Photographic Websites

You may have noticed that there is no longer a link to a certain website here anymore. I was involved with that site for a short while, but that has ended. The site in question now has a relationship with a US retail store. There are links all over the site to that store, including "advisers" from the store who will answer questions. Large amounts of photographic equipment from that store has been sent to the sites owner, who is reviewing it. 

There are I imagine lots of reasons for starting a photographic website. An interest in Photography would be an obvious one. This could involve the process of photography itself or an interest in the gear. Dpreview is the most well-known of these sites, with a huge readership. As I'm sure people are aware the site was bought by Amazon a while ago. The site carries advertising. However it is reasonably discrete. If Amazon own the site, then you would expect it to carry advertising for that company. 

Despite rants from certain fanboy elements of bias towards one company or another, I've always had respect for the Dpreview reviews. If I have bought a camera that they have reviewed, I rarely have any major difference of opinion with them. They are also a good source of news for upcoming equipment releases. They restrict themselves to announcing official releases and don't concern themselves with the constant rumours that circulate the internet, though their forums are constantly full of speculation.

Dpreview is in the SITES YOU MIGHT ALSO ENJOY section here. It is there because its a site I visit frequently. Over the years I have found it useful, and often entertaining. 

The other two sites in that section are from individuals. One is Ken Rockwell. Ken is a bit like Marmite. He seems to polarise opinion. I like his website, I like the fact he is opinionated, I like the fact that he makes mistakes and changes his mind. His site is a mine of information and he obviously spends a lot of time researching and reviewing. Above all he's a good read. Some people seem to think he's either the devil or a money grabbing charlatan with an ego the size of a planet. He may well be, but he's fun and has a passion for photography, two things that go a long way in how I regard someone.

The other is Phillip Bloom. I became interested in his site after starting to work with video enabled DSLR's. Over time his site had become much more commercialised and I get the feeling that its almost becoming his main source of income. However he is still a good read and obviously a seriously good cameraman. His short demo films are often extraordinarily beautiful and again show that passion and commitment.

There are lots of other sites around. Like the rumour sites, which I treat as a guilty pleasure. A bit like chocolate. I know I shouldn't but I just can't help myself. There are also the sites of certain photographic pundits, which I'm less enthusiastic about. Some seem to demonstrate a degree of unwarranted arrogance and self-importance that I find difficult to read. 

A lot of these sites carry advertising. While not particularly keen on this, I'm prepared to tolerate it if means the site wouldn't exist without it. Some sites are a full-time undertaking. For those situations the money for clicks situation is probably the only way to be able to keep these sites running and generate an income for their owners. Whether they are multi-millionaires because of this or just getting by I wouldn't really know. 

As an experiment I tried the Google monetise option here for a couple of days, which involved some small ads appearing on the blog. It certainly didn't generate any income and I wasn't particularly happy about the companies that Google posted. Lets just say that some have reputations for not being entirely honest about the pricing and availability of the products they advertise. I didn't want to be associated with them.

This blog is certainly not my living. I have a full-time job and at the moment things are going well, so I have no need to make money from this. There's a slight cost involved in the fees for the sites that host the images, videos and raw files such as Flickr, Vimeo and my Mac webspace. This is hardly a substantial amount however. 

So I'm only going to be writing here from now on. Pieces that I wrote for my short excursion elsewhere have been removed and are now situated here. There's a list of links below. I like the freedom to write what I want, and I don't want to be involved in anything that compromises that because of other considerations. I don't imagine that I'll ever get sent boxes of equipment to review, and I certainly won't be offering you the opportunity to get "advice" from any retailer. For better or worse this is what it is. It won't make me (us) any money, and it may remain relatively small-scale and little known. It will also be like me, flawed, uncertain and occasionally confused (speak for yourself!! - A & B) but also I would hope, honest and written with passion and commitment for the activity that pays my mortgage and inspires me every day, photography.

