Changes coming

[bensonga]

I would not leave if it was medium format only, but I think medium format photographers ALSO use smaller formats too. Having all the discussions in one place builds a community.

Well said Jeff! It is this community of photographers, using a wide variety of equipment to produce and share images, experience and technical assistance, that makes GetDPI special for many of us.

 

[stngoldberg]

I‘m a medium format aficionado, but occasionally my Phase One is not the best tool for the job at hand.
Today I used my Sony A1 with my 600mm lens because I would not have been able to get the attached image with any lens attached to my phase XF body.
i enjoy posting my Sony images here…hopefully I’ll be able to in the future and see what others are doing with their Sonys

 

[cunim]

It seems that we members appreciate the service that Getdpi gives us. Gear commentary, technical skills, locations, friendly audience? The list is long and a small forum can only do so much. In this thread, I have learned that this forum must change or it will fail. None of us want that to happen.

Practically, I am here for the friendly audience. It doesn't reject my (questionable) skill level or off-centre photo preferences. Some of that audience is involved with other formats than MF and I would be very sorry to lose them. However, I would not leave if this became just an MF board. What would cause me to leave is if, as a result of that MF focus, the member population became smaller. There are already too few of us and that is exactly what management is trying to change.

You know, I have a lot of respect for the LF Photography board. I don't qualify for it any more, but I miss the contents and membership there. A merger of the LF and Getdpi boards would be an awesome way to increase the diversity and number of members.

 

[Ai_Print]

You know, I have a lot of respect for the LF Photography board. I don't qualify for it any more, but I miss the contents and membership there. A merger of the LF and Getdpi boards would be an awesome way to increase the diversity and number of members.

If you mean a merger of this site and LFF, then the heavy handed moderation of LFF would have to change or it will absolutely kill the spirit of this place. Specifically certain moderators from LFF would have to chill out quite a bit if they were to serve that role here. I think the moderation practices are at a good balance here. For example, if you want to comment on or ask a question about an item in the buy and sell section here you know others will benefit in having asked, you can and I never see any abuse of it. That is not the case on LFF and between the super strict moderation, aging membership and the rapidly escalating price of sheet film, I doubt that site has much time left.

But back to the primary concern here, those who have sung the praises of this site have a nice little country club but without the country club fee. Sure, it is more peaceful for that lower traffic, but that is not sustainable and the ownership wants to draw in more members but not be all things to all people it would seem. In an age in which photography is about to go through another enormous shift, the roadmap in how best to achieve this is pretty unclear.

 

[cunim]

If you mean a merger of this site and LFF, then the heavy handed moderation of LFF would have to change or it will absolutely kill the spirit of this place. Specifically certain moderators from LFF would have to chill out quite a bit if they were to serve that role here. I think the moderation practices are at a good balance here. For example, if you want to comment on or ask a question about an item in the buy and sell section here you know others will benefit in having asked, you can and I never see any abuse of it. That is not the case on LFF and between the super strict moderation, aging membership and the rapidly escalating price of sheet film, I doubt that site has much time left.

I haven't contributed to LFP in about five years but, before then, I had a different experience than you describe. It was friendly, helpful, and a nice place to interact. Sounds like it has changed - or I was just lucky at the time.

I agree that LFP is probably in as much danger as Getdp,i but I hope the recent resurgence in LF interest could keep it going. What both sites are facing is the need for more members. A site needs enough members and enough diversity so that it feels like a community, not a family. Family is very nice for some sorts of sites, but do you really want your mom and dad commenting on your photographs? Increasing both membership and diversity is why I think Getdpi would benefit more from a merger with a compatible site than from tweaks to the local structure.

 

[darr]

I've been a member of the LFF since it was a bulletin board. The site is owned by QT Luong (his website), a highly-published and renowned photographer who keeps it running purely from his dedication to large-format film photography. It operates solely by anonymous donors and volunteers and has never talked about becoming a commercial entity.

I don't envision a merger between this forum and LFF happening, primarily because the members on each platform predominantly specialize in different photography mediums – film on LFF and digital here. Many LFF members take great pride in their expertise in film craftsmanship, and I can recall when the term "digital" had a negative connotation there. For some members, this perception still lingers. I don't see how a merger between the two sites would benefit LFF. Besides, I think Photrio is where a film forum brought digital into its offerings.

While LFF does have sections dedicated to sharing digital images, its core focus remains firmly rooted in large-format film photography. While there may be a handful of disgruntled individuals there, on the whole, I've consistently found it to be a forum I visit regularly. It serves as a valuable resource and a tight-knit community for enthusiasts passionate about shooting with large-format film cameras and immersing themselves in film development processes. Many young people do visit the LFF, initially asking for assistance, but once they get what they need, it can be easy to find resources on the site by searching.

