Stock or Schlock…The Death March of an Industry

by EveNSteve

By Stephen M. Schaub

Stock photography…seemed like a good idea some years ago. Turn those old jobs and personal works into revenue again and again or take the plunge and just shoot and shoot, amass a huge catalog of images and sell away.

Great, right? NO!

Stock photography has become the muzak of the visual industry. Sure, it fits tight budgets where good imagery is needed (and there is some good stock photography available) but all of this stock imagery used to be actual jobs photographers got hired to shoot…now it is just a click on any stock agency screen…no photographer to hire, just enter your credit card and done. Add into the mix the incredible shrinking day rate for working photographers and stock is a spike through the heart. How can you pay your bills, feed your family and expect to compete with the bargain rates stock imagery sells for?… you can’t. You may disagree with me but- you’re wrong. Want great work, need great imagery- HIRE a photographer!

The Photo Industrial Complex has also screwed photographers (yes again) in this area of day rate and making a living as well. Ever notice how after convincing us to lighten our wallet for the next studio upgrade or latest software gizmo that they then come out with a slimmed down and affordably priced version of the product you just bought…and then proceed to sell it to: your client. Ask any wedding photographer or table-top photographer and they will tell you that digital and small product photography set-ups have killed a large segment of their revenue.

In the the end it is the photographers themselves that are the worst whores and imbeciles because we allowed this to happen in the first place…why? Greed, laziness take your pick…maybe lack of business vision. Yes, stock photography does have it’s place, as do do-it-yourself setups, but nothing can or ever will replace the creative eye of the professional photographer. Amen.

Film is Not Dead…No Kidding!

by EveNSteve

By Stephen M. Schaub

Film is not dead…yeah we know. Today I received a catalog from KEH proclaiming that Film Is Not Dead on the cover. Additionally, I also got a copy of an interesting study recently done by Kodak- to summarize:

9,000 professional photographers in the US were surveyed and over 75% said that they will continue to use film even as they embrace digital technology.

68% preferred the results from film to digital
48% find that medium and large format films capture superior quality
48% like the traditional photographic look
45% find film has better highlights and shadows
42% like film’s wide exposure latitude compared with digital
38% like film’s archival storage

The article goes on to state that Black and White in film is a big reason most photographers are still keeping film around (90%).

So what does all this mean?

In a nut shell…do both. Shoot film! Shoot digital! Do what you want and let the advertising hype just pass you by. I also received a copy of PDN today (current issue)…not surprising that almost every ad and new product review is about digital…how is that for reflecting what photographers are interested in (see above survey as a reminder).

We maintain that a good film scan is near impossible to beat in terms of quality and cost. Digital capture does have a place but… for now the Photographers have spoken.

Film is Not Dead…No Kidding!

by EveNSteve

By Stephen M. Schaub

Film is not dead…yeah we know. Today I received a catalog from KEH proclaiming that Film Is Not Dead on the cover. Additionally, I also got a copy of an interesting study recently done by Kodak- to summarize:

9,000 professional photographers in the US were surveyed and over 75% said that they will continue to use film even as they embrace digital technology.

68% preferred the results from film to digital
48% find that medium and large format films capture superior quality
48% like the traditional photographic look
45% find film has better highlights and shadows
42% like film’s wide exposure latitude compared with digital
38% like film’s archival storage

The article goes on to state that Black and White in film is a big reason most photographers are still keeping film around (90%).

So what does all this mean?

In a nut shell…do both. Shoot film! Shoot digital! Do what you want and let the advertising hype just pass you by. I also received a copy of PDN today (current issue)…not surprising that almost every ad and new product review is about digital…how is that for reflecting what photographers are interested in (see above survey as a reminder).

We maintain that a good film scan is near impossible to beat in terms of quality and cost. Digital capture does have a place but… for now the Photographers have spoken.

All Things Must End

by EveNSteve

By Stephen M. Schaub

Today was a hard day. After water damage to my old studio this last winter destroyed my 4″ x 5″ and 8″ x 10″ enlargers- today, at last, was dumpster day. My 4″ x 5″ had traveled with me occupying 4 different darkroom configurations in different states spanning the last 15+ years. My 8″ x 10″ was the relative new kid on the block and I feel that it’s end was way too soon. Fortunately my lenses were fine (I will post them on ebay later) but my emotions are shot. I’ve also been cleaning out and rereading “old” photo magazines (good ones and suckie ones alike) and marveling at the rapid change our medium has gone through in just a few short years…it is very scary.

I have never been one to get too attached to equipment as I have always viewed gear as just that- gear to make my work with, period. But this was different. Now that I no longer have enlargers and my former darkroom is empty the option is gone to revisit the wet darkroom (unless of course I lose my mind and buy a new enlarger…not going to happen.) I’m ok with this (sort of) but it does bring up many of the points illustrated in the Figital Revolution book and today they all landed square on my doorstep with a bang and a thump of my enlargers landing one at a time in the dumpster.

