It's not the size of the ship...
“The best camera is the one that’s with you.” - Chase Jarvis
Not to be judgemental but something I can’t stand - CAN. NOT. STAND. - is when a photography aficionado asks “What camera do you use?” This simple question, while likely originating with the best intentions, implies that the photographer’s artistry resides entirely within this little metal/ plastic/ glass doohickey. I mean, sure, you need to know things like managing exposure, framing appropriately, and timing your exposure so that you get “the shot”. But really it’s the camera that does the work. Right?
Wrong. For all of the electrical and digital magic baked into your typical camera, the device is really little more than a light-proof box of sorts with a hole through which light exposes a light-sensing thing. I phrase it this way because the “thing” can be a digital sensor or any number of light sensitive chemical emulsions. But the gist is this: light comes through this hole, enters the box, creates an image on the thing. It’s that simple. It’s a question of what one does with the hole-box-light-thing that is the art of photography. Hence, the quote above.
My first digital camera was an affordable model that served its purpose for a few years. This was early on, at a time when the resolution fo digital cameras surpassed scans from film. I’m not one to run out and buy the latest and greatest thing, mind. And this was one of the very few brand-new, out-of-the-box cameras I’ve ever owned. But over a very short period of time this camera became inferior. The resolution was surpassed by newer models and - in fact - my phone had better resolution than my camera did. So, for a number of years, I pretty much only used my phone for photos. I was practicing iPhoneography. It’s a thing.
This was around the time that
Instagram started hitting the social media circuit. Does anyone else remember how the images were always square and you
had to upload from your camera? You could use whichever app you wanted to finesse the image, but they all came from your camera. Eventually, of course, IG (as it’s called today) allowed people to upload from their computer. Instagram was no longer a photography platform, but I’ll save that for another rant.
I was practicing iPhoneography. And I was using Instagram to show my work. 100% of my feed originated from my phone while other users started posting memes and gifs and - eventually - videos. Some of my photos were crap. IG is, after all, a social media platform and not everything needs to be polished. Maybe I’d post a funny sign I found, or an unlucky rabbit’s foot left behind on the sidewalk. Or maybe it was a really cool looking landscape or some urban setting that needed to be documented in the moment. But it was all from my phone, presented in a journal format. Look what I can do!
I once went to St Maarten with my family and my in-laws. My mother-in-law was flabbergasted that I didn’t bring a “real camera”; I only brought my phone. I just didn’t see the point of taking my DSLR to another country so that it would sit in the hotel room while I played on the beach and drank rum. My phone was with me and - whenever I saw an image I wanted - click. Done.
I’ve since started using my IG to promote my shows or whatever but it’s still mostly phone photos. I bring this up because I’m proud of that process. Being able to say “I made these images with a phone -
a phone! -as a means of proving to whomever that you don’t need a Nikon/ Canon/ Whatever camera to take pleasing photos. In fact, just last year my phone was the only camera I took to Burning Man. Why? Because I didn’t want to traipse through the desert with thousands of dollars worth of gear that would need extensive cleaning (best case) when I got back. My phone is compact, lightweight, dustproof, and has been known to offer the occasional fantastic photo.
All you need to take great photos is the knowledge of how to best use the closest camera. If you know how to use your equipment effectively, there’s no telling what you can create.
Be sure to check back for future posts, when you’re likely to see me using some of my other hole-box-light-things.
