12 9 November 2019I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113
NigelAthertonis EditorofAmateurPhotographer.
THE
VEWS
EXPRESSED
NTH
SCOLUMN
ARE
NOT
NECESSAR
LYTHOSE
OF
AMATEUR
PHOTOGRAPHER
MAGA Z
NE
OR
TMED
AL
MTED
W
henMichaelGove
famouslysaidthat
‘peoplehavehad
enoughof experts’he
wasontosomething– eventhoughhis
quotewastakenoutof context.Welivein
theageof Google,whereeveryonecan
betheirownexpert.Don’tknowanything
aboutquantumphysics?JustGoogleit,
readthefirstcoupleof searchresultsand
voilà.Sorryphysicists,you’renolonger
required.Feelingunwell?Thanksto the
internetwecantellthedoctorwealready
knowwehaverabies– wejustneedhimto
cureus.In a worldseeminglyoverrunwith
anti-vaxxers,creationists,climate-change
deniersandsoforth,whoneedsscientific
evidence?World-leadingeconomists’
warningsof economicdisasterin the
eventof a no-dealBrexitcanbehappily
dismissedaswrongbypeoplewhohave
zerounderstandingof economics.
Why?Becausewelivein a worldwhere
faithandopiniontrumpknowledge.Social
mediabubblesenableustolivein blissful
ignorance,surroundedbythosewho
shareourprejudices,withouteverbeing
troubledbycontrarypointsof view.
ReputablenewssourcesliketheBBCcan
beaccused,withoutirony,of biasandfake
newsbypeoplewhogettheiropinions
fromtheDailyMailandloonie,left-wing,
conspiracyblogs.Thisis theeraof the
cultof ‘Me’,wherenobodiescanbecome
famousasrealityTVstarsorInstagram
influencers,withoutanydiscernibletalent
exceptforthatof self-promotion.
Exploringissues
Thismoderncontemptforexpertsand
expertiseinfectstheworldof photography
too,especiallyin artcircles.Asanyone
whohasvisitedanexhibitionof ‘art
photography’willknow,nolongeris it
necessarytoknowhowtousea camera
creativelyorhavea feelforlight,aslong
asyoumakeit clearthatyou’re‘exploring
issues’or‘confrontingstereotypes’.If you
cansomehowfinda waytoreference
topicssuchas‘genderidentity’or‘white
maleprivilege’you’llhavetheartworld
fi ghting over you. But a word of warning:
donot,I repeatdoNOT,attempttomake
yourworkaestheticallyappealingthrough
theuseof compositionorlighting.
I wasa judgea whilebackona major
photocompetition(I won’tnameit) where
thelargepanelof judgeswerea mixture
of photographersandGuardianartcritic
types,andit becamequiteheated
becausethelattergroupdismissed
anythingthatlookedwelllit orcomposed
asbeing‘contrived’.(Inotherwords,the
creativeinputof thephotographerwas
apparent.)Theirpreferencewasfor
pictureswitha snapshotaesthetic,with
everythingequallyin focusandnosense
of controloverlightingorcomposition.
Theywere‘morereal’.Oneof thejudges
describedonebeautifullandscapeas
‘lookinglikeanAthenaposter’,and
actuallymeantit asaninsult.
Whilethismaybedishearteningforthe
experts,thegoodnewsis younolonger
havetogothroughthetroubleof learning
thecrafttosucceed.Youjustneeda
point-and-shootanda beein your
bonnet about the right kind of issue.
Doyouhavesomethingyou’dliketogetoffyourchest?Sendusyourthoughtsinaround
500 wordstotheaddressonpage 23 andwina year’sdigitalsubscriptiontoAP,worth£79.
Insomecircles,a talentforself-promotion
andtheabilitytochoosetherightissueare
moreimportantthananyphotographicskill
Talentandexpertisearenotasvaluedasthey
used to be, even in the world of photography
View point
Nigel Atherton
©
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CanonEOSM6MarkII
AudleyJarvisinvestigateswhatthis
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Olympus25mmF1.2Pro
Thisultra-largeaperturelensgiveslovely
blurredbackgrounds,saysAndyWestlake
Inforthelonghaul
Wefindoutwhatinspiresthreeexponents
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Here’showyoucanlighten
yourloadwithhandheld-
shooting advice from a pro
Ditch the
tripod
In next week’s issue
On sale Tuesday 12 November
‘Thisistheeraofthecult
of “me”wherenobodies
canbecomefamouswith
no discernible talent’