D

Links to posts that are now (re) situated in this blog.

depth-of-field

sony-nex

43

sometimes-you-get-reward

can-small-sensors-take-decent-picture

cost-of-photographic-equipment

pro-kit

The Internet and Photographer insecurity

The creation of a global internet community of photographers has many advantages. The sharing of knowledge and information, the opportunity to see the work of others and exhibit your own, and the chance to make contact with other photographers all over the world to discuss ideas and techniques.

However, I sometimes wonder what impact this has on a newcomer and also the effect it has in influencing peoples choices, both in terms of the pictures they take and the equipment they purchase.

There are now so many websites, forums and blogs out there that its often difficult to navigate your way through it all. If you are also a little unsure of both your picture-taking skills and equipment handling, it can be easy to be influenced by those who seem to have greater skill and knowledge. It can also generate insecurity in your choices, replacing satisfaction with doubt.

A few examples to illustrate.

I look through images on flickr quite often. Occasionally I will come across a picture that has enormous amounts of positive comments, has been nominated for this and that and received "awards". Some of these images are inspiring, some are good examples of a style but some are downright terrible. It happens on forums also. There are some photographers who post pictures and a flood of "we're not worthy" posts follows. Again, a lot of these are ordinary at best. This genuflection is often accompanied by a mutual admiration society series of embarrassing "Your picture is great" "Well so is yours" "I've always admired your work" "Its you who has inspired me" exchanges. Its a real case of the kings new clothes. A kind of cosy, back slapping, masonic like, fraternity of photographic mediocrity.

When I was taking my first tentative steps in Photography I devoured photographic magazines, where I was introduced to the likes of Ansel Adams, Bill Brant, Eugene Atget, and Henri Cartier Bresson. I and I'm sure many other photographers were inspired by looking at their images. Now its "nikonstreetartist" from texas who gets all the plaudits.

The same is true of the photographic pundits. "So & so said this", and "so and so thinks this is a better camera". There are posts devoted to the sayings and pronouncements of these "photographic worthies". Again everybody gets on their knees like Wayne and Garth and every word from on high is treated like the Ten Commandments.

If you've been around for a while and have some confidence in your choices, then you can see these things for what they are. But what if you haven't and you're not? The number of posts of the "I can't decide which of these two cameras to buy" "I took this yesterday, is it any good" variety are numerous and never-ending. As are the inappropriate responses. There's one particular self-styled photographic "guru" who chips in with the same "I'm not interested in this, I use such and such and find it suits my needs" response over and over again. So how are people supposed to respond? "Oh yes since you have pointed out to me my pathetic attempts I will immediately do and think what you do" Not!

A few of my own guidelines I've used to help promote self-confidence and banish guilt and doubt.

1. Trust your own judgement more. Instinct exists for a purpose. If it lets you down you'll soon know & you can adjust accordingly.

2. Think more about pleasing yourself rather than others. If we shoot pictures that we enjoy looking at, the chances are that others will enjoy looking at them to.

3. Its really useful to understand how cameras work, and the technical aspects of photography, but the more test charts you shoot won't necessarily make you a better photographer.

4. People should earn YOUR respect, don't grant it just because others do.

5. If you feel like buying a set of red cameras with matching camera bag just because you like the colour, then go ahead. Its your money.

6. If you genuinely need help, take a cross-section of opinion and weigh it against your own. Feel free to reject advice you're not happy with.

7. Just because someone gets a lot of attention and approval from others doesn't mean that they should get yours.

8. Just because someone is insulted and reviled doesn't mean that they are wrong. (Small plug for Ken Rockwell)

9. Don't contribute to threads to promote your own agenda and to "show-off" in public.

10. Don't praise other peoples work just to get them to praise yours.

11. Develop your own "eye" and don't change your way of working, just because others work in a different way.

12. Treat all photographic "rules and practices" with suspicion. But be prepared to use them if they are the best solution.

