Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/05/03
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]At 01:10 PM 5/3/99 -0700, you wrote: >Show me how photography and photojournalism have improved with >this explosion of new gadgetry and I'll change my mind. Dave, you are mostly right. Sports has improved, some. Photographers are getting more action shots they missed before because of mis-focus. And some fast moving situation where the composition is secondary to the moment. Such as an assassination attempt. Wait, Sebastiao Salgado shot the Regan assassination attempt in '81 with Leicas. No AF there! Oh well... There are times when it does serve a purpose. But I think you are right. Digital is only going to lower the quality of photojournalism for the near future. It limits what one can do without lights, which means more static moments that are "perfectly lit" but perfectly dull portraits. We have enough portraits already! How can one photograph kids in class with lights bouncing off the ceiling? You can't. But it sure looks good, technically. Night football on poorly-lit high school football fields benefits form Nikon's AF and flash system. But even my R8 does a pretty good job. But focusing in that light is a challenge. The technology can serve well in some specialized situations, as long as the photographer knows what's what. Otherwise, it can fool them into lazy type pictures where the composition or lighting is compromised by the limitations of the system. We have to face it. Photography of any sort is not easy - when excellence is the number one pursuit. On the cutting edge, it's really tough, and takes lots of practice, concentration and skill. Eric Welch St. Joseph, MO http://www.ponyexpress.net/~ewelch Your E-Mail has been returned due to insufficient voltage