I can’t trace the trajectory taken by Holgas from their invention in 1982 until they became available for sale at Urban Outfitters, but a quick browse through Flickr shows the indelible effect they and other “toy” cameras have had on (trend-driven) photographic sensibilities. Unfortunately, these sensibilities have spilled over the levees limiting the artistic use of crappy cameras to the realm of crappy cameras and into the unfortunately large underbelly of Photoshop. Yes, I have another gripe to add to my previous list, and that is the digital addition of vignetting to otherwise uninteresting photos, in order to give them the appearance of éclat.

A wise man at Photo.net, Steven Taylor, once opined that “the photos that capture the best ratings are almost exclusively over-saturated, over- sharpened, over-processed images that, no doubt, have little resemblance to the original file.” While this could be the talking point for any number of arguments that I’m not interested in pursuing here, one manifestation of over-processing that appears repeatedly in the top photos at Photo.net is fake vignetting. Browse through some of the top photos in the gallery and, once you get past all the nudes, you see a lot of photos like these:

Similarly, if you browse the “interesting” photos on Flickr, which are selected based on “where the clickthroughs are coming from; who comments on it and when; who marks it as a favorite; its tags and many more things which are constantly changing,” you get photos like these:

They’re even on Facebook:

The problem with fake vignetting is that it is so ubiquitous among highly rated and highly lauded photos that people seem inclined to believe that vignetting is desirable or even necessary for a good photo. Some photographers on Flickr go so far as to add vignetting to every photo they upload, as if having a photo any other way would be embarrassingly pedestrian. I sifted through hundreds of photos to get my Desert Roads group off the ground, and I was amazed at the number of otherwise good photos that were ruined by heavy-handed overprocessing. Do these people remember when vignetting was a lens aberration, that thousands of dollars went into designing and building lenses that wouldn’t have this problem? Have these people noticed that the tool they use to add vignetting is located under “lens correction”?

I can understand, and even appreciate, that some photogaphers, every once in a while, want to use a Holga to add some pizzazz to a roll of film; that photos taken with a Holga have some nostalgic aesthetic that makes them curiously attractive in moderation. But what is the attraction of adding vignetting to all photos, even those taken with a great camera? Where is the creativity in making all photos uniform? What is the lesson learned in giving nascent photographers the impression that post-processing is the be-all and end-all of good photography? Because of the overuse of Photoshop in general, and the ubiquity of fake vignetting in particular, collections of top-rated photos have become increasingly banal, and finding genuinely good, original, artistic and creative photos on the internet is becoming increasingly difficult.

I’ve always wondered what that sticker meant…

Hiro Matsu , Aug 09, 2006; 08:17 a.m.

Anyone recognize this sticker? Thanks.

James Lai , Aug 09, 2006; 08:44 a.m.

Yes, it is a quality control sticker from the Japan Camera Inspection Institute. The JCII was set up by the Japanese government and camera industry to ensure the quality of camera equipment exported from Japan. I don’t think they’ve put those stickers on cameras for several years now, and in the later years there were plenty of knock-off stickers floating around.

via Quality control sticker? – Photo.net Nikon Forum

Yo uso la fotografía simplemente como un complemento para ilustrar textos, pero no por su propio valor en sí, pues carezco de la suficiente sensibilidad para imaginar la belleza de un encuadre o la armonía en la composición de colores  En mis fotografías falta cualquier atisbo de arte, son fotografías utilitarias, de artesano, no de artista.

Ello no quita para que valore las buenas fotografías y no considere el arte fotográfico a la misma altura que otras al artes. Quien considere que la naturaleza le ha dotado de la suficiente materia prima para llegar a ser un artísta fotógrafo y desee avanzar en este arte, le aconsejo una visita al portal Photo.Net , una de las más prestigiosas webs de fotografía del mundo.y punto de encuentro de todos los que sienten las mismas inquietudes. 

Solo hay un problema todo está en ingles, pero es en parte subsanable utilizando el traductor automático de Google para páginas web. No es ni mucho menos perfecto pero permiten al menos poniendo un poco de nuestra parte, entender que dicen los textos en inglés, maxime cuando por la propia naturaleza del lugar la informacion es gráfica en una abundante tanto pot ciento. Vean un ejemplo con la página inicial de Photo.net taducida al español.

