“Photography is rooted in the rich culture of amateurism. What’s happening today is similar to the original proliferation of Kodak’s Brownie camera starting in 1900. An inexpensive and easy-to-use camera in every hand didn’t usher in the end of photography or automatically turn everybody into Richard Avedon.
Photo apps won’t magically give Jane the smartphone photographer a better sense of composition, or lighting, or framing. The apps and filters only change a photo’s look and aesthetic feel. That doesn’t make it a better photo. If you put lipstick on a pig, it’s still a pig.”
I could practically quote the entire essay from Richard Koci Hernandez. He is far more eloquent in defining what I’ve felt for a long time about photography (or any art) and technology.
Another choice quote referenced in the video essay,
“When people ask what equipment I use, I tell them my eyes.”
– Ansel Adams.