December 7, 2006
Blogs about photography
After talking last night with three Silicon Valley internet superstars about ways to improve www.lensculture.com, we came to the realization that what we at lens culture really want (more than money, which would be nice, too) is to create a forum for dialogue about photography and its impact on our daily lives, our cultures, and how we perceive reality, art, propaganda and more. Call it an international community of people with shared interests.
I truly enjoy the give-and-take conversations I have with smart, talented, passionate photographers, as well as others who are equally informed and passionate (like curators, gallery owners, publishers, critics, educators). I am inspired by work that reveals new points-of-view on our ever-changing world. And I love to discover photography (new or old) that pushes and plays with the limits of the medium and what it can show us. I find that photographers and photography lovers are often some of the most articulate people I have met.
It is also a delight to discover more and more blogs that talk about photography (rather than blogs that merely show photographs). As I've mentioned before, Magnum photographer Alec Soth has been publishing his thoughts and insights in a wonderfully prolific way on his personal blog. And Joerg Colberg, a long-time respected blogger, has just published an interview with Alec Soth about blogging, and why he does it.
One reason Soth has become so enthusiastic about blogging: "I discovered that I had a real hunger for the exchange of ideas. I'm extremely lucky to make my living as an artist, but the lifestyle isn't very romantic. I spend the bulk of my time dealing with office work (printing, shipping, billing, pricing, etc). Since I have a family, I'm not hanging out in smoky lofts debating aesthetics. The blog has become my virtual smoky loft."
A CALL TO ACTION:
So, we are now reaching out to you (anyone who is reading this) to ask for advice on ways to make the lens culture community more active and interactive and engaged — with voices and informed opinions and images and ideas from all over the world. Who are you, and what are your interests? We are eager to hear from you. Please comment or email.
Thanks!
Comments
we scan a lot of sources for our site which is dedicated to promoting imaging. at the moment there does not appear to be any rss or xml connectivity to lens culture. it would certainly benefit all involved if it were active and prominently displayed at the top of the home page. the site is very informative…
btw, our site is http://piranhadailynews.com.
What Alec said about a real hunger for the exchange of ideas rings true to me. Sometimes making photographs and running a photo business is a lonely pursuit, of course depending on subject matter etc., and one that begs for interaction with others who may have a somewhat parallel existence
It’s not my site but the feeds are here: www.lensculture.com/webloglc/index.rdf (RSS) www.lensculture.com/webloglc/atom.xm (Atom)
I would agree it would be a good idea for the site to link to those so that those users not using Firefox can find them ;)
Are you talking about a literal forum or bulletin board model where topical threads are the means of creating community or something more akin to a group blog where a variety of artistic viewpoints co-exist under one roof?
We briefly discussed the idea of running a forum on MakingRoom but were wary of the photo.net syndrome where it’s really difficult to filter opinion from knowledge from insecurity. Forums are always delicate places where ego can sometimes ruin the possibility of unique discussion.
I wouldn’t let that scare you away because a string core group can also pull in the right community.