Human beings have a tendency to see the world filtered through a screen made up of their own personal requirements. ...........................But when a disruptive technology or company comes along being the incumbent fat cat doesn't buy you much. Just ask General Motors.
Michael
In 45 minutes the crew arrives and we're out the door to shoot a project in motion and in stills, different cameras, somewhat different techniques but one mindset.
Is it the right thing to do, or am I "happy" to do both . . . I don't know because that covers a lot of territory, but I am positive if I didn't have the capabilities to do both I wouldn't be shooting today and turning a profit and even if I was only capable of shooting one medium I would be marginalized.
Early on I moved to digital for the same reason I've been learning to shoot motion, not to become marginalized by technology or by lack of knowledge.
Do I love the still photograph, well yes I do or maybe I "did", but that doesn't mean I can't do both or at least give it a hell of a good go. I don't agree with the sentiments you can't be good at both, but then again I've never been big on tradition.
I heard the same thing on the transition from film to digital, "our photographers shoot film, or digital is just a fad, or why would a photographer want to be a lab and a pre press guy". I knew then that was just a head in the sand approach and I feel the same way about the talk about stills to motion. (And btw: to a person everyone that said those quotes is no longer in my industry).
In commerce it's not just what I want, in fact it's not about what my client's need today, it's what they may need in a few days or weeks or months, because things change very fast in today's world.
Maybe I won't be Ridley Scott, but that was never the goal anyway, though as an advertising photographer, now advertising image maker, I do think I can take the years of experience and bring something to the game.
Now is the RED or the words motion imagery hype? Maybe but that's what pop art is . . . hype and to a very large extent commercial and editorial image making is about hype and and must be current. No client wants their product to look old, no client wants to miss out on an opportunity.
I get a big kick out of the fact some people talk of digital still photography like it's traditional. That to me is a mind scratcher because when was the last time you delivered film to be viewed on a lightbox and that was just 7 or 8 years ago when you did.
Old is out.
I doubt seriously if anyone at this stage in image making can shoot something that to some extent has not been done before, but the successful artists learn to keep pushing their message, going forward and not looking back, shooting something that their "specific" client hasn't had before.
Michael's analogy of the I-pone is perfect. Prior to that there were hand held computers, (though big) smart phones with cameras (thought small) organizers like Palm, (though limited) and all apple did was put it all together in one easy to use package.
That's my goal, one easy to use package and in today's world doing more equates to being more.
I can make a very long list of people in my industry that are not working today, retouchers, photographers, printers, labs, digital techs and crew and though some is a reflection of the economy, some is just the result of not keeping and open mind and hoping that life magically resets itself 4 years back.
That won't happen . . . never has.
JR