Quotations for the new Year

Every year, you make a resolution to change yourself.
This year, make a resolution to be yourself.  ~ Annon.

Art is what we call…the thing an artist does. It’s not the medium or the oil or the price or whether it hangs on a wall or you eat it. What matters, what makes it art, is that the person who made it overcame the resistance, ignored the voice of doubt and made something worth making. Something risky. Something human. Art is not in the …eye of the beholder. It’s in the soul of the artist.  ~ Seth Godin.

Sharpness is a bourgeois concept.  ~ Henri Cartier-Breson.

Isn’t it remarkable how photography has advanced without improving?  ~Charles Sheeler, remarking to Ansel Adams.

Great photography is about depth of feeling, not depth of field.  ~ Peter Adams.

You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.  ~ Unknown.

 If you can smell the street by looking at the photo, it’s a street photograph. ~ Bruce Gilden.

Photography is an immediate reaction; drawing is a meditation.  ~ Henri Cartier-Bresson.

A photographer is like a cod, which produces a million eggs in order that one may reach maturity.  ~ George Bernard Shaw.

Be yourself. I much prefer seeing something, even it is clumsy, that doesn’t look like somebody else’s work.  ~ William Klein.

If Photoshop is the answer, you’re asking the wrong question.  ~ Dean Farrell.

DJI Air 3S has landed

The idea of buying a Sony A7 V got replaced by a drone. Ever since the DJI Phantom was released in 2013, I've had a case of gear acquisition syndrome, but with a mighty effort, I resisted it. Recently, I read that the DJI Mavic 4 Pro had landed in the marketplace with a Hasselblad 100 MP APS-C sensor, two other cameras with different focal lengths and lots of other impressive specs. I was hooked. Then reality set in again. It was the most sophisticated camera drone yet, but its weight meant that I would have to register it, and I thought it might be too difficult for a raw beginner to fly. I did some research and settled on the next best, the DJI Air 3s.

https://store.dji.com/au/product/dji-air-3s-fly-more-combo-rc-2?from=site-nav&vid=173571

The Air 3s also has impressive specs, including two cameras, the main one having a 1” sensor, but not a Hasselblad lens. It has facial recognition, subject tracking, and automated flight settings, such as orbiting a selected subject. Cool! The control software, with sophisticated obstacle avoidance utilising Lidar and a host of other sensors, is impressive. The return-to-home feature doesn’t use GPS technology. It memorises the outward-bound flight path, then retraces it.

Without dipping into the voluminous settings, I flew it from a crowded launch area without crashing! To better understand its capabilities, I need to work through the settings and learn to work the joysticks instinctively so that I can concentrate on framing images. One of my beliefs is that good photography depends on good composition*, which in turn depends on camera position and orientation. This device will open a whole world of possibilities regardless of whether the aircraft height is three metres or 100 metres. The future looks interesting.

  • Good composition and a score of other things!

Note: The Department of Civil Aviation has rules! However, they have a number of recommended apps that make it easy. I use ‘OpenSky’.

Nothing to do with photography

With advancing age, one is prone to reminiscing about the past, often through rose coloured glasses. In such a mood, I came across this forgotten epistle hidden deep within my hard drive. It was penned by Senior Building Science Lecturer Derrick Kendrick and delivered on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the graduation of his most skilled and admiring students. It’s worth noting that the first year architecture class comprised 45 students, none of whom were female—such deprivation! Five years later, at graduation, only 18 remained. This was due in part to Professor Rolf (ex-British Army) Jensen’s belief, referred to by Derrick, that it was not impossible to teach everything. The attrition might also have been caused by students fleeing to an arts course where there were many women.

Read More

A different way to judge photos

The Port Adelaide Camera Club has changed its judging procedure. They no longer provide judges with a preview of images. I wasn't alone in being unhappy about that. Conventional judging attempts to create a spread of scores centred around seven out of ten points, ranging from a minimum of five for a very small proportion of images to a maximum of ten for those considered the best in the set.

Recently, I was invited to judge at the club. In the first session, I judged conventionally. During the tea break, I raised the matter with the president. She explained that the 'no previews' rule was the result of members' preference for their images to be commented upon and judged individually without reference to others in the set. Unconventional, but now I understand the reason for the 'no previews' rule.