13. Be prepared to make mistakes.

14. Be prepared to stand your ground when you are convinced you are right, but be prepared to admit you are wrong if its proved otherwise.

15. Have faith in your abilities, or faith in your ability to improve.

16. Its not a crime to own more than one camera.

17. Its not a crime to want to own and use the best equipment.

18. Opinions are like a*******s, everybodies got one.

19. The Internet contains vast amounts of useful information, it also

contains some of the most appalling drivel ever created.

20. If you live in a (relatively) free country you are free to make your own decisions and choices, within obvious moral and legal constraints, so exercise that freedom, but do so responsibly.

As ever this a personal commentary and is not intended to criticise others personal preferences.

D

Web Forums

"Nikon will release a D700x in summer 2009. A Nikon rep told me and he's always right"

"The sensor in the D3X is just the same as in the Sony a900, the cost is just Nikon profiteering"

"All micro four thirds lenses are soft and mediocre at best"

"My Leica 50mm F/2 won't autofocus on a G1 - is it faulty?"

OK I made the last one up!

Web photographic forums - don't you just love them? Ignorance, prejudice, football supporter brand loyalty, they are all here. An ever increasing consumption of bandwidth on the irrelevant, the unimportant, the trivial and the just plain daft.

"Never buy used equipment from a Pro, they always trash their gear"

"I'm trekking through the Grand Canyon for a week, I've decided to take 2 D3's plus 14-24 F/2.8, 24-70 F/2.8 and 70-200 F/2.8. Should I take my D700 as backup?"

"The bias against Canon on this site is there for all to see"

"The bias against Nikon on this site is there for all to see"

"Why are you even considering a D3X. Only a few pro's need that many pixels"

Who are these people? What universe do they inhabit? What prompts their decision to post their opinions for all to see?

Why do people spend hours trashing equipment they have never even used? Why do they constantly tell camera manufacturers what they are doing wrong? Why do they predict (usually completely wrongly) what these manufacturers are doing to do in the future?

I find all of this entertaining, but completely bewildering. I am sometimes staggered by the rudeness. Its sometimes reminiscent of a pack of dogs ripping some injured animal to pieces.

They are often argumentative for the sake of it, belligerent, biased and arrogant.

I've learned a lot from forums. At their best they are informative & helpful. I've had good advice from many & always try to pass on anything that I feel might be informative and helpful to others. Sometimes I get sucked in, in response to a particularly crass thread. And yes I have been known, on occasions to resort to the odd sarcastic repost. But on the whole I stay polite.

I have also noticed that most of the "troublemakers" have inflated names. nikongenius, canonproshooter, digitalartist4. They usually never give a web address where you can actually see any of their pictures.

However my "favourite" is a photographer from the US, whose ploy is to come in just once on a thread and make some arrogant comment, basically saying that everyone else is a moron & he is the only one with all the answers, because he is a full-time professional who knows what he is talking about. This is usually accompanied by some incomprehensible techno babble, much of which he makes up. One day I followed his link to his (incredibly cheap and nasty) website. I immediately burst out laughing. He has a business photographing a particularly nasty breed of dog. The pictures are awful. In fact his website is full of awful pictures. The lead picture on his site is of a river boat with a sloping horizon. He also displays an image of a man playing a banjo, looking like someone from Deliverance. If this is him, he has my sympathy (well not actually) or if this is an example of his portraiture, his clients have my sympathy.

He has it all. Fanatical loyalty to one brand of camera, total intolerance of anyone who doesn't have his (self delusional) vast photographic knowledge. He's rude, arrogant and above all ignorant beyond belief. The classic web forum monster. I've stopped reading his posts, since my blood pressure usually goes through the roof.

I guess its too much to ask that we all respond to each other with politeness & sensitivity, as the argumentative threads are always the ones with the most posts. They obviously attract the largest audiences so I imagine they aren't going away anytime soon.