Editorial: How to maintain uniqueness in a deluge of imagesWritten by AIDAN O’ROURKE, Photographer TutorPublished: January 3, 2010 Nowadays we are presented with a plethora of images captured by millions using all kinds of devices from phones to DSLRs. Some photographers are asking the question: "With so many images being produced all the time and with so much emphasis on getting them online as soon as possible, how it is possible to distinguish a good photograph from a bad one." Photographer Gered Mankovitz said words to that effect at Manchester's In The CIty music convention in September 2009, and the distinguished photographer, website publisher and commentator Pedro Mayer made that the subject of his online Editorial. 
That feature by the way was what spurred me on to producing this Weekly Editorial. Through Flickr, Twitpic, Facebook and other social networking channels, we seem to be drowning in a sea of images. In this context, is it possible to decide what makes a good photograph? Do traditional criteria such as good composition and exposure matter any more? And is it possible still to create unique images with so many being dumped onto the internet at any given minute? I say yes, yes and yes. In my opinion, the new situation is no different to how things were in the past. A similar revolution took place around turn of the 20th century when cheap and convenient roll film began to bring photography into the reach of millions. Many more photographs were being taken, but that didn't take away from the qualities of good photography, which remain the same then as now. When I first started taking photographs with an SLR, around 1981, I remember feeling a strong urge to seek out new and different angles, to aim for better picture quality and to try and photograph some subjects that perhaps the mass of people weren't so interested in. That urge is what I believe what distinguishes a casual photographer from a serious one. So what about today? Thirty years on, how do intend to make my mark in a world deluged with photographs?  I am also going to branch out into the medium of illustration - something I've wanted to do for years. I hope to create unique and attractive images using source material taken from my photography. I did a test illustration in the early hours of New Year's Day and I'm quite pleased with it. I find the discipline of drawing is an antidote to the instant gratification of digital photography. I'll also be exploring new genres of photography and art, partly through my photography tutorials. It is refreshing for a change to focus intensively on someone else's work rather than my own. I have big plans for 2010 and feel very motivated. That's all I have to say. This is my first Weekly Editorial of 2010. If you'd like to comment please e-mail me. Aidan O'Rourke. Uploaded from Liverpool, Sunday January 3, 2010. Keywords: photography, good photography, learn about photography, history of photography. |
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