In the second session, I judged following this requirement. Judged may not be the best word, as the process is more akin to a critique of each image, in which strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement are discussed. A number between one and ten is provided to summarise the quality of the image. There is no need for a spread of scores between images in the set.

I left the meeting feeling good about having come to understand the club's approach, but also thinking that it provided members with what they were looking for - commentary and advice.

I suspect that many judges would remain unhappy with the Port Adelaide club's approach, but I believe that the overall quality of images presented at club competitions is high; therefore, why not acknowledge that and refrain from attempting to create an artificial spread by splitting hairs between scores of seven and eight, eight and nine?

The system of forced ranking may suit those of us who are competitive, but I suspect the majority's interest is in learning and improving their image-making skills. Constructive feedback and encouragement are fundamental to this.

Port Adelaide Photography Club is attempting to address this need.

Emphasis: Camera or Photography?

The term Camera Club has been in use since the 1880s. The name reflects an era when the camera itself was a novel, fascinating and complex invention. One of the earliest prominent examples is the Camera Club of New York, founded in 1884. In that era, photography was as much a technical endeavour as it was an artistic one. Cameras were complex, cumbersome tools that required an understanding of optics, chemistry, mechanics, and exposure. Incorporating the term ‘Camera in a name reflected this technical fascination. As photography became more accessible to the public due to innovations like the Kodak box camera in 1888, photographic techniques shifted from a mechanical to a creative approach. Some camera clubs responded to this change in emphasis by evolving into photographic societies, photography clubs, or photographic associations.

The word Camera in the name doesn’t trouble most people, but it is no longer appropriate. After all, no member of a camera club turns up to a meeting with a camera. The only exception that I recall was when a prospective member proudly arrived with his camera and a strong desire to talk about it. He was sorely disappointed when he found that there were no cameras to be seen at the ‘Camera’ club, and the discussion was focused on scores of photographs. He had a disconnect between the instrument and its output. Today, though most clubs focus on photography rather than camera technology, the term endures as a tradition.

But there’s a conflict between tradition and emphasis. Traditions can become outdated when the emphasis shifts. That can be seen in the evolution of businesses that change their public presentation as their business model evolves. A business needs to have a distinctive public image that reflects the services or products it provides, as well as the vibe of the era. It also needs to provide its customers and clients with a sense of continuity. An example of such continuity is the Coca-Cola logo.

Changing the name of a club can be problematic. Some members may feel a strong sense of pride in the enduring name, which holds historical value for them, and could alienate long-time members.

But there are good reasons for a club name to incorporate the word ‘Photography’ instead of ‘Camera’. It more clearly signals that the club focuses on image-making, creativity, and artistic expression, rather than equipment. ‘Photography’ aligns better with contemporary language and interests, especially with younger or digital-native audiences. It suggests the inclusivity of smartphone, mirrorless, and digital editing practices.

A solution might be to present a proposal to the members, accompanied by an explanation of the reasons for change, including clarity of purpose, modernisation, and inclusivity. Continuity and respect for a club’s history can be preserved by incorporating it into a statement displayed on a website and in published materials.

Finally, the change should be put to a vote of members, perhaps at an Annual General Meeting.

Box Camera Adventures - Part 2

My decision to dust off the old box camera and shoot some film with it was prompted by the kind offer of Paul Johnson, a member of the Edwardstown Photography Club, to develop and scan the film.

The results are in; the camera performed as expected, capturing pleasantly soft images thanks to its simple lens, likely a single uncoated element.

Prince Alfred College “Main Building” east side.

The city viewed from Prince Alfred College with some non-Photoshopped light leakage ;-)

It’s been a while since I loaded film. The last time it was in a 35 mm camera—120 film is a different matter. My mistake was to wind the film onto the takeup reel backwards, contrary to its natural curl. As a result, when I advanced the film, it wanted to undo the unnatural curl, leading to the loss of the first few frames and an interesting double exposure.

Double exposure of the Osmond Terrace “Rings” and PAC trees.

Now, the camera has been returned to its dusty white box and hidden away in the back corner of the cupboard.

Or, I might buy a roll of colour film …