Index
In the past few years there have been several experiments with always-on life-streaming and body-monitoring cameras that record continuously. These cameras then store the past several minutes of footage, continually re-writing old footage until the owner tells it to save something. They sell this with the idea that there will be no more missed shots. You'll have access to everything, all the time. Only it won't just be our cameras.
We're already being recorded by dozens of cameras every day1. Every stranger on the street has their phone, every shop front has a security camera. Increasingly, every home doorway and every car dashboard has a camera mounted on it as well. Add to this the still-nascent wearable technologies, and suddenly, it's not just doors and cars but every pair of eye-glasses, every jacket, and every stroller are also equipped with always-on cameras.
Now, here's where I'm going to get willfully optimistic. I'm going to assume that we will own and be able to access all this footage of ourselves and our lives. In my vision, the A.I.'s that run the pattern-matching software will know who I am and be able to show me Tik Toks and YouTube videos that feature me in the background, or let me know about the security footage that captured a sweet moment with my kid and would I like a copy? And, because it's my utopia, no one else is allowed to search for me without my permission2.
But in this utopia, because of the wealth of cameras we have recording us, we now have every moment of our lives captured and in multiple angles. So, what do we do with it all? And, most relevantly to this newsletter, is there a place for a photographer in a society where everyone has all the photos they could ever need?
As for the first question, the answer is undoubtedly, let the A.I. do it. After all, if the robots can tell me where the good photos are coming from, then it can pick out the best ones and give me a list that has passed the first curation. I hope. Because the thing is, we are already becoming archivists. We are already becoming curators.
I have more photos on my phone from the past six months than I do from the entire five years I spent at university studying photography. I have more photos of my kid from the past year than I do of myself from ages zero to...yesterday. Already I spend the majority of my photo time cataloging and storing the bulk of my photos and presenting only the barest few3. And while I don't think this is a bad thing, it is a problem that is only getting worse.
Because a lot of the photos on my phone are ones I don't need to keep. They're the scribbled note I took a picture of rather than carry in my pocket; they're the lecture notes written on a whiteboard and the price tag of that new t.v. and the front of the locker in the teacher's lounge so I know which one is mine...and so on. I don't need those photos after a certain date but I still have them, because sorting through them and deleting them...whose got time for that?
As for the second question - I think so. There's a lot of news about A.I.s right now. They're becoming increasingly capable and more refined every day. But I don't think they're going to take all our jobs. I think people still want human connection; anyone who's ever tried to have an in-depth conversation with Alexa or Siri knows just how far the A.I.s have to go to, regardless of how good they get at drawing and playing chess. But more importantly, I think the role of photographer will evolve. I think the job will be less, have camera, will photograph and more, have A.I., will interface and choose the best photos for you.
Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing, only time will tell. Here are this week's notes:
16 September 2022 - "Circles" - In theory, this is a bike rack. It's just outside a community center in my town. The thing is, I've never seen a bike locked to it. Instead, all the kids just ditch their bikes all over the lawn between the swing set and the slide. The flowers look nice, though.
17 September 2022 - "Dragon" - This dragon is part of an intricate fountain located at one of the entrances to a temple complex called Nikko Toshogu. There's a lot of history and a lot of lore about the place, the most relevant to today's audiences is that Toshogu is the final resting place of the Shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu. The historical Tokugawa was a shrewd politician and warlord who united much of what is now modern Japan. He also served as the basis for the titular Shogun in James Clavell's novel. It's a cool place to walk around.
18 September 2022 - "Raindrops Falling on My Head" - We're only a couple weeks into the proper typhoon season and yet it's shaping up to be one of the more memorable ones. Out of the 13 (as of the time this photo was taken) that had been numbered by Japan's meteorological agencies, two had been given "stronger than usual status" and number 14 which was on its way when I took the photo, had actually achieved "super typhoon" status. Fun stuff.
19 September 2022 - "Pre-Storm" - The main thing about typhoons in my area is that they rarely do any real damage in terms of flooding or landslides, but they do knock down a lot of power lines. I'm always worried about this particular power line because it's so entangled in the trees of this slope.
20 September 2022 - "Post-Storm" - There's a harvesting tractor under the blue tarp that had been wrapped up and put to bed before the storm hit. I took this picture about six hours after the trailing edge of the storm had passed on by. It was a really lovely day if you just avoided the news talking about how bad the flooding was down in the Southern end of the country.
21 September 2022 - "Pop-up" - I like the composition here, the way the power lines just kind of appear within the natural frame of the trees. I dunno. I just do.
22 September 2022 - "Downtown" - It had been a minute since I had a chance to go into the city and check things out; when I finally got the chance to go into Utsunomiya, I went over to the newly built East side of the station where there is a new promenade and shopping center. It's not fully built yet, but the cafe is open and that's all that really matters. But, on my way back over to the West side, I managed to get this layered view of a train, the platform and the indoor waiting area at the top.
Sounds scary because it is scary; what we consumers have to realize is that this is already happening but it's being sold to us as convenience and protection and so we overlook the bigger concerns.
Don't tell me how unrealistic this is. I've read Huxley and Orwell and I know just how bad this is gonna get.
By sending them to my wife so she can get them printed.
I liked your vision of thinking about the future as would you like a copy of a random moment our AI captured, but what about privacy:-)
Enjoyed the pics