A darkroom inside the camera
A remarkable mid-century invention allowed a photographer to produce pictures almost immediately, a bit of magic that is rarely matched even by current digital cameras.
Instant gratification in the Swinging Sixties
Articles Tagged with social effects of technology
The artist and her tools
Our photographer accompanied a pair of artists on a picture-taking expedition this past weekend. As expected, he has observations to make about old and new technology. But he was also driven to more general musings about the relationship between artists, their visions and their tools.
“Outside the proper scope”
What you can do, and what you should do
In the Five Colors Science & Technology library of photography are a number of old books that we still find interesting. Apart from details of procedures and chemistry that are hard to find elsewhere, they show the different ideas, through the years, of just what was a good photograph.
The old fencer and the cheap watch
The unexpected usefulness of old and new things
Our navigator had the pleasure of attending a fencing match this past weekend as a spectator. The range in ages of the participants was unusually large, which highlights some important considerations about newer and older people and things.
With or against the grain?
Defects become desirable
Our photographer is bemused by modern efforts to re-create, digitally, two of the least desirable qualities of fast film: high contrast and large grain. But the paradox of limitations and defects becoming highly sought-after features is not new, and is as widespread as ripped jeans.
No more libraries?
Electronics replaces paper
For many purposes, books are no longer necessary. That is, for entertainment or learning one need not find or carry around a pile of bound paper. The internet contains a vast landscape of information and e-books are ubiquitous. So do will still need places to borrow paper books from—libraries? Or librarians?
No more trade-offs
It’s easier when you can have it all
Life was more complicated in the old days. Not only were many things more difficult and tedious to accomplish, often you had to work out which of several methods you should use depending on what you really needed done. It’s much easier now. Really.
The anti-selfie
Candid photography (for the expert)
We turn again to the theme of technology transforming society, or at least one part of it. With the invention of the 35mm still camera about a quarter of the way into the twentieth century, a whole area of life was suddenly opened up to photography. That was not the intention of the inventor, who was only looking for a lighter-weight way to take pictures himself.
The need for distraction
The ubiquitous earphone
Our astronomer visited the exercise room last night, as is his regular habit. This time there were several other people there. How one of them went about his workout routine prompted some thought and some speculation about the importance of the earphone to modern society, as well as underlining the differences between people.
But why pictures?
A photographer explores the ubiquity of images
Fooling around with a certain bit of relatively recent technology prompted our photographer to ask the question: why are there so many pictures? Our main way of capturing reality, that great manifold of experiences, is still the two-dimensional image. Being a scientist he then sought an answer (where a philosopher might instead have fallen into existential doubt). It’s not so hard to work out, really, but does highlight something important about our memories, and how technology is changing them.