On the Forum's Value

[welly]

I think the OP has been completely unreasonable. As someone (relatively? probably) new to large format AND film photography, this forum has been incredibly valuable to me, and dare I say the same for the regular new members of the forum. I know that without doubt if it wasn't for this forum, I'd still be scratching my head, making even worse images than I'm doing now. I don't profess to be anywhere near as capable as many of the people on this forum but I know my photography has really come along leaps and bounds because of the help I've received from people on here.

You claim there is no real community? Codswallop! Sure, temperatures are raised from time to time but that is inevitable on this type of medium. I find this forum the most helpful and friendly photography forum I've used. You want a lack of community and value? Check out dpreview forums - this place is gold compared with that site. You've made a lot of totally unsubstantiated claims in your post and I wonder if it's a little bitterness on your part for being called out on your comment? I suspect so.

[Lenny Eiger]

I like this forum a lot. Lots of folks have taken advantage of my scanning services and I have had the opportunity to talk to every one of them. They have been a very nice bunch of people.

I think one of the issues is that Photography has changed. There are a lot of people who call themselves photographers when all they have ever used is a cellphone to take photographs, they may have never read a book, much less looked at a lot of photographs from other good, or great, photographers. One of my pet peeves is that landscape photographers ought to know more work that just Ansel Adams before they say they have "studied" landscape. He is one of many....

So there are all these new folks out there working, or putzing around, and they haven't paid their dues in the traditional ways. Still, some of the ideas are good ones, and one needs to be careful before declaring any art form, or genre, as being invalid.

I think that those with the ability and experience to make photographs that are "deeper" can point the way... Of course, that's my own bias, I think life ought to be about discovering our own humanity and expressing it. Much of life appears to be about commodity, and I try and avoid it. Still it seeps in... and all I can do is talk to one person at a time about what's possible.

I recently spoke to another photographer (someone here less experienced than myself), who pressed me on what I was talking about. I recounted a story about a photograph that stopped me in my tracks, made my jaw drop, as I stood there not breathing for some time. I was able to explain that this is what I was after, and cared little for the commercial. He got it. It took 4 conversations, but he got it nonetheless, and I am certain his photography will get better over time as he considers how to approach new images.

There is a lot of work to do. I have a cold at the moment, and am sort of delirious. I don't want anyone to take this in the wrong way, or to imagine that I am being pedantic. I think there are a lot of good photographers here, and yes, there is a lot of work to do for all of us.... our culture is hurting and those that have a clue need to help those that don't. We can't all move to Canada.


Lenny

[Darin Boville]

>>We can't all move to Canada.<<

Weird. For reasons I'm not sure of I though *you* were in Canada. Looks like you are only an hour or two away!

--Darin

[Brian C. Miller]

Since I have been a member there has been a steady downward spiral in the forum's value to the large format community. In fact there is no real community at all: the forum is dominated by a small handful of professional bloggers that essentially live on the internet 24/7.

Would any of the members here who are professional bloggers please post a link to your blog? The pros only, please. Yes, the ones who derive their primary income from the advertising revenue on their blog sites. Day jobs don't count.

They are certainly not photographers for photography demands time – especially large format film photography – and those guys are clearly not putting their time into photography.

So we are to judge the quality of their post not by the words contained therein, but by the images posted to the forum? Some of the old hands on the forum don't actually have a lot scanned for posting. But I still value their contribution to people asking questions. That's important.

[Lenny Eiger]

>>We can't all move to Canada.<<

Weird. For reasons I'm not sure of I though *you* were in Canada. Looks like you are only an hour or two away!

--Darin

Come and visit!

Lenny

[Bill_1856]

Exactly who do you have in mind?

[Ken Lee]

"very few, if any at all, truly accomplished photographers contribute to this site. And those that did, or do, quickly leave."

As a relative newcomer to the forum, I'd like to know who some of those photographers were. Can we still read their contributions ?

[Greg Miller]

Excerpted from a post in the Classified:

"...But the reaction that it generated from a couple of relatively new and unknown posters (imposters?) illustrates a reason why very few, if any at all, truly accomplished photographers contribute to this site. And those that did, or do, quickly leave. Even the Forum's founder has stopped posting to it and many of those that do post don't even shoot film much less large format.

Since I have been a member there has been a steady downward spiral in the forum's value to the large format community. In fact there is no real community at all: the forum is dominated by a small handful of professional bloggers that essentially live on the internet 24/7. They are certainly not photographers for photography demands time – especially large format film photography – and those guys are clearly not putting their time into photography. They may be classified as an internet chat room photographer but a photographer they are clearly not. And the problem with that is that style of photographer fails to grow – they simply don't evolve in photography as one does when actively engaged with it – and as a result are a bad example to hold up to those coming into the hobby/profession; bad pennies so to speak.

Contributing to this forum bring to mind something a famous bluesman once said to me: “If you find something that you like, keep it to yourself.”

Thomas

You have more posts per day here than I do. Does that make me a better photographer than you?

[BrianShaw]

You claim there is no real community? Codswallop!

I have no idea what this means... but I totally agree!

[BrianShaw]

"very few, if any at all, truly accomplished photographers contribute to this site. And those that did, or do, quickly leave."

As a relative newcomer to the forum, I'd like to know who some of those photographers were. Can we still read their contributions ?

Maybe he's refering to JorgeG?