RE: [Leica] Re: Photos on the Web

[Alan Ball <AlanBall@csi.com>]

On Friday, June 12, 1998 8:47 PM, Pascal [SMTP:cyberdog@ibm.net] wrote:
> Where do you get the right to judge other's works in this way?
>  Different people take pictures for different ...<CUT>...
> reasons, and who are we to critize each other's works in this respect?

The web is a publishing medium. Compared to the more material world of 
paper and print, it is a publishing medium that does not require 
contracting with a publisher nor going through the motions of convincing 
that publisher that your work is worthwhile. You are freely allowed to 
publish almost anything you want, within the law and the contract you have 
with your ISP.

Of course you can publish 'confidentialy': put something on a Web page and 
tell no one about it. There is very little chance that anyone will ever see 
that page. Once you advertise your page through mailing lists, newsgroups, 
e-mail or any other form of communication, it means that you judge your 
page worthwhile of sharing. You actually ask the whole world to come and 
see.

Then, I find it perfectly legitimate that your work should be allowed to be 
criticized and judged by the viewers. Regarding photography, some people 
publish real crap. Others publish 'nice' useless boring images. And a small 
minority publish great images. It is a fact. And from my visits to a large 
number of photography pages, I come to the conclusion that the relevance of 
the work that is published is ABSOLUTELY NOT related in any way to the fact 
that the publisher owns a Leica or a Lomo.

The fact that all the optical goodies vanish through Web publication 
reinforces this opinion even more.

When you visit an exhibition, even if the entrance is free, you will most 
probably not hesitate to either recommend it to your friends or warn them 
to avoid it. And you will probably comment on the reasons behind that 
opinion. Same goes for the Web.

Just a thought

Alan
Brussels-Belgium