Trends in photography

[ricstew]

Just random thoughts .......someone asked me about those tie died ( huh get it?? ) muslin backdrops and the painted canvas ones.....I am pretty clueless about them but figured they couldn't be too hard to make if you were so inclined......plenty of stuff on the net if you wanted to research them.
Then I thought they look pretty dated......does any one use them nowadays?

I have a studio portrait done some 30 years ago that has a painted backdrop ( in fact most of my vintage stuff does ). I also have my DD graduation pic that has the mottled back drop as well but that is nearly 8 years ago nowl. My very old pics are obviously very formal with great granny standing with hubby seated in front with gorgeous curtains and stuff ( all painted ) behind them.

When I look at recent stuff the effects are much cleaner, more crisp, less distractions. Wedding pics have moved away from the formal styles and more to the relaxed lifestyle stuff that is very prominent now.

Do you find your images have changed over the years? Are the trends changing to suit lifestyles? Do we blindly follow along like sheep ( they are such dumb critters ) and follow trends? because the client asks for that style or .......??

Who are the trend makers now? The guy with the million dollar photo? People we see/hear about on the internet? How does this translate to the client?

I have the flu......am delirious I reckon...but I do think about this stuff and would be interested to hear your thoughts.

Off to take more panadol.......

cheers
Jan

[Shelley]

I am replying, when I should be getting ready for work. I was looking for backdrops a couple of months ago and looked at the muslin, tie-dyes etc. I thought they were dated for what I wanted (I am sure there is a place for them still in photography). I like clean backgrounds mostly and I ended up going for paper roll backdrops, white, grey and chroma-key. I have black material - which I use, especially for baby shots.

I have a leaning towards relaxed style in portraits and personally not a fan of formal shots - but then for a graduation shoot that I did - it was the only way to go.

Hope you get over the flu and back into life normally

[jeffde]

This is a great topic and i wonder why more have not commented.
I think as far as i'm concerned i'm a little bit of a sheep, following whats gone before but trying to put my own stamp on things.
I use the muslin and i think it works well - with some vignetting etc sometimes to soften the background.
I would like to use paper - but how many colours can you have or want ???
Usually new ideas and innovations can take some time to come to fruition and can cost alot to promote.
I have some "different" ideas on where i would like to go but nothing so new that "no one" hasn't done it before.
But just not done in my area.
Inventing the next wheel or a better performing wheel is very difficult and for every one who succeeds - i think there are many ideas that don't.
We recently did a studio wedding - very formal stuff- because of their religion the shots were done before the ceremony - My wife an i love the formal shots - (so does the client0 the light is geat (and was controlable) and the whole wedding (from my part took 2 1/2 hours)
Its something we may push but will it take off ??? time will see.

Innovative stuff will get driven by the suppliers - LED lighting - HD digital and photos etc.. and software innovations.

I look foreward to more replies.

[snappysi]

i think that the main trends in photography are going down the route of digital editing. Whilst it may be a broad statement i think that photography in general, (That is the actual taking of the picture) , will for the most part be more or less unaltered really. The biggest change i se is in the digital age and more so the editing process where digital has allowed more people to be able to manipulate there photographs as they see fit, rather than having the roll of film developed at the local photo shop.
Most "styles" that are emerging and being copied i would think are more editing styles rather than "picture taking" styles

Just my thoughts

Simon.

[atky]

May be a bit of topic but, if you look at what has happened and is happening in the sport /motorsport world of photography, I think lots of the non established shooter are the ones pushing the envelope and its not digital editing driven but how to shoot the shot. Using things like parabolic efect (Think thats what its called) . Side pan shots in motorsport are old, 3/4 front slow shutter speed, wide pans and pans through obstacles the list goes on. I know when ever I go to shoot a motor sport event I'm always looking for something different.
Those that shoot sport that traditionally would of been shot with action freezing SS are now being shot slow to give the feel of speed, action and drama.
I don't shoot portraits often, I find lighting difficult and communicating with subjects hard but would like to try getting some motion into some portraits, might be terrible but would be fun to try.
I think digital photography has made a lot of shooting techniques possible.

[ricstew]

Interesting that there are only 4 people looking at trends?
I think Simon has a fair view of the changes cause I love to make stories from photos and that wouldn't have been available to me a few years ago. ......computers and software........doesn't mean I want to take an ordinary photo either
[QUOTE]I have some "different" ideas on where i would like to go but nothing so new that "no one" hasn't done it before.
But just not done in my area./QUOTE] I feel the same as jeff on that one. Australia has such a small industry.........not the photographers but the support industry.....but hey I can look at all the cool stuff on the net.
Are we as Australians more influnced by other country's trend makers because of the internet?

[Xenedis]

My view is that these days, with digital imaging being so prolific, one would be hard-pressed to find something that hasn't been done before.

It's harder and harder to find the true trend-setters.

As for trends, I have noticed a few, but it's debatable as to whether they could be called trends or fads. In no particular order:

1. horribly over-processed HDR images;
2. levitation selfies (ie, images of mostly females floating above chairs, etc.);
3. images of those annoying cardboard box figures;
4. processing techniques that turn a crisp DSLR-generated image into a washed-out Polaroid-looking image; and
5. textures, textures and more textures.

I could probably think of a few more, but it's 5am.

[I @ M]

My view is that these days, with digital imaging being so prolific, one would be hard-pressed to find something that hasn't been done before.

It's harder and harder to find the true trend-setters.

Amen to that, photography is very much similar to so many things in life and you don't have to be very old to have witnessed cycles in the styling and appearance of so many things in life.
Have a look back at the way clothing styles and "fashion" have gone around in circles, hair styling is similar and as for architecture ----

Photographic "styles" are many and varied, quite a few appear much the same as each other and then there are the ones that stand out from the rest.
Just because they stand out doesn't necessarily mean that the photographer is unique in their approach to getting the shot and then editing it, it may just mean that on this ever so quickly contracting mass of earth, we simply haven't seen images from another six million photographers who have the same approach --- yet.

[ricktas]

Perceptions are at play. I was at an AIPP judging event within the last 2 years, where a wedding photo caused some controversy within the judging panel. The Overseas invited judge marked a photo was down, compared to the other judges, thus they had to discuss the photo and re-judge. The OS judge made the statement "It looks like wedding photo from the 1980's". It was a top-down photo taken from a mezzanine floor, with the bridge and groom on the centre, looking up a the photographer, whilst the bridesmaids were 'twirling' in a cirle around them, with the shot showing blury movement of the bridesmaids.

The ensuing discussion between the judges was interesting, cause the issue of what is currently trendy came up, and why should a photo that is brilliantly executed, and different from the rest of the bunch, not be considered more highly. The OS judge's only issue was that it 'looked like it was taken in the 1980's'. One of the other judges commented that "every other photo looks like it was taken today, and that maybe the current 'style' is the one in another 10 years time that we would look back on and think what the hell were we thinking doing photography like that" (paraphrased quote as I cannot recall the exact words).

my point is that trends come and go, and some come back repeatedly, just look at fashion! So whilst tie died or pattern printed backdrops may not be the flavour of the month, why can't YOU be the person that starts the trend again. Do something different, be daring

[johndom]

Great thread Ric,
The two new trends, I have seen which I didnt like were the selective colour and HDR. Both can make a photo extremely striking, but are just so overused on so many images.
Both technology driven, but I guess with so many cameras,and sites like flikr, they go from new to overused in a very short time.
In Mt biking and rockclimbing photography there has been a bit of a trend with off camera flash- skake style photography becoming quite popular. There has been some fantastic work done in this style, but after 2 years most photographers seem to be shooting this way.