October 2007 Newsletter

No sooner than I send out a newsletter, the next one is imminently due! Oh well , here is our October 2007 Newsletter.

Is it me or is the world of photography enjoying a much higher "awareness" around the world. When I first started playing with SLR cameras in the late 70's I felt almost "unique" . Many people had no interest in the more technical and creative side of photography whatsoever.

The majority of people owned the cheap and cheerful "snappy" cameras. However, the more technical side of photography was left to the professionals until what seemed like the introduction of digital.

Genius!

Last week on BBC 4 saw the start of a new 6 part series called The Genius of Photography. It is an excellent documentary taking us through the ages of photography starting way back in the early 19th Century. This was when Louis Daguerre and William Henry Fox Talbot battled it out. They would race to master a photographic process that would "catch on" and revolutionize photography as we know it today.

Whilst the Daguerreotypes were incredible in their almost "surreal" detail, it was a once-only process. No copies could be made. Fox Talbot all but won the race with a technique that would pave the way for modern, affordable and reproducible photography. Anyway, I ramble…

It got me thinking that the current boom of digital photography is no different to the discovery of photography way back then. Portraits in the 19th century were always "stiff" and more commercially orientated. When George Eastman introduced the Box Brownie though, people were for the first time let loose with this new technology. It was an affordable camera for the masses.

The basic, standard portraits became more fun as people experimented and played with this amazing new "art form". The BBC documentary showed ancient images of happy people pulling faces and jumping at every opportunity.

The way in which I thought it was similar to now was this. Not only are digital cameras so affordable today, but the software necessary to process, manipulate and "play" with images is also affordable and much easier to master. The masses are now enjoying all aspects of photography…technical or otherwise!

More interesting stuff on:

So…in the words of Franny's Feet (a kid's TV programme in the UK):

"Where will my (photography) feet take me today?"

Next Month…

Cheers and until next month!