July 24th, 2012

I’d take the time to link to the innumerable tweets and blog posts I’ve read about photogs being burnt out and fed up with carrying tons of photo equipment. But we’re all feeling this. We’re all sick and tired of lugging around these monstrous bags full of our lenses, filters, lights, and bulky cameras and we’re opting to shoot only with our iPhones because it is quick, convenient and the results are nearly good enough.

Rick Poon took some amazing shots in Maui using his iPhone. Here is what he had to say after he returned.

You know, when times were simpler, and all we wanted to do was shoot everything that caught our eye? If you haven’t already noticed, I’ve been a bit addicted to Instagram. The spontaneity that it cultivates has really brought back a little bit of that lost passion, and I find myself excited to shoot and share the things I see. Kind of like the old days.

On the same note, traveling with an SLR, lenses, and such has become more of a hindrance. I don’t have those 2o year old shoulders anymore, and whipping out a big heavy camera every time I see something interesting isn’t really my idea of spontaneity.  When I spent a week in beautiful Maui last week, I did pack my trusty 5D with a sparse three lens kit. But I already knew it was a lost cause. Instagram and my iPhone had already ruined it for me. The 5D never made it out of the bag.

In a nutshell here is what every amateur photographer really wants – they want control over how their image will be processed. They want depth of field, light sensitivity, and color saturation to be adjustable. It is why we purchased a SLR, a few lenses, a few filters, etc. Because we want this control. And we were willing to give up our covienience in order to get that control.

Then comes the iPhone. With a little bit of software and a marvel of lens technology we can control what parts of the image are in focus, process the photo using software, and even share that photo instantly if we choose to do so. The iPhone with an app or two has a very similar level of control as a SLR with the added capability that an Internet connection affords.

The only way I can see Canon, Nikon, et al competing at this level would be to create their own apps for iPhone, Android, and Windows Phone. Surely they’ve got the expertise and in-house genius to come up with some of the very best ways to take advantage of the lens technology in these devices.

Oh, and by “processing” I don’t mean just Instagram filters (although they are convenient and quite good). I’m talking about apps that let you edit the image without presets. It is pretty obvious that Rick Poon’s photos of Maui were not processes using Instagram alone. They are absolutely gorgeous.