Photography Photography is dying as a niche?

[Jack]

I was arguing with an other admin about forums and photography as a niche. And he replied me back this:

I don’t draw that conclusion at all. . Photography is a niche for 40+ year olds. I love Photography, have done for 45 years, but for youngsters it’s mostly just phones and filters. Your forum will die slowly, just like camera sales dropped by 95% in recent years. It’s a dying niche.

If you want a young audience, choose a niche that seriously interests them (I’d argue,thats not traditional photography) create quality content to attract them and start building a community

Would you agree with this?

 

[markmullen]

I kind of agree, serious photography is a dying art, people like me carrying a bag of lenses and bodies and a tripod, but I'd argue that more and more of the world is being photographed one way or another, 20 years ago what percentage of people carried a camera everywhere they went? Now everyone has a camera on their phone, even when they're in the bath, eating dinner or whatever. More of the world is being captured but the equipment used has been miniaturised and made available at a price point most can afford.

I do think serious photographers going out with the sole intention of capturing an image, as opposed to people grabbing snaps of their day to day lives, is getting rarer.

 

[Morexp57]

Yes, I agree with this.
Photography with anything other than phones will become increasingly rare. If, on top of that, you add artificial intelligence programs that are more and more powerful, "classic" photographers will be seen as dinosaurs. I don't mind that at all! I like to stand out...

 

[Jack]

people like me carrying a bag of lenses and bodies and a tripod

I'm the same person, always have my camera bag full with equipment with me. I'm thinking that photography as a niche won't disappear, there will be less and less people interested in this art I would say.

Yes, I agree with this.
Photography with anything other than phones will become increasingly rare. If, on top of that, you add artificial intelligence programs that are more and more powerful, "classic" photographers will be seen as dinosaurs. I don't mind that at all! I like to stand out...

Hopefully this won't happen soon. I really enjoy photography. And still don't see how phones can replace these expensive lenses and equipment.

 

[Morexp57]

I'm the same person, always have my camera bag full with equipment with me. I'm thinking that photography as a niche won't disappear, there will be less and less people interested in this art I would say.



Hopefully this won't happen soon. I really enjoy photography. And still don't see how phones can replace these expensive lenses and equipment.

It’s already happening. And it’s only the beginning. Look at this landscape for exemple:

It’s from this site: https://petapixel.com/2022/08/16/these-are-not-photos-beautiful-landscapes-created-by-new-ai/

 

[Jack]

It’s already happening. And it’s only the beginning. Look at this landscape for exemple:
View attachment 1727
It’s from this site: https://petapixel.com/2022/08/16/these-are-not-photos-beautiful-landscapes-created-by-new-ai/

While the photo is stunning, the quality isn't greatest one.

Still big wow how AI can do nowadays, and it's also is something to worry about too.

I would say no AI would be able to reproduce what human eye can see.

 

[Tigger]

I think it depends on how you answer the question of what is photography? Is it someone taking photos of their friends, food on a plate for Facebook, selfies for Instagram or photos of their children to share with family and friends on WhatsApp. Or, for example, is photography getting up in the middle of the night to visit somewhere you have planned a shot for the sun to emerge in a certain place, that will be visible at a certain angle or emerging through or over a certain bit of the landscape. Where you select the appropriate lens for the desired focal length and depth of field in order to capture what you are seeing in your minds eye. Both these scenarios, although at opposite ends of the spectrum, can be regarded as photography. I think that camera phones will become the dominant medium for photography and will, in the near future or even now, be more than capable of performing the second option. Phone cameras are becoming increasingly powerful. The dynamic range for colour and light will only get better and taking photos of whatever subject with a mobile will become technically easier in the future. As such, in my opinion, photography with specialise dslr/mirrorless or whatever, will become increasingly niche but there will still be a fairly large community, almost as film photography has become a niche within the niche! I use a Nikon D850. I enjoy the process of planning, setting up and taking a picture. I believe that what I consider to be photography will continue for a long time yet.

 

[Jack]

I think it depends on how you answer the question of what is photography? Is it someone taking photos of their friends, food on a plate for Facebook, selfies for Instagram or photos of their children to share with family and friends on WhatsApp. Or, for example, is photography getting up in the middle of the night to visit somewhere you have planned a shot for the sun to emerge in a certain place, that will be visible at a certain angle or emerging through or over a certain bit of the landscape. Where you select the appropriate lens for the desired focal length and depth of field in order to capture what you are seeing in your minds eye. Both these scenarios, although at opposite ends of the spectrum, can be regarded as photography. I think that camera phones will become the dominant medium for photography and will, in the near future or even now, be more than capable of performing the second option. Phone cameras are becoming increasingly powerful. The dynamic range for colour and light will only get better and taking photos of whatever subject with a mobile will become technically easier in the future. As such, in my opinion, photography with specialise dslr/mirrorless or whatever, will become increasingly niche but there will still be a fairly large community, almost as film photography has become a niche within the niche! I use a Nikon D850. I enjoy the process of planning, setting up and taking a picture. I believe that what I consider to be photography will continue for a long time yet.

