In the Digital Darkroom: Before & After

I subscribe to a few photographer's blogs, generally ones where their work appeals to my sense of what looks good and ones where they offer helpful tips, tips that might help me improve my work. For that, I am appreciative. I'm a life long learner and I believe in passing along what I have learned to others who are at the beginning stages of a journey similar to my own.

One of the things that is forcing its way into all of our lives, creatives or not, is the screaming fast pace of technological advance in our particular realm. Photography is certainly one of those areas where we have seen the pace of this advance pick up dramatically. Sure it's taken a few years, but when you came from the world of twins lens reflexes, chemical dark rooms that are, well, really dark, then the last few years are really astonishing. Not only do we now have cell phones, but we have such devices with cameras built into them. Not only that, but now we even have post processing, photo editing tools as "apps" which allow the phone photographer to make all kinds of edits and create some pretty amazing photo "illustrations" (which is what I like to call them.) And we're now looking at cameras that handle HDR (High Dynamic Range) inside the camera. And GPS units that mark the exact place where we took the shot, not to mention the ability to place the photo on an astonishingly detailed map which anyone can view from anywhere there is a computer and an internet connection. And I haven't even started on the world of post processing software. My god, it's unbelievable.

Which brings me to one of my gripes. And gripes are what blogs are all about, n'est-ce pas? I am bothered by the photogs who blog with ad supported sites, who want you to follow their advice, buy (or at least admire) their posted photos and make money when you click their ads, but who bitch and moan about this technological advance. Recently, one photographer, in an ever so gentle way, blogged about GPS coordinates and said he wasn't giving out the lat-lon info for the shots he took in Yosemite Valley. He explained this as doing a favor for the aspiring, copycat photographer. A favor as in, "take a hike, buddy... develop your own eye for getting "'the shot.'" As in, "I don't want to make it so easy for you..." as if it weren't easy already. We have excellent digital cameras that don't even take up much more room than a ham sandwich in the backpack. We have tripods built like shock corded tent poles that are super light and put themselves together. We have in-camera HDR and 3200 ISO. And SDHX cards that allow us to shoot 12-16 megapixel shots-- thousands of them-- before we ever have to return to our computer "darkroom" now located in the carpeted, air conditioned, temperature controlled environment known as the "home office." Yea, right, like not giving out the lat-lon is really making it tough.

My point is, what is the point of that? You've got the GPS coordinates. You are blogging to the world about how to be a better photographer. But you wanna teach 'em a lesson first? A hard lesson? And you want to explain yourself..., well, "it just ain't right..." My point is that that ship has sailed. If you are going to blog, if your are going to teach, educate and inspire, do so with where we are today. Be honest, be open, be giving. Or shut up. Take down your blog. Take your photos off the web and put them back into print where you can try to sell them. If someone has paid you for a workshop, you are certainly going to take them to "the spot." But, if you are worth their money, you are not going to just say "here it is folks. Shoot away..." You are going to discuss the set up, the timing, give each person pointers and advice. You are going to help them, not just tell them "hey the only way you're gonna learn is to do it like I did... the hard way..." When they sign up for your workshop, give them their money's worth. Teach. And if you are going to post HDR photos taken with a carbon fiber tripod and a camera that has a noiseless ISO of 3200 or above and 16 megapixels and massage it with a few grand's worth of software, plug-ins and a six core computer, give 'em the coordinates for crying out loud. Teach what you are there to teach. Discuss technology but recognize that you are taking full advantage of all that your money can buy. Don't try to "make it hard" on them. There is just way too much to learn and we are all using the technology that we have available. Don't complain about it, then use it, then tell others they shouldn't. Of all the photographers out there, the ones I admire most are Chase Jarvis and Scott Kelby ( and his band of brothers, Matt K, Joe McNally, etc.) who lay it all out there. Sometimes on free blogs, sometimes for a price. No one begrudges making a living. But quit yer bitchin' about GPS making it too easy, or iPhones being cappy cameras or HDR being just "too extreme."

Bring it. If you're going to blog about GPS coordinates, give 'em to us... HDR, show us what ya got.... iPhone pics, let me see 'em... or shut up.