Category Archives: Photography

Death by Selfie

Photography,

Research published in the Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care reveals that taking selfies can be a dangerous business. In a six year period from 2011 through to 2017, 259 selfie-related deaths are recorded worldwide.

That’s likely to be a considerable underestimate, too, as death “by selfie” isn’t an official cause of death, whereas drowning (70) and falling (48) are recorded on death certificates. In order to come up with a figure, the researchers relied on selfie-related searches to find articles confirming that people died while trying to take selfies, either in the instant or on adventures to get that perfect selfie shot.

The paper looks at the actual causes of death (usually drowning), age group (mostly 20-29 years) and gender (three times more likely to be male). The study looked at whether the selfie-taker was engaged in risky behaviour at the time. For men, risky behaviour resulted in more selfie deaths (115 risky v 38 normal), but surprisingly, more women died engaged in non-risky behaviour (27 risky v 31 normal). The paper is an easy read, so take five minutes.

Compared with many other forms of premature accidental death, such as road accidents, the figures are minuscule in comparison. For 2017 only, there were 40,100 motor vehicles deaths in the US alone. Considering a notionally riskier sport, skydiving suffers from around 20-25 fatalities per year in America.

Assessing statistics like this can be cold. One death is too many and it’s particularly sad to realise that every single one of those deaths was avoidable. Without the pressure of social media, it’s very likely all these people would be alive. And to end this sad tale, I’m reminded of Narcissus and a myth that goes back at least two thousand years. Nothing is new.

Photo by Tuce on Unsplash.

SmugMug has Acquired Flickr

Photography,

SmugMug announced that it has acquired Flickr. SmugMug believes “You are not our product. You are our priority.” Those who are current users of either SmugMug or Flickr should read SmugMug’s FAQ page.

According to its FAQ, your SmugMug and Flickr accounts will remain separate and independent for the foreseeable future. Users will continue to log in with their current credentials and have the same experience they are used to.

If things change in the future for Flickr, SmugMug says it will be as transparent as possible about the process and give users as much notice as they can about the issues that matter to you.

Users will still be able to access their Flickr or SmugMug photos, and those photos will retain the same URL. Over time, SmugMug will be migrating Flickr onto SmugMug’s technology infrastructure, and user’s Flickr photos will move as a part of that migration. However, the photos themselves will remain on Flickr.

It is important to know that Flickr users should read over SmugMug’s Terms of Service. You will have 30 days (from the date an email about SmugMug’s terms was sent) to either accept SmugMug’s Terms or to opt out. If you do nothing, your Flickr account will transition from Yahoo’s Terms to SmugMug’s Terms. If you don’t want to make that change, you can delete your Flickr account.

SmugMug says that it will continue to offer Flickr’s free accounts, stating “We are not making any changes to Flickr plans or rates at this time”. SmugMug will let Flickr Pro customers know if that changes.

Those who currently have a Flickr Pro subscription will continue to enjoy all the benefits of Pro membership. SmugMug does not offer a free account. Plans range from $3.99/month to $29.99/month.

Photobucket is Charging a Subscription Fee

Photography

You might have noticed that some of the photos people have posted on social media are “broken”. Meaning, of course, that what is supposed to be a photo looks like a blank space or a question mark icon. The reason for this is because of a recent change made by Photobucket.

On June 26, 2017, Photobucket posted the following statement on their blog:

At Photobucket, we are committed to providing the best experiences and services for all of your photo image needs. We have updated our Terms of Service, effective June 20, 2017. Please take a moment to review our updated terms and policies as they may affect your account.

The post included a link to their Terms of Service. It is unclear why Photobucket backdated when the new changes would take place. People who use Photobucket, and found that blog post on the day it posted would learn that changes had been made about a week before. This certainly doesn’t leave any room for feedback about those changes.

Part of the Photobucket Terms of Service has details about types of accounts, pricing, and limits. Anyone can visit Photobucket for free. Anyone can register as a Member for free.

A Free Account provides a Member with 2 GB of free storage or space available for their original photo files or videos that are under 10 minutes. A Free account does not allow any image linking or 3rd party image hosting.

That’s fine for people who are brand new to Photobucket, or who have less than 2 GB of content on it. The change affects people who already have been using Photobucket and who have put more than 2 GB of content on it. The Terms of Service says that Members who have Free accounts, and who exceed their content limit, will have their account immediately suspended and will need to become a “Paying Member” in order to continue accessing their account.

This explains why so many Photobucket images “broke”. It also explains why people are upset about this new change. Petapixel included some tweets from disgruntled Photobucket users in their article about the situation.

Photobucket Members who have more than 2 GB on Photobucket will need to pay money for a subscription plan. There are three plans to choose from.

PLUS 50 costs $5.99/month (or $59.99/year). It gives you 52.0 GB of storage. It does not allow linking or 3rd Party Hosting.

