art & design
The Photographic Future

February 21, 2012

Thanks to the advent of digital photography, people are taking more pictures than ever before. This doesn’t mean that everyone is a proper photographer, but a breathtaking shot can now be captured on a smart phone you keep in your pocket. So what does this mean for the future of photography?  We chatted with internationally renowned photographer and head of UCLA’s photo department, James Welling whose latest photography exhibition “Geometric Abstraction” can be seen at Regen Projects in Los Angeles this March. As Welling explains, photography may not have changed as much as you might think.

Are people still shooting film in this digital age of photography?

Of course, people are still shooting film. Most large format photography is shot on film. Film is better at capturing detail and tonality and has a better feel than digital as a whole. A lot of my students actually prefer to shoot on film and then scan the picture and make inkjet prints. People naturally like film cameras.

Why do you think that is?

It’s kind of retro but also more manageable. I have no grad or undergrad students who are working exclusively in digital. UCLA is a pretty cheap school in their photo department, and it’s less expensive to print film with chemicals than it is to print digitally. A lot of schools have gone to digital, but UCLA is, sadly, broke.

Really? We’ve been led to believe digital is cheaper to use than film.

When you’re shooting artistically, it’s actually more expensive and cumbersome, especially when printing large format. Personally, and I think a lot of other photographers would agree, it’s better to print in the dark room because you screw up a lot. One of the great ways you learn in photography is by making mistakes. Digital cameras get rid of the mistake part, and you don’t learn as much.  It’s important not to overlook how mistakes, errors, light leaks are good. Digital cameras create very perfect images, which are fine for Facebook but not necessarily for thinking and expressing yourself creatively.

Does using photo-editing programs like Photoshop take some of the authenticity out of photography?

No, not at all. The thing is, anyone can make a good photograph. The test is–can you keep making good photographs? It’s hard to make lots and lots of good photographs consistently. I don’t think the computer changes anything really in photography. I think it actually makes the process more confusing and harder. Obviously, digital is changing things tremendously, but more in the world of social media than in the world of professional photography.

Tune in to the Ovation Original movie We’ll Take Manhattan, premiering Saturday, March 3rd at 8pm on Ovation! We’ll Take Manhattan explores the relationship between groundbreaking British photographer David Bailey and his model and muse Jean Shrimpton.

Sam Feeder is a poet/writer/photographer who works primarily in Los Angeles and Austin. Feeder is a careful observer and tries to experience as many different aspects of life as possible, ranging from travels all over the world to discovering that hole-in-the-wall restaurant or bar no one knows about.

Image: jameswelling.com