I do agree with you here. When I'm looking at these latest phones, they all have good camera, well they can't compete with couple of thousands pounds lens, but when you take a photo and share it online, the difference is very small. I see that the world is changing towards videos, and that's a new trending thing I believe, like YouTube shorts, Instagram Reels, or TikTok.

 

[panos_adgr]

I do not believe that photography is dying as niche. I would 'stay at an angle' and watch what will happen after a few years. You cannot compare photography's popularity by trying to match its dynamic with the camera sales. This is irrelevant. Photography is more present than any other time in the past. Good photographers and serious amateurs were a small part of the general public. Camera sales have declined because simple people do a fine job with their smartphones. Camera manufacturers have lost the consumer part of their sales. You can see it reflecting on the type of gear which is available for sale. Cheap dslrs haven't been replaced by cheap mirrorless. Even sony who was early in the mirrorless thing abandoned entry models such as nex3 or a5000 later...

We cannot compare sale decline with interest for photography.
As for the young people, if we have a better look we will see sign of great interest in photography. Let's take as an example the #filmisnotdead movement. It has millions of uploads with this hashtag. Young people have slightly resurrected film photography. Kodak hired a few people to cover needs for the increased demand for portra and relaunch of ectachrome. Manual film cameras and lenses are going high on sales and prices as well. Expired film stock is running out. And it is the young people. Sales of cameras are quite better the last 1.5years. But the volumes are surely lower then the golden age of 1990-2005. At that time the only way for anybody to take photos was to by a camera. And the serious photographers had better and more expensive gear. So... We see young people reviving film photography even in a small degree. We see young people didital photography as well. We have to embrace the evolvement of smartphones (as a trend or reality) and realise that many people do photography with their phones because it is more accessible and cost efficient. The more involved people will switch at a point to a dedicated camera. It is as it used to be many years ago with the difference that in the absence of smartphones people chose compact and entry level cameras which nowadays are almost vanished. Because of smartphones.
So I think that there is no need to be that pessimistic 'yet'.

As for AI I will not inherit any of the relevant reputations and comments I read quite often.

Art is a form of personal creation which comes from our deeper emotional and life experience, inspiration. It is a need to express our creative self. It is something that it has to come from our inside. AI is a projection of an algorithm research and result, after a users simple quote of do this.
It doesn't represent nor it satisfices the need of an individual for its personal expression. On this very authentic base I cannot see for the moment any space for AI.

The above are my personal point of view based on my experience.

 

[Andy Smith]

I do not think its dying as a niche really, and why say it's a niche anyway? I actually don't think photography is a niche by any means.
To be honest, I see more people taking photographs these days than ever before, ok a lot are using phones because it is more convenient for them to get images online straight away, but the fact remains they are taking photos with a camera and it is still art. I use my phone from time to time for shots when I do not have my camera on hand.
A also notice people transitioning from phones to dedicated cameras for videos, vlogging, and image taking.. maybe they are wanting more control, or the camera offers better image quality and they have the desire to improve their output.
Young people take lots of photos and share them online because it is a communal thing, they feel a need to impress for a fleeting moment which is why they want images posted quickly, but more and more are now taking the time to edit the images, or video and post a better final product few days later.
For some it is about interaction because it earns them money, it's a job by all accounts to them, a means of earning an income, so the more they post, the more they earn. Some want fast turnaround like a fast food outlet really, the more the merrier, while others are transitioning to quality output with fewer posts to get their numbers.
The introduction of digital cameras instead of film cameras significantly made photography more accessible to a wider range of people due to its convenience. This allowed for more images to be taken and shared online, creating new avenues for photographers to showcase their work, phone cameras just took this one step further.
There are more photographers now than ever before, but certain genres like wildlife, fashion, weddings, portraits, astro still require dedicated equipment and cannot really be handled with just a phone camera.
Overall, the dynamics of photography is still evolving, and adapting to new technology and social trends, it has not died as a niche.
The young generation today want quick access to messages and comments, they have no patience to wait for a few days for someone to comment on their image. If they don't get immediate response they just post another one of a dog, cat or food.
We have to remember though that the younger generation have grown up with phones in their hands, and posting photos online is a natural part of their behaviour and the way they communicate with each other. They feel compelled to share photos to show others that they have an exciting life, and it helps them feel connected and avoid the fear of being left out.
Today, everyone communicates through digital platforms, but i do think forums have their place for serious and interested people. They will never compete with the likes of Instagram for subscribers due to the nature of the participants and what they want out of the interaction, but quality over quantity is what we visit forums like this one for.