PLUS 100 costs $9.99/month (or $99.99/year). It gives you 102.0 GB of storage. It allows Unlimited Linking, but does not allow 3rd Party Hosting.

PLUS 500 costs $39.99/month (or $399.99/year). It gives you 502.GB of storage. This Plan allows both Unlimited Linking and Unlimited 3rd Party Hosting.

In short, some Photobucket Members found that their photos were “broken”, and then discovered they could not access their account until they spent money. Those with more than 102.GB on Photobucket are looking at having to pay about $40.00 a month for a service that used to be provided for free.

Photobucket has every right to charge for their service, but this was not the best way for the company to go about doing it. This situation is a good example of why you shouldn’t host your content exclusively on a site that you do not own.

Nikon Museum to Display Prototype Cameras

Photography

The Nikon Museum will be holding a special exhibition called “Prototype Cameras – Developers’ Memories”. It will open in April and continue through July. This is the second special exhibition that Nikon will present in honor of its 100th Anniversary.

The exhibition is called “Prototype Cameras – Developers’ Memories”. It will open on April 4, 2017, and run through July 1, 2017. The Nikon Museum is located in Tokyo, Japan. Admission is free.

In the exhibition, Nikon will showcase approximately 40 prototypes that were made between the 1940’s and 1980’s. It includes interchangeable lens cameras. The “Nikon F prototype” (1957) and “Nikon F3 prototype” (1975) are exhibited with special commentaries by Tetsuro Goto, Fellow and Laboratory Manager of Imaging Product R&D Laboratory, Imaging Business Unit, Nikon.

Each of the prototypes in the exhibit were developed to test and verify new camera designs, functions, and mechanics. Many of the prototypes were destroyed after testing. Only the developers themselves saw the prototypes. This exhibition is an opportunity to exhibit the prototypes that were not destroyed to the general public. This very rare exhibition includes prototypes that never reached the mass production stage.

You can find out more about how Nikon is celebrating its 100th Anniversary at the Nikon 100th Anniversary website.

Polaroid Debuts Polaroid Pop at CES 2017

ces, Photography,

Polaroid celebrates its 80th anniversary in 2017, and they are kicking off their milestone year with the debut of the Polaroid Pop. It is the latest camera in the Polaroid Instant Digital Print line, and it pairs wireless technology with the iconic Polaroid 3″x4″ print.

The Polaroid Pop instant digital camera combines a sleek, modern design and digital technology with the classic 3″x4″ instant print format that is reminiscent of the brand’s iconic legacy instant print cameras.

Just like the Polaroid Snap and Polaroid Snap Touch instant digital cameras and the Polaroid Zip instant photoprinter, at the heart of the new Polaroid Pop instant digital camera is an integrated printer using ZINK Zero Ink Printing Technology. This gives users the ability to automatically print full color photos in the iconic 3″x4″ format with the Polaroid Classic Border Logo resulting in a 3.5”x4.25” print.

The Polaroid Pop also featured a traditional camera experience. The camera includes a 3.97-inch touchscreen LCD for framing shots and navigating the camera’s menu, a 20-megapixel CMOS sensor and dual LED flash for high quality images, image stabilization, as well as 1080p full HD video recording capability. All images and video are stored on a micro SD card (up to 128GB).

The Polaroid Pop can quickly and easily connect to a mobile device using a dual Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, transforming the camera into an instant photo printer. Via the Polaroid print app, available free for iOS and Android, users can edit and enhance their prints with a number of creative filters, digital stickers, effects, and controls. No matter what device they use to capture images, users will be able to share the fun with their own creative flair. The Polaroid Pop is ideal for today’s selfie shooters thanks to a self-timer. Additionally the Polaroid Pop has three color modes – black and white, color, and vintage sepia to give users that iconic Polaroid look and feel.

Visit Polaroid at CES 2017 in Central Hall at the Polaroid booth #16614.

TIME’s 100 Most Influential Images

art, Information, Photography, , ,

Time 100 PhotosAs it’s still early Advent, it’s not quite that period between Christmas and New Year where “The Best of 2016” features grace the front page of every media outlet. Still, that hasn’t stopped TIME announcing its 100 Most Influential Images of All Time. Fortunately, TIME has done a much better job than most and this feature explores the background and impact of iconic photographs, from “The View from the Window at Le Gras” by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce to “Alan Kurdi” by Nilüfer Demir. These are the images which define the human experience for nearly two centuries; too many of the pictures show suffering and pain, but others will reassure and confirm the amazing achievements selflessly done for the benefit all.

Pillars of Creation

“Pillars of Creation” by NASA / ESA / STScI / Arizona State University

Take some time to review the pictures, dig into their history and understand how that captured moment changed the world and perhaps directly affected you.