One aspect I find puzzling in this discussion thread is the perception that sharing images on this or other forums may be viewed negatively, or at least it sounds that way. I come from a photography background that dates back to the days of 4x5 transparency film for magazines and advertising. I enjoyed a lengthy career that transitioned into the digital realm, and I've also taught photography professionally for 30 years. Yet, I'm still learning by exploring the work of other photographers.

While I've collected books featuring the work of photography legends, that source of inspiration lost its appeal to me decades ago. I no longer wish to purchase books or magazines that merely reiterate what I've already seen. Instead, I find immense satisfaction in encountering fresh and innovative work from any source willing to share it (Lenswork is a valuable resource for me). As a lifelong photographer with an enduring passion for the limitless possibilities within photography, embracing and continuing to share new and original images is essential.

So, I encourage everyone to keep sharing their work because, for many of us, this is a significant aspect of what a photography forum has to offer.

 

[Shashin]

Given the response from Olaf, the problem does not seem internal: overall, there seems to be a happy membership base, even the grumpy members are happily grumpy. This seem more to do with outreach and how to get people in joining AND participating. (In full disclosure, I used to be far more active, but life changes and so do priorities.) It seems we have the normal attrition, but the engagement is not growing to replace and exceed that.

We are also in a pretty small community. The only medium-format camera I ever saw in the wild in my years of photographing was at Pemaquid Point in Maine, and that person was a GetDPI member! (A totally chance encounter as I was unaware of their visit.)

I am not really sure where I am going with this except maybe to articulate the problem.

 

[lightnmagic]

If we all had our favorite meal 3 times a day 7 days a week....... do you think you would like that on the 8th day ?........Everyone uses a different tooth brush ..lol

we can appreciate light only because of the contrast of knowing what darkness is.........

similarly MF thread here knows it is what it is because of the presence of everything else around it ...if all that existed was MF than there would be no contrast for the members who do post in MF threads to experience what they have ......by removing the contrast you are also taking away that feeling from them

In my observation of this forum .....everyone is in their own bubble of posting their images .....what would be nice is having critical appraisals from members on how to improve.Techniques how to master lighting and how it falls on your subject............This way we all can use whatever tool....but now with a common focus of
improvement and mastery.....This will over time attract workshops on this forum /traffic & maybe even someday contests ....Possibilitys are endless....A vision is needed ...YES !...But not of contraction but expansion

This is how we all keep our individuality and at the same time unite with a common focus giving direction

 

[Knorp]

Site statistics at 08:23 C.E.T. : 5 members and 891 guests online ...

 

[Knorp]

Site statistics at 17:58 C.E.T. : 22 members and 1025 guests ... just crazy
What about a pay-wall to get access ?

 

[Paul Spinnler]

Won't fly.

If people don't even bother registering for free why should they setup an account and pay. Its like with paywalls on news mags – I just go to the next.

Better to crossfinance via extra content and ad revenue.

Also a 1000 is not that much on a planet of what 8bn people?

 

[Ai_Print]

One aspect I find puzzling in this discussion thread is the perception that sharing images on this or other forums may be viewed negatively, or at least it sounds that way. I come from a photography background that dates back to the days of 4x5 transparency film for magazines and advertising. I enjoyed a lengthy career that transitioned into the digital realm, and I've also taught photography professionally for 30 years. Yet, I'm still learning by exploring the work of other photographers.

While I've collected books featuring the work of photography legends, that source of inspiration lost its appeal to me decades ago. I no longer wish to purchase books or magazines that merely reiterate what I've already seen. Instead, I find immense satisfaction in encountering fresh and innovative work from any source willing to share it (Lenswork is a valuable resource for me). As a lifelong photographer with an enduring passion for the limitless possibilities within photography, embracing and continuing to share new and original images is essential.

So, I encourage everyone to keep sharing their work because, for many of us, this is a significant aspect of what a photography forum has to offer.

I suspect this might be aimed at me so here are my thoughts on this...

I have a large library of books of some of best photo work ever done, some by extremely well known "greats" as they are called and some not well known at all. And at no time does that work fade into a mode of less powerful influence or inspiration for me. One of the reasons is that I can not humanly recall all of it in my mind’s eye and after awhile I may forget it so when I re-visit it again, I am reminded why it is considered truly great. And as time and photography progress, it often becomes even more impactful for me because a lot of it's true mastery comes from simply how some of these people see, compose, time and expose their resultant photograph.

But I too also like to see new work if it is great, new ways of seeing things, new ways of connecting to how a person sees the world. So I have a few places I also look for this. I am not so much into overly fantastical post production, I can look at paintings if I want to see that. I like to see moments in time, emerging from the darkness into the light, incomprehensibly well seen lines, tones, textures. I love to see the ordinary transformed into the extraordinary.

