Photocritic photography blog

I good long while ago ago, I posted an article about Roland Barthes’ Camera Lucida. At the time, one of my readers - Wigwam Jones - posted a rather awesome response, and I have been meaning to highlight it at some level - It’s been a long time coming, but here we go - I bring to you, Basically, The lovely Wigwam’s take on photography, Barthes, ad a bit of nihilistic arts theory thrown in for good measure. Read the rest of the article »

Owners of high-mileage automobiles know that there is a certain magic about seeing your clock tick over from 99,999 miles to zero. As if your old 100,000 mile warrior is brand new again. A quick check reveals that there’s no such luck: The rust is still there. That passenger door is still dented. The engine still makes that weird rattle at 56.2 miles per hour. But there’s something very satisfying about it as well. You learn the quirks and niggles of your motor, and it means that you are the only person who can drive it properly.

The same thing goes for digital cameras. I was just downloading some photos off my 30D, and discovered that I had gone around the clock yet again. That marks the fact that I’ve taken 100,000 photos with my cameras over the past five years or so. Read the rest of the article »

I spend a lot of time looking at people’s photos, both for work, and for this website. It helps me identify where I go wrong myself. I’ve grown to realise that my biggest downfall is that I tend to use odd crops on photos, and I’m obsessive about certain aspects about my photography.

I’m curious though… Are my hang-ups and failures the same as other photographers’? Read the rest of the article »

It’s a question that keeps haunting the digital camera world again and again - how big, exactly, can you print a photo taken with a X megapixel digital camera?

The answers seem to differ a lot, partially because of the various definitions. In a bid to put an end to all the half-arsed opinions and semi-valid arguments, Design 215 have taken one for the team, and explain it all… Nevermind that I don’t quite agree with them, but it’s worth having a read either way. Read the rest of the article »

Hi folks, I’m curious to know what sort of camera you lot use, so I can cater for it in this blog. It’s terribly simple, just fill in the poll below.

Also, if you want to get more specific, please do post the make and model of your camera in the comments :) Read the rest of the article »

Ok, I know this post is a bit of a cop-out, but it made me giggle, so I couldn’t help but post it (and I’m too busy for proper posts at the moment, gosh darn it!).

What do you do after a long day of taking photos? Or when you go for a night on the town? Would you still like people to know that you are a photographer? Well then you obviously need one of these shirts! Read the rest of the article »

Philip is one of the photographers I’ve been following for years and years. He is a tremendously good photographer, and he has been an inspiration to me for years.

I’ve mentioned him before, as part of our writeup on concert photography, as the guy is a fantastic concert photographer. That only deals with a tiny fraction of where his real skills lay, however… Read the rest of the article »

A good way to get to grips with camera equipment is to go out and rent some. Here in the UK, I’ve found Calumet Photo to be an invaluable source of expensive glass on a temporary basis (they also have a presence in Germany, Holland, and the US), but I just stumbled across a brand new concept: On-line lens rental! Read the rest of the article »

So, they decided to exile Pluto from our little planetary club. What? Suddenly a planet less? Though this be madness, yet there is method in ‘t. Nonetheless, it’s getting a bit lonely down here, afting having an 11% decrease in number of planets to deal with over night.

So, we were most happy when we discovered that our old comrades over at PhotoJoJo had stumbled across a wicked solution: With the power of Photoshop, panoramas and more than a little bit of creativity, you can make your own planets - just like that! Read the rest of the article »

I don’t normally single out single photographers, but I’ve been a fan of Renoux for so long, that I feel I have to plug the guy. He’s a Frenchman, no doubt with an intense passion for life. His portraiture work is some of the most amazing I’ve ever seen in my life. The sheer Joie de vivre, passion and je-ne-sais-quoi that radiates from his photos is out of this world. Read the rest of the article »