The selife is king

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easyrider

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A giant yellow duck was parked on the Toronto waterfront for several days to celebrate Canada's 150th birthday on July 1. Don't ask me why. It turned out to be very popular and crowds gathered to look at it. It also became a selfie orgy. Out of 77 pix posted at the link below only 7 or 8 are DSLRs and not a film camera in sight.
I didn't bring my Rollei or Leica III either. I use them mainly for portraits.
Here is a link.
https://torontophotog.smugmug.com/Waterfront-selfies-2017/i-RfDSgwZ

Is this the beginning of the end for cameras as we know them except for collectors and hobbyists?
 
easyrider said:
Is this the beginning of the end for cameras as we know them except for collectors and hobbyists?
Click to expand...

Phones are the new cameras. Today I went out with my kids for the day, had my LG G5 which has a super wide lens and a standard lens and my Leica M3.

I posted a picture on instagram and facebook from my phone and will print my Leica photos and if i get an amazing one it will go on the wall, good ones in this years photo book.

I sold my x100t because personally I was getting better photos with my phone. Not better IQ or sharpness but photos I liked more.
 
AlexBG said:
Phones are the new cameras. Today I went out with my kids for the day, had my LG G5 which has a super wide lens and a standard lens and my Leica M3.



I posted a picture on instagram and facebook from my phone and will print my Leica photos and if i get an amazing one it will go on the wall, good ones in this years photo book.



I sold my x100t because personally I was getting better photos with my phone. Not better IQ or sharpness but photos I liked more.
Click to expand...

In a way digital cameras fall in between. Yes they are more capable (high iso, etc) but in between the zen of film and the instant convenience of phones, they may lose sparkle.
Infact many film users seem to just go with the film camera plus phone combo.
 
I have nothing against phones as cameras but the current selfie obsession leaves me cold. It's not self portraiture because that can be quite an art in itself, this is more about letting the world on line (social media) know where you were, what you were doing, what you ate, who you were with and so on and so on! 🙄

'The Mooch' summed it up quite well recently I thought! 😀
 
Keith said:
I have nothing against phones as cameras but the current selfie obsession leaves me cold. It's not self portraiture because that can be quite an art in itself, this is more about letting the world on line (social media) know where you were, what you were doing, what you ate, who you were with and so on and so on! 🙄

'The Mooch' summed it up quite well recently I thought! 😀
Click to expand...

It's the "Look at Me, Look at Me" thing children do, taken to an extreme. People will go to a lot of trouble to attract attention. Most adults out grow this stuff if they ever suffered from it. Social Media has spawned a generation of people who wallow in it.

Many pro photographers I know (me included) have had to ban smart phone use in the studio. Photo assistants are admonished - told never to photograph clients or any products or portrait subjects. Some, will sneak photos, posting them to social media before the work day is finished. In the case of a product that's not made it to market yet, this could be seen as industrial espionage. These foolish kids get fired and never work again locally, as word is passed to other photographers.

Their need for attention is so strong that it voids an income in their chosen field of work. It's so bad, that finding young potential assistants, who are adults in their thinking, is rare. The ones that pass muster are in heavy demand, as they have a long reference list or are hired via a recommendation from a photographer friend. I had one a while back complain, while on a location shoot, that the WiFi connection was so slow she couldn't update her FB account. I suggested she wait until we finished our work day for that activity. She wasn't happy.

I wonder how these kids will provide for them selves..
 
benlees said:
Strangely, the first selfies I ever saw were done by old camera enthusiasts taking a photo of themselves in the mirror. On this very site.😱
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Lee Friedlander did it occasionally. I think I've seen Winogrand doing it too. But, not to the extent it's seen today. Photos taken by those two, as an example, took years between the photo and public viewing. While similar, I don't see it as the same thing, as in the photos I remember, they weren't "showing off". Have you seen the photos of kids, many stories up in high rise buildings, with their feet on ledges? Locally they selfie on a cliff that has a 300 Ft drop. I've seen them selfie a foot from the edge.
 
I think there is an entire book of Vivian Maier selfies. Some in mirrors, some more subtle.

