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On the Tightrope
By Pedro Meyer I. The Elections
The
people of Mexico have spoken. The political party that has been in power
for over seventy years straight -making it the oldest in the world-
has to go. This was the outcome of the presidential elections this past
July 2nd. I mention this in order to point out certain parallels with
what is happening in the digital world, and more specifically, in relation
to photography.
One
would assume that people could easily be swayed to vote for change,
not necessarily for the sake of change itself, but for new options that
could greatly improve upon the status quo; especially as there are so
many issues that speak to a change in power. That, however, was not
the case. Not everyone sees eye-to-eye in the need for new leadership.
In fact, although a majority of Mexicans voted for opposition parties
(45 percent voted for the president-elect, and 18 percent for other
parties), there were still 37 percent who voted to keep the present
ruling party in power. They did not see any advantage to change; they
feared loosing the benefits they have, modest as these might be.
Mind
you, the rising tide of those willing to vote for change in this election
did not gain its strength overnight; the outcome was the result of at
least twelve years of effort by the parties involved. But it is only
now that the debate can commence regarding how to implement such changes.
This part is never easy. Challenging? Yes. Promising? Of course. But
only with a lot of struggle in between.
II. The Vote for Digital
With
these references to the elections in Mexico, we can examine the digital
world and discover similarities between the two. How, for instance,
the tide of acceptance of digital photography has suddenly swelled in
just this last year. As with the opposition in Mexico, what is happening
now is not the result of one year's effort, but rather of many years.
And in both exist those of the old guard, who believe their survival
to hang in the balance.
There
have been digital cameras, and computers with which to process images,
and programs with which to fine-tune the picture for at least twenty
years. Granted, the pictures one could create with them are a far cry
from what can be achieved today with quite inexpensive equipment. The
development was gradual, however at some point around six years ago
the technology improved so dramatically and so fast that it has taken
a lot of people by surprise.
For
instance among the people who have been most surprised are the ones
that sell all these tools. It used to be that a camera would be sold,
well, in a photographic equipment store. Today you can find cameras
also being offered of all places, next to TVs, refrigerators and vacuum
cleaners in electronic and appliance stores, or next to computers in
computer stores, or in office supply stores next to the cell phones
and copying machines. In other words, a digital (still or video) camera
has become ubiquitous, you can even buy all this stuff over the internet
or from all sorts of catalog vendors. The same thing can be said for
ink jet printers, the nominal equivalent of those past dark room days.
Lured
in by advertising, people have been slowly voting for change, and thus
started to buy digital equipment in ever increasing numbers. But now
comes the hard part, teaching and training people how to best use all
their newfound potential for creativity. Letís be frank about
this, how much good information about photography can you get from the
guy who is selling at the same time a camera and a refrigerator? Or
what does the salesman know about making a good digital print using
the ink jet printer they are selling you when he or she is also responsible
to sell you telephones, among other items. Or how about the nondescript
single paragraph next to the equipment being offered in catalogs, or
on line stores.
In
either way, still or moving images, I can assure you of one thing. The
salesmen offering the equipment don't have a clue of what they are selling
nor for that matter neither do the many of the art schools now teaching
about digital technologies. For the most part they do not know of all
the new tools that are, as in a river, constantly coming out onto the
market. And finally, thinking about the end user, who can actually be
using such potential creative capabilities in a meaningful way, when
the information about the tools is so limited, and the intellectual
and artistic debate so scarce. For instance, the emerging synergy between
the still and moving images in multimedia presentations. Or the use
of sound in conjunction with still images.
In
reality, salesmen or "associates" as they are euphemistically
called in some instances, the moment they would actually have the knowledge
we would like for them to have, are spirited off to more lucrative paying
assignments. And the people in schools and the art world that might
offer some help, are for the most part mired in the most Byzantine budgetary
constrictions, which seldom allows them to acquire the new tools to
which we made reference earlier. Thus impeding them to stay on top of
the learning curve of what can be done, be that hardware or software.
The
Internet is our best hope for realizing new creative capabilities in
a meaningful way. Much faster than ever before, with the Internet we
find information, solve problems, get inspiration for new ideas, and
share what we have accomplished. We can go directly to a manufacturer
for product information that vendors rarely have on hand, or we can
buy direct on-line. For inspiration we can visit sites displaying ideas
and current projects which in the past would have taken years to be
published. And above all, we can network in forums and chat rooms; we
can look for others who confronted a similar puzzle and found a solution.
We can ask questions of someone within a like-minded community of people
who enjoy sharing their knowledge.
If
you go to your local camera store, observe how the digital section has
been growing and growing. Most tell me that they are now selling volume
wise, more digital cameras, than film based cameras. The two areas,
traditional and digital, are living side by side, and they represent
more or less like in other aspects of life, the dichotomy between traditions
and a future that has already started today.
The
story with printers is even more dramatic, as there is really no direct
past to deal with. Their past is not as with cameras, other cameras,
but other systems. How many view that the past of the printer is actually
the combination of enlarger trays, trough, prongs, timer, easel, chemicals,
safety lamps, etc. In other words the entire dark room has in essence
become the equivalent to a printer. Granted you also need a computer
and some software. But were I can use my computer for many other things,
i.e. to write this story, which I can print it out on that same printer,
I can hardly do anything other than enlarge pictures with my dark room
equipment. I own a wonderful dark room, which I have not used now in
over ten years, and yet I have never made better prints, or been more
productive than now, when it became all digital.
III. The Democratic Process
In
variance to the Mexican elections, a process that took place on a specific
day, votes are being cast every day for adopting digital photography.
And rest assured, the votes are being counted carefully by all those
interested in such an outcome.
Those
of us who use all these tools and who operate from the perspective of
creators, we must make ourselves heard as to what we need and want.
Take
for instance the fact that prints from ink jet printers tended to fade
rather quickly. The problem was addressed and largely resolved by numerous
parties. We have now come to a point where some digital prints supposedly
outlast even traditional silver halide prints. Now, that I call progress.
Another
area desperately in need of improvement is that of the power supply.
With so much equipment now electronic, we are faced with a nightmare
of cables and power supplies that must be dragged along when we work
outside of our immediate premises. It should not be so that when I take
a journey, the bag of secondary equipment that I carry is heavier and
more cumbersome than that which I will actually use. On my last trip
I had nine power supplies with me! And that is not including the diversity
of wall plugs needed, as they vary from one area of the world to the
next. The main problem lies in that each company provides a unique re-charger,
assuming that theirs is the only piece of equipment one uses. Has anyone
given thought to creating a universal re-charger? To creating standards?
The ideal would be a universal, solar battery re-charger. I am sure
that this will come along sooner or later, as there is a demand for
it and no technological hindrance. We need to make ourselves heard with
respect to this issue.
A
scant few weeks after our editorial went on line, the following announcement
was made at MacWORLD:
Remember
one thing, your involvement and vote does count in this time of upheaval.
Let
us hear what you have to say about digital photography and all the changes
at hand.
Pedro Meyer's photographs are found in the collections of more than 40 major museums throughout the world. He's also authored several books, including Los Cohetes Duraron Todo el Dia; Tempii di America; and Espejo de Espinas. His column appears each month in Camera Works.
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 ©Pedro Meyer 2001
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