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Oh snap! A glimpse of photography today in a flash

Oh snap! A glimpse of photography today in a flash

  We live in a digital age where you have most everything at your fingertips. Photography has been one of those things that we can access more freely because of the technology we have today. With smart phones, iPhones, and digital cameras, photography has boomed over the past 10  years.

  Today roughly 77% of Americans own a smartphone , and nearly 7 in 10 teens use social media according to DailyMail. Blake Kellogg, senior at HR, said, “I love Instagram. I follow a lot of photographers that I’m inspired by, so I’m constantly seeing different things, and wanting to go outside my comfort zone.” Instagram is one of the top photo sharing apps today.

  With Instagram having over 50 million active monthly users, there are on average 95 million pictures and videos shared per day, according to CNBC. Kellogg said, “I think it creates motivation because you’re always seeing  other people’s work, being inspired, and being pushed to do more.”

  But, on the other hand, Sammy Rowe, senior at HR, said, “I feel like social media has kind of washed away some of the importance of using a real camera. People have less respect for photography because there is so much of it.”

  Rowe’s dad had a film camera as well as a digital camera growing up. “I kind of took influence from him because it’s art,” Rowe said, “That one picture can never be taken again in the same light or perceived in the same way.”

  Kellogg started doing photography when she was in 6th grade, when she got her first toy digital camera. Ever since then her passion for photography has been growing more and more everyday. Kellogg said, “I think I like photography because I’m big on art but I’m kind of a perfectionist; I can’t get into painting or drawing because there’s not as much precision as photography because you can make it exactly how you want.”

  Tristan Ropa, junior at HR, said, “I’ve always been an awful artist regarding drawing or painting or sculpture, way too tedious. Photography is an outlet to create art and capture beauty that caters more to my skill set.” Photography is another form of art that has skyrocketed over the past 10 years. Having all the technology we have today, there are so many apps and downloads to edit the picture to make it exactly how you want.

  “I think that social media has very much affected photography. It has made it a lot easier to share your work and get involved in the photography community,” Ropa said. “I think it has impacted photography in a very positive way. Personally I see no issue in new faces getting involved; the ease of sharing your work is such a drawing point and it’s great to see people starting to take it up.”

  “On the positive side people have the ability to put their photography into the world,” Rowe said. “I definitely do appreciate the use of a camera, but since I have my phone on me all the time I have the ability to take and post the picture whenever I want.”

  Today photography has a big impact over a lot of teens. They post their pictures on social media apps and then wait and see how many likes and comments they can get. All from a picture they post. If you think about it, we all have a photographer side. With the outlet of social media, we have the chance to share something that is very important to us.

  Kellogg said, “I kind of started getting into photography when I was going through a really hard time. It’s something I’ve relied on heavily.” Since photography is a form of art, it can be a great outlet for those who are going through rough times. The saying, “A picture holds a thousand words”, holds a lot of truth in today’s photographs.

  “I remember my grandpa was and still is very interested and active regarding photography. He gave us an old camera of his and I started to take pictures when traveling or at the zoo, just snapshots, ya know? Then gradually I became better and really started to enjoy it,” Ropa said.

  Photography is a form of art that is used around the world and has gotten a lot more attention over the years thanks to social media. There are so many photographers and pictures that share such great stories, as well as being able to share their art they created. Photography is a great outlet that a lot of people use to express how they are feeling or to be the voice for those who don’t. Rowe said, “ I think I have a very aesthetically pleasing photography. In a sense that it is appealing to my audience.”

Meagan Janes, Guest Reporter

Screen Shot 2017-05-10 at 8.11.18 AM
Pictures on pictures on pictures. PhotoCo: Sammy Rowe 
Screen Shot 2017-05-10 at 8.11.42 AM
The capturing of a cloudy mountain scene. PhotoCo: Tristan Ropa
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Oh snap! A glimpse of photography today in a flash