Smartphone photography as a Moleskine sketchbook

[helvetica]

As a self proclaimed gear-head, I have spent the majority of my years behind the lens focusing on the technical issues of our craft; maximizing this, that, and the other. I have had a change in heart, however, and have come to realize that a smartphone makes for a perhaps unrivaled photographic sketchbook. The more that I embrace smartphone cameras, the more I find my experience with them to be educational and transformative.

I find myself taking pictures of things that I wouldn't normally bother taking out the DSLR for because I want to see how some geometry looks or because of an interesting composition. It is "easy" to take take a portrait at 200mm ƒ/2.8 when anything distracting or unpleasant in the background becomes a creamy blur, but a smartphone gives you neither the blur nor the tight field of view - so it pushes you to work on your composition, not your technique.

When I take photos with my DSLRs, they are photos that I know I will want to show other people; film is for photos that I am going to want to be special gifts. When I take photos with my smartphone... they are pictures that I am taking for me, to challenge myself, and to practice seeing.

Has anyone else had this experience with smartphones? If nothing else, it's given me a new smile when I see HCB's quote "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept".

 

[nickthetasmaniac]

When I take photos with my smartphone... they are pictures that I am taking for me, to challenge myself, and to practice seeing.

Has anyone else had this experience with smartphones? If nothing else, it's given me a new smile when I see HCB's quote "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept".

Not so much, generally the photos I take on my phone are the ones I delete in bulk two months later after never looking at them...

Although I've had a similar experience to what you're talking about with my GR, for similar reasons.

**edit** Actually, thinking about the Moleskine analogy, perhaps... I write in my notebook to remember at the time, not later: I rarely go back to read notes, but the process is still valuable. Likewise phone photography.

 

[helvetica]

There is something about the camera to computer process; Lightroom, RAW files, etc that end up being a distraction to my "photo doodling".

The nice thing about the GR, X100, RX1, etc is that you don't get caught in the trap of saying "Well if I had this lens, I could take that picture" - you take your one integrated prime lense and learn to become one with that focal length!

 

[helvetica]

**edit** Actually, thinking about the Moleskine analogy, perhaps... I write in my notebook to remember at the time, not later: I rarely go back to read notes, but the process is still valuable. Likewise phone photography.

I think that is what it is - doing something as an exercise in it of itself, not to produce a tangible product.

 

[BlackXList]

The only time I photograph with my phone is so I can send the image to someone to show them something, it's just not something I enjoy.

I did consider getting a half frame camera to use as a sketchbook, but the more I thought about it, the less I could actually justify it, why not just use a normal compact? I could arrange diptychs afterwards if I really wanted to after all, and the quality would be better.

I do agree with helvetica's comments about using primes though, that's precisely why I like them, I just focus (no pun intended) on shooting and it feels very direct.

 

[Roger Hicks]

If it's a Moleskine, surely you'd need an iProduct.

Otherwise, any camera or any notebook would suffice.

For my part, I use a "real" (not phone) camera for a notebook as happily as for "serious" pictures. Why not, after all?

Cheers,

R.

 

[helvetica]

If it's a Moleskine, surely you'd need an iProduct.

I am glad you caught my [not so] subtle play. As for why not a real camera, maybe it's my own neurosis, but there is freedom in the limits of a smartphone. I don't care that Insragram crops to ~1000 pixels because I am not playing with RAW files and tripods anyways.

 

[giganova]

Absolutely, that's what smart phones are for! I use my smart phone when I go location scouting and snap pictures of interesting buildings/locations, I make pictures of my camera settings, I make smartphone pictures of the exact location of my tripod feet when I want to come back during a different season, I make pictures as mental notes, I snap pictures of people so I remember them and add the pictures to their profile in my address book, I snap pictures of photography books in book stores so I can research the best prices online later or when I have enough money to buy them, etc. The list goes on & on.

 

[nickthetasmaniac]

If it's a Moleskine, surely you'd need an iProduct.

Otherwise, any camera or any notebook would suffice.

Ah but the paper! 'Any' notebook certainly doesn't suffice...