ABC’s “10 Photo-Editing Flubs: Digitally Altered Photo Disasters”
In an age of growing technological advancement and easy access to digital tools, it is no suprise that images in the media have made their way onto headlines. Recently, Microsoft Corp. was found to have digitally edited the face of man from white to black in a photo featured on the company’s US website. A college digitally inserted the picture of a black student on the cover of a brochure to show the “diversity” of its student population. Even more extreme is the example of an image showing four missiles being launched while another picture showed only three. What does this say about the advertising world as well as the future of photojournalism?
To read the full article about other instances of photo editing, please visit the ABC website here: http://i.abcnews.com/Technology/Story?id=8425991&page=1
Photography and the Environment
Photography has frequently been used to focus attention on environmental issues. Images have poignantly documented both the pristine beauty of remote rural areas and the ecological damage caused by environmental pollution. Ironically; the history of photography itself is littered with a variety of toxic chemicals that have certainly polluted and altered the environment. Some of the most dangerous photographic processes have included heavy metals like mercury and silver as well as a litany of pungent sulfuric compounds.
The transition from traditional photography to digital photography has shifted the perception of photography from a chemical process to an electrical one. Despite this perception there are still a great number of chemicals and hazardous materials associated with the production of digital cameras, imaging sensors and digital prints. This transition to digital imaging has undoubtedly changed the environmental impact of photography; however it may take time to understand if it has been reduced. Consider the role that digital cameras play in creating electronic waste: See National Geographic - High-Tech Trash http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/01/high-tech-trash/carroll-text It’s estimated that Americans dispose of about a 100,000 tons battery waste annually. How has the demand for camera batteries affected the environmental impact of photography? See: Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation http://www.rbrc.org/call2recycle/index.html & EPA:http://www.epa.gov/epr/products/batteries.htm
Photoshare Images - Keyword: Environmental Pollution http://www.photoshare.org/search_results.php?start_num=&Keyword_ID=228&Keyword_ID_val_sql_bool=AND
Photoshare Images - Keyword: Computers http://www.photoshare.org/search_results.php?start_num=&Keyword_ID=153&Keyword_ID_val_sql_bool=AND
Photoshare Images - Keyword: Environment http://www.photoshare.org/search_results.php?start_num=&Keyword_ID=225&Keyword_ID_val_sql_bool=AND
Additional Information Related to Reducing Your Impact:
Thirteen Ways to be a Greener Photographer http://www.popphoto.com/americanphotofeatures/4541/thirteen-ways-to-be-a-greener-photographer.html
Five Eco-Sensitive Photographic Adventures http://www.popphoto.com/americanphotofeatures/4538/five-eco-sensitive-photographic-adventures.html
Environmental Photography: Blending Art & Activism http://www.naturephotographers.net/articles0306/rb0306-1.html
Electronic waste menace: A young man carts obsolete computers shipped into Ghana from industrialized countries. © 2005 Mike Anane, Courtesy of Photoshare
-David Alexander, Photoshare