Salvado ese escollo, encontrarán aquí todo lo que puedan necesitar como artistas fotógrafo. Creada por Philip Greenspun,  profesor del Instituto Tecnológico de Massachusets y apasionado fotógrafo, como una página personal, ha llegado con el tiempo a ser el portal de una gran comunidad de fotógrafos, con más de un millón de visitas mensuales y 134.000 usuarios registrados.

Allí se contempla todo lo relacionado con la fotografía. Foros sobre multitud de temas fotográficos. Crítica de equipos y material fotogrráfico, con fichas detalladas sobre equipos fotográficos de cualquier tipo. Galeria de artistas fotográficos. Servicios para la comunidad de fotógrafos, como chats, foros, lista de correo, etc.. Tutoriales sobre formas de fotagrafiar, paisaje, desnudo, arquitectura, etc… y una tienda donde poder comprar por internet todo lo que el fotografo pueda necesitar.

La riqueza de Photo.net reside en que los usuarios realizan comentarios y aportaciones en todas las áreas del web. Con ello se consigue una enorme riqueza de contenidos y la mayor credibilidad sobre la información. Todo ello hace obligada la visita a cualquiera que sient el gusanillo del arte fotográfico.

Web recomendada Photo.net 

Otras Web Pata negra

• DPReview
  • Probably the king of equipment review sites. This is a worthy first-stop on your review hunting quest. Excellent, very thorough reviews of new camera models of all stripes. Plus, the DPReview team is now giving the same extensive treatment to lenses as well. Sweet! Active forums on here too – lot’s of fun speculation on new equipment launches.
• CameraLabs
  • I really like Gordon Laing’s CameraLabs site. Nice reviews and news features – plus a handy “Best Buys” feature that makes reliable recommendations. It doesn’t hurt that the amazing New Zealand scenery provides a spectacular backdrop for testing! More recently the CameraLabs team has started video reviews as well. Check it out.
• Steve’s Digicams
  • Not the prettiest site around (but hey – it works!) – they do have a huge database of reviews – this site includes reviews of many entry-level and consumer grade digicams that other sites may not review.
• PhotographyBlog
  • Frequently updated – and almost always on top of the very latest hot news. Great email newsletter with highlights of major announcements. Expanding collection of equipment reviews too.
• Luminous Landscape
  • While technically not a review site – Luminous Landscape often includes great reviews on major equipment releases – especially pro gear including medium and large formats (wide too!). The reviews here are a nice contrast to others – as they usually focus more on actual field use than on the nitty gritty technical details. Besides including reviews on equipment and software, the LL team also adds thoughtful essays on a diverse range of photographic and creative topics.
• DCResource
  • Great Buyers Guide section, plus frequently updated news and forums too.
• ImagingResource
  • Solid reviews and plenty of excellent articles. Well-worth checking out!
• FredMiranda
  • User based reviews are the main attracting here – their lens reviews are really helpful, plus an active forum with pro topics and users.
• RobGalbraith
  • Not as many equipment reviews – but they’ve got very high-quality, in-depth reporting on pro gear and news – with occasional product reviews tossed in.
• Photo.net
  • The great-granddaddy of all photography sites on the net. Great archive of articles – a real wealth of material across the entire site – including some great tutorials on photography basics. Definitely worth bookmarking and making a regular visit.

BONUS! While writing this I came across two new sites that look really promising. Here’s a bonus #11 and #12 to add to the above list:

• 1001 Noisy Cameras
  • Looks good – lots of updated rumors and news. This is one I’m going to start visiting regularly.
• DSLR Map: a DSLR Review Guide
  • Cool chart showing cameras from most manufacturers, with current models linking to aggregate review information – many of which are from sources listed above. This might be a useful place to start your search.

What other sites do you use?  Have other favorites?  —- Share in the comments!

- Brian

Is that covered under warranty?

Any comedian will tell you that timing is everything.  The same rule applies to buying electronics.  You can get lucky buying a product at a cheaper price because it was replaced by a newer model.  You can also be unlucky by buying a product at regular price only to see that in the following weeks to be on sale as it gets replaced by a newer model.  Either way, you’ll be losing out just by buying most form of electronics since they’ll always get replaced by a newer model but we all know that newer might not necessarily be better.