The Figital Revolution – THE BOOK!

by EveNSteve


After months of writing, editing, editing and more editing we are PROUD to announce the official release of The Figital Revolution Book- A Maverick Manifesto for the 21st Century Photographer. To order your copy today just click on the LuLu buy book link on the right column of this web site. In the coming weeks this no-holds barred look at the photo-world today will also be available from other online book sellers but why wait? Order your copy today! The Revolution has begun…

It’s the Print That Matters

by EveNSteve

By Stephen M. Schaub

Morning Quickie…

I heard over and over needless concern from fine art photographers about which media to print on and which media is accepted by the industry and which is not. This disturbs me as we are talking about a work of ART and not something which can easily or should necessarly even fit into a neat category or process. If your work is printed on canvas, hand-made paper or Saran Wrap who cares as long as it is the correct media for your work. Collectors buy work based on what they love. Archival is nice but way overemphasized by photographers- brilliant color and deep blacks can be great but it depends on the work. If archival was king Pollock wouldn’t have sold a thing.

In the end it is your work, not a gallery’s or publisher’s or anyone else’s- it is up to you to decide how it is printed and displayed…let the Photo Industrial Complex and the ART world control this part of our medium and I think I’ll take up lawn mowing for a living.

Alternative Light Source

by EveNSteve

By Stephen M. Schaub

First off let me be VERY clear…the Figital Revolution is not one of those sites where reviews are paid by advertising dollars (we have no dollars) and this site is not the place to go see and read all about the next piece of crap you don’t really need.

Having now cleared that up I had the chance this last week to look at a new item I feel may just fit some photographers’ needs, both for film and digital (imagine that!) I got this idea in my head that wouldn’t it be great to have an on-camera light (not flash) that could be dimmed, daylight balanced, light-weight and rechargable. Drumroll please…Presenting Vidled. Yes this product which is really intended for video purposes can be mounted in your hot shoe using a small ball head (very cul) and allow you to see exactly what you light is going to look like and by the use of a dimmer on the unit tweak it perfectly…and it is really a nice quality of light…for some things. My initial idea was to use this with a wee bit of a softening gel over the light for intimate portraits where flash just wasn’t right and big hot light wern’t either. Problem is that LED lights are really bright and difficult to look at even with my diffuser installed. Additionally, the light output is not huge so doing a portrait at say a distance of 7+ feet requires near full power which of course is going to blind your subject. But this brings me to the area where this handy little gadget in my opinion could be useful: MACRO and CLOSEUPS as well as still subjects that need just a little bit more light at, say, a distance not past 8 or 9 feet. You could also paint your subject with light and do some amazing long exposure stuff. The battery (depending on the version) lasts from 1.5 – 3 hours on full blast…not bad. The weight is equal to my Sunpak 383 with batteries so…reasonable. For more information on this product and to view their different configurations just visit: vidled.com

Let The Games Begin!

by EveNSteve

It’s that time of year again when the excitement for the new and fantastic is palpable. Is it Christmas? Is it my birthday? No it is Photo Convention time! What?

It’s the hypnotic time of year when new cameras, printers and photo accessories are released upon the photo community at a frantic pace in an attempt to convince you that the gear you bought last season is now somehow dated and inferior.

Be Smart. Be Figital.

Look at the reality of what is new and is it movement or is it progress? Yes, there are new and wonderful products and some meaningful upgrades but REALLY look and don’t just buy into the hype.

Who Really Owns Your Work…ONCE YOU’RE DEAD?

by EveNSteve

Let’s not pussy-foot around here, in this hypothetical situation… YOU’RE DEAD. And being the generous gifted photographer that you were, you not only sold work but also gave images to local art institutions and museums. But now that you’re dead, who owns the work…I mean the rights to reproduce and control the release of the works, hmmm? My experience is that most institutions get very possessive of your works once they have them, even to the point of asserting rights to their use. Some art institutions (I won’t mention any names here) have the artist sign his/her life away and all usage and control of the artworks for the “honor” of being included in their collection. I got to thinking on this topic when, on a recent trip to the Clark Museum in Massachusettes, I wanted to photograph my daughter drawing a picture of Monet for fun and for something for her to remember this trip by. When I asked if it was ok (no flash, no tripod, just a picture) I was informed that photographs were NOT ALLOWED. Excuse me- but Monet is the only one who OWNS copyright to his works and he is long since dead and thus this is not an issue. It was ok of course to draw the picture but any photography within the exhibit was strictly forbidden. How nice though, that for a mere $65 dollars the gift shop has a complete book of the show (we bought it, of course). I could understand if the purposes of the image in question were for commercial uses but that aside the museum does not own the copyright to these works- the owners of the artworks themselves do not own the copyright to these works, Monet does and he is-we can all agree- dead. So all of this amounts to a whoring of dead artists works in a greedy attempt to not only get your admission dollars but also drive you to the gift dept for that must-have book. Of course the museum owns the building and the galleries so their word is final…BUT it is, IMHO, wrong.

Steel Versus Plastic…the Final Word!

by EveNSteve

I have heard old time photographers and newbies alike swear to the professional quality and unmatched superiority of both steel and plastic reels. This is just such a ridiculous argument that I will end NOW once and for all. Who is right you ask? Answer…(drum roll please) BOTH. Once again the choice (and choice is good) is yours based on your working style. Just let it be known that most mid-size labs run Jobos or similar processors for their 135 and 120 films and guess what those machines use: PLASTIC reels. Steel reels are great especially if you are willing to buy good ones like Hewes but plastic is hard to beat if you are on a budget. I personally find plastic easier to use as it does not bend and loads very quickly- cleanup is also a snap. I have both in our studio and use them interchangeably so there you have it…you pick which one you like and lets now have a discussion about something important like what your work is really about.