Photography being changed by the Internet

Well, this falls under the ‘Duh’ zone of understanding for anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock for the last few years. However, that obnoxious and condescending attitude needs a bit of explanation for the great unwashed.

Many of the films I have used in the past have been discontinued, or need to be ordered and paid for weeks in advance. Kodak continues it’s steady decline, with the film division of Fuji following close behind. The popularity of digital cameras and their corresponding sales have created a market in which the price of speed, performance and features, not to mention the drop in price has made digital the camera of choice for most point and shoots.

I started to see this soon after I started using Flickr several years ago. I love Flickr, the community, the ability to comment on other people’s photography on the basis of a common language, aesthetics. Flickr has been used as one of the best of class examples of the Web 2.0 phenomenon for the last couple of years. High bandwidth, ease of use, elegant interface, ability to create new groups and network with a minimum of hassle, and a minimum control by the Flickr admins.

Ellyssa Kroski, in her visionary blog Infotangle, really influenced my understanding of this when I found her site while researching the market space for an SEO client. Her concept of’ ‘The Hive Mind’ and ‘Folksonomy’ changed my way of thinking about the Web and the future of the Internet with one fell swoop. Yes, I said Swoop.

I have become distracted, will return to this topic later…