Digital SLRs moved photography out of the wet darkrooms and empowered the hands of anyone who wanted it. Learn how mobile technology is altering the way we experience and share images.
Mobile technology is altering the way we expereince and share images: smartphone cameras are freeing individuals to spontaneously capture candid images and instantly share them.
Smartphone cameras offer a level of spontaneity and immediacy that is often liberating to pro photographers (#photogs) and demanded by everyone else. Case in point: award winning photojournalist and documentary filmmaker Dave Binder shared with me that he recently took a vacation with no photo gear, not one camera. "I took only my iPhone", David says. "It was liberating."
The days of waiting to upload an SD card to a laptop or PC are fast disappearing. They are being replaced by almost instant online sharing of the latest image to social media followers, friends and family. Just look at the rise of visitors to Pinterest – it is now among the top 50 U.S. web properties!
He added that “there’s something absolutely wonderful about people having cameras in their pocket. This dates back to when Kodak made a camera for the masses. We professional photographers should remember why photographs have value and the resonance they do.”
What the mobile technology shift means for pro photogs
There was an important lesson in David’s and James’ comments for me (and perhaps for you too). I had one of those “aha moments”. In the spirit of making a full disclosure I should say that I am late to embrace smartphone photography.
Face it, mobile photography has given us more leeway when it comes to lugging gear around to just having an iPhone in your pocket. Which one would you take? Yeah, the iPhone. So it's no shocker there that Mobile Photography is changing photography in general.