Yesterday on Canon’s Chinese website they listed a Canon 50D model.  Some viewers were lost in translation with Google’s translating service.  They believed this new camera would come equipped with an image stabilizer in the body making IS enabled on all lenses similar to Sony’s A200 – A350 models.  Other online posters are telling us that the translation means image stabilization in the lenses.  If this is true then the 50D upgrades the APS-C sensor to 15MP, a brighter 3″ LCD screen, a Digic IV processor instead of the Digic III, and higher iso levels (6400,12800).

The release of the 50D will probably make the 40D a good catch on Boxing Day this year.  I personally don’t find this information that exciting as I’m only looking to upgrade my body to a full frame dslr.  So when’s the 5D MKII coming out?  Better yet, when is Canon going to come out with a $1000 full frame digital slr?  Probably not anytime soon.

Source – Photo.net

حتما با فلیکر سرویس عظیم به اشتراک گذاری عکس و ویدئو آشنایی دارید این سایت از پیشتازان استفاده از تکنولوژی های وب2 از جمله تگ گذاری عکس ها و ابر تگها بود که جستجو و یافتن عکسها را بر اساس یک موضوع مثل نام یک مکان یا یک رویداد بسیار ساده کرده است این سایت در نوامبر 2007 بیش از دو میلیارد عکس را دربر داشت این سایت که یکی از توابع یاهوست به زبان های انگلیسی ، فرانسوی ،آلمانی ، ایتالیایی ، پرتغالی ، اسپانیایی و کره ای موجود است و از سایت های محبوب وب است با ایجاد یک حساب رایگان در فلیکر می توانید  هر ماه 100 مگابایت عکس آپلود کنید می توانید این فضا را با عکس های اشتراکی پر کنید یا با عکس های شخصی(از ویکیپدیا دانشنامه آزاد) و یک دنیا ویژگی دیگر که می توانید امتحان کنید این هم آدرس Flickr.com

جالب است بدانید وبلاگ فلیکر درسرویس وبلاگ وردپرس است

اما متاسفانه مدتهای مدیدی است که این سایت در ایران در دسترس نیست و بلوکه شده است

سایت دیگری که خیلی برام جالب بوده است سایت فوتو دات نت است http://photo.net این سایت هم مانند فلیکر در دسترس نبود ولی خوشبختانه اکنون هست فوتو دات نت مکانی است برای همه ی افراد مخصوصا کسانی که می خواهند عکاس بهتری شوند این سایت محتوی عکسهای بسیار جذابی است که در دسته هایی چون طبیعت ، معماری ،بچه ها ، گلها ، حشرات ،ورزش ، پرندگان ، حیوانات خانگی، انتزاعی ، ماشین ها و وسایل نقلیه ،فشن ، مهمانی ها ، و.. سازماندهی شده اند
یکی از امکانات جالب این سایت این است که می توانید عکس ها را همزمان  بر اساس دسته ، محدوده ی زمانی ، رتبه ای که کاربران به آنها داده اند مرور کنید یا (عکس ها را بر اساس عکاس ها)

یکی دیگر از قسمت های اصلی سایت آموزشها و نکات عکاسی در مورد موضوعات مختلف است از عکاسی از حشرات تا عکاسی زیر آب می توانید نکاتی را در مورد عکاسی از چهره یا عکاسی از ستاره ها یاد بگیرید ، قسمت دیگر در مورد تجهیزات عکاسی مثل مدل های مختلف دوربین های دیجیتال و تجهیزات جانبی
قسمت گالری سایت بیش از همه جالب است
در این سایت می توانید بحث کنید ، سوال بپرسید یا که به سوالهای دیگران پاسخ دهید ، در مورد عکسهای دیگران نظر بدهید و به آنها رتبه ای بدهید
ثبت نام کاملا رایگان است و بدون ثبت نام هم می توانید  عکس ها را ببینید
و اما محدودیت ها ی سایت
هرعکسی که در سایت قرار می دهید باید فرمت JPG باشد کمتر از 100 کیلوبایت باشد و بزرگتر از 800 در 600 پیکسل نباشد نمی توانید گالری شخصی داشته باشید یعنی تمام عکسها به اشتراک گذاشته می شوند

