Is it a successful strategy to replace photographers with reporters working with iPhones?
The innovations in the mobile world have a huge impact in our lives in many different aspects. A good example for this is the news that came from the newspaper Chicago Sun-Times that has fired all the professional photographers working for the media. The reason? The media has decided to hand the duties of taking photos suitable for the articles to the reporters. They would use their iPhones to take the photos. What are the results from this decision?
Recently we had the chance to see a new Tumblr that illustrates in a very good way the difference between the works of professional photographs and the results from the work of the reporters using their iPhones. It is called Sun Times/Dark Times and it is worth it checking by everyone who has a good taste for professionally performed work. The difference is obvious, especially in some examples, like the shots of the Chicago Blackhawks. The picture that has been published in Sun-Time presents the scene following the win of the Stanley Cup of the Blackhawks. The picture from the same event published in competition media is a lot more close to hearts for the fans of the team. The quality of the pictures is a lot higher in the rival media. So is the point of view of the photographer – the second picture makes us share the emotion and feel the moment.
The reasons for the decision of Sun-Time to fire its whole team of photographs is perhaps because of needed economy in the company. However, we cannot help it but ask ourselves whether this is a good idea for a media that wants to provide decent materials for its readers. What is your opinion? Do you think that the cameras of iPhone have the potential to replace the professional cameras? Is the high quality of the iPhone cameras enough to make up for the lack of experience of the non-professional photographers? Share with us your opinion below in the comments.
Source: Daring Fireball