I think selfies have been around for a long time if people were honest. Lots of family snaps were selfies in a sense. Set the timer, press the shutter, run for your spot in the photo.

I think they have recently become a big issue because it is very easy to share them with the entire world. And of course this has spawned an entire culture of them.
 
Young females doing the duck face kills me! lol 😛

Oh well ... we were all kids once and generational issues have been around for as long as human beings I suspect. 🙂
 
Pioneer said:
I think there is an entire book of Vivian Maier selfies. Some in mirrors, some more subtle.

I think selfies have been around for a long time if people were honest. Lots of family snaps were selfies in a sense. Set the timer, press the shutter, run for your spot in the photo.

I think they have recently become a big issue because it is very easy to share them with the entire world. And of course this has spawned an entire culture of them.
Click to expand...

I agree with all that. But, what's been added is competition. With the photo assistant thing, it's who can get away with what. For instance, sneak a selfie with an unknowing portrait subject (especially if the subject is famous) and post it, out doing another assistant's photo. These are kids whose parents just dropped $200k on an art school education. They are often working in their "first job", ever. I didn't see this behavior 10 years ago. I think the culture has changed.
 
Another "me too" thing that people do without thinking or caring that it is over done. I think my girlfriend and I make about 3 a year... and I feel silly doing it, but for her, I do it.
 
jsrockit said:
Another "me too" thing that people do without thinking or caring that it is over done. I think my girlfriend and I make about 3 a year... and I feel silly doing it, but for her, I do it.
Click to expand...

I think there is a vast divide between the snaps that most family and friends make, posted or not, and the whole "social envy" photo thing that is promoted in a plethora of social media posts.

Business wise, having an assistant brag on social media about being hired to travel to xx exotic location for a fashion shoot for xyz designer, could kill the shoot, loose the client, and maybe bring a lawsuit. Clients don't want their competition knowing what they have planned. They go to extremes to keep this stuff quiet. This wasn't a problem a few years back. Now, it's a constant concern.
 
Keith said:
Young females doing the duck face kills me! lol 😛
Click to expand...

I heard about the duck face, saw pictures of it online but thought it was just a joke.

Then I had a model pose for me, and the first thing she pulled was the duck face. And not as a joke. I had a hard time not laughing while I redirected her.
 
This might be a good time to go long on Apple and other smartphone stocks. There will be enough goofballs frying the sensors of their smartphones (by taking selfies of themselves and the sun during the eclipse) to cause a huge spike in new smartphone orders on 8/22.
 
Wonder if it is akin to everyone is a wedding photographer. Have latest D3400 or whatever will shoot your wedding for 500. Maybe the selfie is have iphone will make portrait of self for free instead of paying 19.99 at the mall. Some say it is a self esteem reenforcer...bs go get a pro portrait made if it is about self esteem.

The thing that drives me nuts about selfies is the distorted faces. Gee I have an 800 dollar phone but I dont know using a 20mm equivalent focal length 2 feet in front of my face makes me look like a scarecrow. 🙄
 
Contarama said:
Wonder if it is akin to everyone is a wedding photographer. Have latest D3400 or whatever will shoot your wedding for 500. Maybe the selfie is have iphone will make portrait of self for free instead of paying 19.99 at the mall. Some say it is a self esteem reenforcer...bs go get a pro portrait made if it is about self esteem.

The thing that drives me nuts about selfies is the distorted faces. Gee I have an 800 dollar phone but I dont know using a 20mm equivalent focal length 2 feet in front of my face makes me look like a scarecrow. 🙄
Click to expand...

What's weird, is those WA close up distorted face images .. with the bulbous nose, are becoming the norm. I saw a large face photo recently on the side of a city bus. Same up close WA look. The product advertised was for an under 35 yrs demographic.

It's becoming fashion and hip to look strange in some photos. The vanity selfies wouldn't ever allow for this. Young girls have done bad things to themselves over social media photos. Phony photos, phony backgrounds, phony lives .. all for social media.

Just saw this in the news..
"Male make-up counters could become a reality within five years, the UK boss of L'Oreal has said, as it is no longer a taboo for the "selfie generation".
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...could-hit-department-stores-five-yearsloreal/



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