چند عکس سایت فوتو دات نت از دسته حشرات

photo.net

چند آمار از این سایت
5.5 میلیون بازدیدکننده در ماه
60 میلیون بازدید در ماه
80000 بحث در فروم کاربران در ماه
700000 کاربر ثبت شده

5 minutes for mom is having a summer fun photo contest. go check it out in searching my photo s i had a hard time deciding which of my photos really SHOWED summer fun. i came across this one of lala jumping into the pool and knew it
delightfulheavenlysunrise.blogspot.com

Ho trovato Paolo Cardone alla mia prima iscrizione a un sito di fotografia, era il defunto Mega-Pixel, ed è stata una foto di Paolo Cardone ad aprirmi gli occhi, davanti a quella foto credo di averci passato ore, mi ha fatto riflettere e scoprire che la Fotografia non era solo una bella barchetta con dei colori interessanti.
La foto era questa:

Montecassino

Ogni sua fotografia nella mia testa forma una parabola di emozioni: realismo, iperealismo e surrealismo. Guardare una foto sua è come vedere un film attraverso un fotogramma e immaginare quello precedente e quello successivo.
Fatta con una Holga, perchè non tutti i capolavori di Paolo hanno la giustificazione di una Hasselblad

Jelsi

Acquevive

Boiano

I ritratti non sono mai fini a se stessi, sono fotografie di personaggi veri e propri, spesso con lo sguardo dritto nell’obiettivo perchè non sono ne ritratti da studio ne fotografie rubate, ma foto che nascono da una muta intesa tra fotografo e soggetto (non conosco Paolo di persona ma lo immagino di poche parole come le persone che ama fotografare), un tipo di fotografia a cui pochi arrivano e su cui pochissimi hanno il coraggio di misurarsi.

Paolo è anche un fotografo di matrimoni, ovviamente il livello non si smentisce, per quanto possano essere considerate “commerciali” (so che per alcuni fotografi è una parola blasfema … per me non lo è ma andiamo avanti) sono foto di altissimo livello, c’è chi ha detto che vale la pena sposarsi solo per avere un servizio fatto da lui

La scelta delle foto è stata ardua per cui vi invito a visitare il suo sito, ne vale la pena.

Come ho giá detto, non conosco Paolo di persona, posso immaginare tramite le sue foto e i suoi commenti alle foto altrui, sempre sintetici e diretti, che sia una persona schietta, diretta e per niente incline ai compromessi.
Auguro a tutti quelli che amano la fotografia e che vogliono imparare a guardare con occhi nuovi attraverso un obiettivo, di incrociare le foto di Paolo prima o poi.
Il mio stile e il mio genere sono anni luce dal suo ma forse proprio per questo posso dire che mi ha ampliato gli orizzonti

Altre foto di Paolo Cardone su:

PhotoNet
Free-Lens

I don’t really have much to talk about but this is one of the gnarliest photos I have seen in a long time. John and I might go to Bells, Texas tomorrow and buy these motorbikes we found on Craig’s List. I am Excited.

Portrait of young girl.: Photo by Photographer Igor Amelkovich – photo.net

An Amazing portait..
Many characterstics stand out for me.
Black and white
The lighting
the expression on model’s face… nearly neutral, but still not really neutral

(Taken from John Orr phot0graphy on Photo.net)

The amazing colour of the wall ,the winding stair-case and the the bullet-holes together make a telling story.The colour adds a touch of irony to the situation ,suggesting everything was wonderful before,the joy and splendor of living,the young and the old celebrated life and its many-hued splendor and then one day it all happened.The aggressor with his arrogant fire power blasted several holes in the yellow wall ,in the door to domestic bliss and comfort and in the hearts of the people.The wall with the holes is a mute testimony to the brutality of the war in Bosnia and to the large scale destruction of innocent civilians who lived in such houses and carried on their daily lives reaching the comfort of their houses by winding iron stair cases.There is still a touch of green at the bottom of the stair case and the stair case stands silently and the wall refuses to crumble despite so many attempts to destroy it.

YNNOD(Stumbleupon) has made an insightful observation which accentuates the irony in the picture.It is a pity I missed it .The staircase has only one railing !As you reach the top you can neither go up nor down.The hopelessness of the situation is stark. Thanks ,YNNOD, for this very incisive observation.