Mobile Media Photography’ The Routledge Companion to Mobile Media, Routledge, pp. 249–55.

https://www.instagram.com/rayscorruptedmind/

https://www.instagram.com/travisscott/?hl=en