The most popular camera on Flickr is the iPhone. How crazy is that? The camera which is the most popular was not even made by a camera company and is a device that only has a camera function. It is not a stand-alone camera. Imagine how the Nikons, Canons and Fujis must feel about this? Like so many innovations, those leading the field are so often taken over by others. Look at Paypal, Netflix and Spotify. None of those giants came from the world of banking, film or music. Those industries did not have their on the ball and have been left floundering.
Photography has exploded. Everyone has a camera now and everyone takes shots and shares them. Mobile photography is turbo-charging this growth in the popularity of photography. But hasn’t photography always been mobile? I think the mobile part of mobile photography will soon disappear. The quality of cameras, lens and apps on smart phones has improved incredibly over the past few years and we are not too far off a DSLR quality camera on a phone. It will happen and a time will come when mobile photography will no longer be considered an emerging genre or even a genre of photography.
For this reason, I am so happy to be around at this embryonic stage. There are some really great people out there pioneering the genre and promoting its acceptance into the mainstream. One of these is Andy Butler from England. His website – mobiography.net – and electronic magazine Mobiography is one of a kind. It has fantastic features, tutorials and showcases the work of some of the leading lights in this field. I really believe that in years to come, students of photography and those with a passion for it, will look back at this publication and website and it will serve as a valuable historical document of how photography went from being a hobby which was costly and only enjoyed by a comparative few to an activity enjoyed by millions. It is such an exciting time for photography. How will it continue to evolve? If we cast our minds back five years and consider how different the landscape was then to now, imagine what it might be like five years from now!
Being a part of this is something I take pride in. I was very pleased when Andy asked me to write a little piece on the image I am most proud of this year. I sent him a different photograph initially, but then closer to the deadline submitted the image below. It is exciting to think that in years to come people looking back at the time when everything changed in photography might come across my favourite image of 2014 and the little piece I wrote about it. I got to say thanks to Andy for this.
You can read about it here.
There are a few others out there who are doing incredible work promoting photography which at the moment is classified as mobile. In no particular order I strongly advise you to check out the sites of:
The App Whisper’s website – this is a one-stop-shop run by Joanne Carter. Everything you want here.
iPhoneography Central – another excellent and comprehensive website for everything to do with mobile photography run by Nicki Fitzgerald and Bob Weir. Also, check out their great book on mobile photography.
And to complete the list – iPhone Photography School – another excellent resource for everyone interested in photography run by Emil Pakarklis.
And the world’s best competition for mobile photography – Mobile Photographs Awards run by Daniel Berman.
