Been tons of chatter online about the Lytro camera the last few weeks. In case you’ve been living under a rock or too busy to notice, then you’ll be happy to know that the new Lytro camera allows you to select focus AFTER you shoot the photograph. AMAZING technology developed at Stanford by Ren Ng. Just like you can change the white balance after capture when shooting RAW, well now you can put those striking blue eyes of your model in focus later.
Consider that with the technology of a camera like the RED Epic – shooting a 5,000 pixel wide image at 96 frames per second. You can aim that sucker at a scene and shoot 1000 14 megapixel still images in 10 seconds. No more need to catch ‘the decisive moment’!
Combine these two technologies? Whew! Now you’ve really got something.
Unless… your pictures have no focus. If you think that you’re photos are going to be better in the future because you don’t have to pick the moment or focus on your subject, you’re entirely wrong. These technologies are truly amazing, revolutionary and will continue to change the face of photography as we know it.
But mark my words, if you’re goal is to get your work to stand out from the crowd (as good art does), then you’ll need to focus all the more.
Focus on subject.
Focus on content.
Focus on meaning.
Focus on artistic vision…
…because these are all the tools that computers can’t help you with and these are the only ways from here on out that you’re going to be able to make a mark.
Focus on that.
[and don’t hate it, celebrate it, cause it’s all you’ve got.]
It’s funny you mentioned combining RED and Lytro.
Washington University is doing research on training computers to choose the best Candid photograph out of a video
http://grail.cs.washington.edu/projects/candid_video_portraits/
Now imagine the technologies of Lytro, RED and this Auto-Candid photography coming together in one camera, all you need is a Roomba and you can start a Wedding Photojournalism business 😉
” If you think that you’re photos are going to be better in” Your photos
My concern with technology like this, is the impact it will have on the next generation. Hard work will cease to exist and everything can be fixed with the push of a button. That idea is already spreading and I don’t like it.
I admire your ability to celebrate technology like this ^^ for I think its cool but I frown upon it due to my personal pride in performing the hard work.
None the less, it is a great piece of technology and I fully agree with your statement on focus.
Andrew Vanasse
This is an interesting argument and one that is put forth fairly often in every kind of industry where technology plays a role. As I get older (I’m 38) I catch myself thinking this way a lot. Something about it rankles me though. I guess I feel at the end of the day that it really does take a human being to create something with beauty. We can get in trouble real fast here trying to define beauty. I’ll leave that to an Art School undergraduate debate, instead 😉 But for me, a big part of beauty is the connection it creates between viewer and crafter or with the subject. While images that are well executed from a technical stand-point do hold some value to me, I often find my own favorite images are those with imperfections. Indeed, we all often compose with selective focus, cropping, exposure and more to edit the content of our images. This job must still be done by a human being. If computers reach a stage where they are able to make these decisions then an evolution will have taken place that I think only a sci-fi writer could partially imagine.
You’re argument was that the younger generation will lack the appreciation for this. I disagree. For a time, people will rely on the technology but eventually this path grows boring and a balancing will occur where once again, thought, effort, and insight will be valued because that’s what it will take to stand out.
The commodification of vision is not something that I can really conceive of.
I like you’re argument and I hope it does balance itself out. I still have a fear of laziness in myself and society but I have even more faith in the human condition.
What you’re saying has probably been said about every single advancement in photography though. “Autofocus? ugh, that takes the work out of it.” “Auto exposure? What about the hard work it takes to figure it out yourself?” Digital? What ever happened to setting up a darkroom and developing yourself? Adjust whitebalance after capture? What about putting the work into deciding what is the proper filter to use.
My point is, yeah, it’s going to take some work out of it. But so has every advance since the dawn of photography. Like everything else, it’s a tool and will find it’s place. I don’t think it’s going to make everybody lazy when it comes to photography though. Heck the really lazy ones will prefer a normal camera with autofocus so they don’t have to fiddle with the images before uploading to Facebook.
I can see this technology having the greatest impact on video though. Allows for saving time, greater artistic control, and lessening the need for reshoots.
Just my $0.02 though, take it for what its worth.
I was actually talking about the bigger picture, which involves every industry and type of work out there. But I do agree there are benefits from it.
I agree … I’m working to become a photographer not a digital artist. I know there is post work that has to be done but I was taught and firmly believe in getting it as right as possible in the camera and not the computer.
“My concern with technology like this, is the impact it will have on the next generation. Hard work will cease to exist and everything can be fixed with the push of a button. That idea is already spreading and I don’t like it.”
painters used to say the same, back in the XIX century… 🙂
no stress…
Well, since RED are, in fact, working on multiple-focus and depth-mapping features, we may well have this technology within the next decade. But well put; since capturing the decisive moment and focusing/focus-pulling (and even lighting, potentially, with depth-mapping) will no longer be a part of the cinephotographer’s practical arsenal, that leaves the more ephemeral, artistic decisions to be the differentiator.
In a way, this technology may well be a great leap forward in art- to stand above the rest, you will no longer be able to merely rest on your technical laurels. You’ll have to actually be SAYING or SHOWING something. We’ll be able to clearly see who’s great and who’s not because the technology will be “technically levelling” to all comers.
You inspire me Chase.
Agreed!
So well put. You do inspire, Chase.
My thoughts exactly…