Looking at Lincoln through Flickr lenses
There are professional photographers and amateur photographers. There’s the guy who works for National Geographic and the grandma who snaps shots of her grandchildren.
And there’s this big gray area in between.
That’s where Lincolnite Scott Wesley, 40, lives.
“I fall into that area,” Wesley said, “because I have taken photos for money, but I don’t primarily make a living as a photographer.”
This gray area has ballooned in recent years, he says.
This is because of a couple of things. For one, serious digital cameras are getting less expensive and easier to use, leading more people to take a stab at the shutterbug life.
But a less apparent cause is a batch of social networking sites dedicated to photography. One of the most popular is Flickr.com, a photo management and networking tool that allows people to upload their work and share it with fellow photogs.
While most social sites limit interaction to the World Wide Web, Flickr brings people together in the whole wide world. This social networking site is actually getting people to be social.
Flickr groups are popping up in communities all over the world. The groups go on walks, shoot together, learn from one another, and the number of “gray area” photographers continues to rise.
Lincoln’s group has about 280 members, most on again, off again. But some are completely dedicated, like Liz Vird, who bought a digital SLR because she was in the Flickr group. She treks up to Lincoln from Beatrice three or four times a month to hang out and shoot around with other group members.
It started with a Flickr.com discussion thread titled, “Photowalk anyone?” Ever since, the Flickr group has shot and posted photos exclusively of Lincoln. They’ve shot UNL’s Maxwell Arboretum, the Haymarket, the Nebraska State Capitol and, most recently, Sunken Gardens.
In two years of shooting, the group has an archive of nearly 5,000 photos of all things Lincoln, serving as a big, loving, knowing tribute to our city.
One thing the Lincoln Flickr group strives for, said group administrator and co-founder Sarah Rosenau, is to be welcoming to all ages and skill levels.
From little kids to old men. From novices to pros. But most of the members fall into the gray area.
“I think what Flickr does is it gets people that would have never considered either amateur photography or semipro photography to pick up a camera,” Rosenau said. “People can get inspired by a really talented and artistic photographer, and then they’re challenged to imitate. People are exposed to a higher level of photography in some people’s photo streams.”
And for the semipro, Flickr’s a good catalyst to get out and work. Just as blogs force writers to write consistently, Flickr forces photographers to photograph constantly. And the need to update your Flickr page can be compulsive.
“When you have a constant audience, people who always look at the new photos you’ve put up, it’s kind of a kick,” said Lincoln Flickr group member Justin McDowell, 26. “If the the photos get stale, the people that were following you will get bored.”
And being prolific and keeping up-to-date with your Flickr account might now be more advantageous than ever. You might be able to make money with your art.
Earlier this month, Yahoo, which owns Flickr, and Getty Images announced a partnership in which Getty editors will sift through Flickr images in search of great photos. If the editors pick your photo, they’ll ask you for your participation and pay you the same rates that Getty pays photographers under contract.
It’s a potential revolution in photography akin to the blogging explosion. Once companies caught on to the work taking place in the blogosphere, many amateur writers made the leap to pro.
If Flickr’s partnership with Getty is any indication, the same kind of leap could be in store for a bunch of unpaid photographers.
And a few of the grays could turn green, perhaps.
Reach Micah Mertes at 473-7395 or mmertes@journalstar.com.
And there’s this big gray area in between.
That’s where Lincolnite Scott Wesley, 40, lives.
“I fall into that area,” Wesley said, “because I have taken photos for money, but I don’t primarily make a living as a photographer.”
This gray area has ballooned in recent years, he says.
This is because of a couple of things. For one, serious digital cameras are getting less expensive and easier to use, leading more people to take a stab at the shutterbug life.
But a less apparent cause is a batch of social networking sites dedicated to photography. One of the most popular is Flickr.com, a photo management and networking tool that allows people to upload their work and share it with fellow photogs.
While most social sites limit interaction to the World Wide Web, Flickr brings people together in the whole wide world. This social networking site is actually getting people to be social.
Flickr groups are popping up in communities all over the world. The groups go on walks, shoot together, learn from one another, and the number of “gray area” photographers continues to rise.
Lincoln’s group has about 280 members, most on again, off again. But some are completely dedicated, like Liz Vird, who bought a digital SLR because she was in the Flickr group. She treks up to Lincoln from Beatrice three or four times a month to hang out and shoot around with other group members.
It started with a Flickr.com discussion thread titled, “Photowalk anyone?” Ever since, the Flickr group has shot and posted photos exclusively of Lincoln. They’ve shot UNL’s Maxwell Arboretum, the Haymarket, the Nebraska State Capitol and, most recently, Sunken Gardens.
In two years of shooting, the group has an archive of nearly 5,000 photos of all things Lincoln, serving as a big, loving, knowing tribute to our city.
One thing the Lincoln Flickr group strives for, said group administrator and co-founder Sarah Rosenau, is to be welcoming to all ages and skill levels.
From little kids to old men. From novices to pros. But most of the members fall into the gray area.
“I think what Flickr does is it gets people that would have never considered either amateur photography or semipro photography to pick up a camera,” Rosenau said. “People can get inspired by a really talented and artistic photographer, and then they’re challenged to imitate. People are exposed to a higher level of photography in some people’s photo streams.”
And for the semipro, Flickr’s a good catalyst to get out and work. Just as blogs force writers to write consistently, Flickr forces photographers to photograph constantly. And the need to update your Flickr page can be compulsive.
“When you have a constant audience, people who always look at the new photos you’ve put up, it’s kind of a kick,” said Lincoln Flickr group member Justin McDowell, 26. “If the the photos get stale, the people that were following you will get bored.”
And being prolific and keeping up-to-date with your Flickr account might now be more advantageous than ever. You might be able to make money with your art.
Earlier this month, Yahoo, which owns Flickr, and Getty Images announced a partnership in which Getty editors will sift through Flickr images in search of great photos. If the editors pick your photo, they’ll ask you for your participation and pay you the same rates that Getty pays photographers under contract.
It’s a potential revolution in photography akin to the blogging explosion. Once companies caught on to the work taking place in the blogosphere, many amateur writers made the leap to pro.
If Flickr’s partnership with Getty is any indication, the same kind of leap could be in store for a bunch of unpaid photographers.
And a few of the grays could turn green, perhaps.
Reach Micah Mertes at 473-7395 or mmertes@journalstar.com.
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