So I agree, I encourage people to keep posting work, but it had damn well better be good. Mediocrity has had its day in the sun, time for photography to return to what makes it truly great.

 

[Paul Spinnler]

I agree - a lot weird and bad pictures being posted and people clapping at it. I can't.

That makes one lose interest in the non-tech stuff side given the randomness and complete lack of self-restraint when posting pictures (not that me views matter, lol).

Got prodded by the mod to come out my shell a bit, but I'll focus again on the tech stuff ...

EDIT: Saw that AI_Print toned down the comment, but essentially I agree fully with the initial notion that's now only in the last sentence

 

[Ai_Print]

I agree - a lot weird and bad pictures being posted and people clapping at it. I can't.

That makes one lose interest in the non-tech stuff side given the randomness and complete lack of self-restraint when posting pictures (not that me views matter, lol).

Got prodded by the mod to come out my shell a bit, but I'll focus again on the tech stuff ...

EDIT: Saw that AI_Print toned down the comment, but essentially I agree fully with the initial notion that's now only in the last sentence

Yeah, I re-thought my post and decided to tone it down, it does not change that aspect at all nor will it serve to make people seek better imagery from them selves. If I did not enjoy coming here, I would not and I do confess to it being strictly tech that I am after. But in the context of this thread and concern for the site's future, I had to go out on a bit of a limb and at least point towards what might contribute to it's shrinking.

In an age where people with a good eye and an iPhone 15 Pro are already blowing away a lot of what enthusiasts do with these high priced rigs and the prospect of AI mashups making a complete joke of the notion of the pursuit of a high quality photograph, well let's just say I don't exactly see memberships on forums going up. So it becomes even more niche, right? How do already super small membership and low activity sites like this one survive? I have not a clue.

 

[B L]

I agree - a lot weird and bad pictures being posted and people clapping at it. I can't.

That makes one lose interest in the non-tech stuff side given the randomness and complete lack of self-restraint when posting pictures (not that me views matter, lol).

Got prodded by the mod/ to come out my shell a bit, but I'll focus again on the tech stuff ...

EDIT: Saw that AI_Print toned down the comment, but essentially I agree fully with the initial notion that's now only in the last sentence

Where is clapping button? I wish there was one! I will speak for myself, if I like a posted photo and react to it by liking or exclamating, that is based on my understanding and interpretation.
I have seen photos attracting as many as 30+ reactions, they cant all be making errors in their judgment. No one forces nobody to like or exclaim.

 

[Ai_Print]

Where is clapping button? I wish there was one! I will speak for myself, if I like a posted photo and react to it by liking or exclamating, that is based on my understanding and interpretation.
I have seen photos attracting as many as 30+ reactions, they cant all be making errors in their judgment. No one forces nobody to like or exclaim.

Yeah, well you know what they say about context…

 

[Paul Spinnler]

Where is clapping button? I wish there was one! I will speak for myself, if I like a posted photo and react to it by liking or exclamating, that is based on my understanding and interpretation.
I have seen photos attracting as many as 30+ reactions, they cant all be making errors in their judgment. No one forces nobody to like or exclaim.

Of course no one is forcing anyone to do anything. The reality is that a large amount of the photos posted here is sub-par and look like outright unfiltered SD card dumps. (Like on most forums, to be fair, that's normal, ie similar to also Flickr, etc.). Like what an uncle would show at a family event after having done some flower and family member shots with his new Hasselblad "toy".

What I am trying to say is that this is not exactly lenswork, for example. Its more some older-gen hobbyists posting random pictures (backyard, neighbourhood, domestic animal shots) made with their 10k cameras.

That's in stark contrast to the photography shown in the magazines, curated blogs or on instagram for that matter. Its not like the magazine featured artists regularly share their work here, right. They are busy.

Up and coming fine art photographers studying in leading art academies (Paris, London or even Yale, etc.) publish on social media, aim to get features on curated sites with ckout and reach in the fine art world, etc.

Sooo ... is that a problem? No! Its great that "normal folks" can share their passion. Its a free world and that's the nice thing. Its just not everyone's tea.

All I am saying one needs to be real about what is posted here image-wise. Let's call a spade a spade. Its really amateurish with the common thread being gear ownership.

It means as a result: the creative content is atm IMHO not the forté of this place; for great photography I visit the right sites and if I want to inform myself about P1, lenses and Hasselblad's new back I go here. To discuss Rodenstock glass or the new Fuji T/S this is the perfect place.

It is gear and tech focused IMHO. Which is totally fine! Where else can you double check whether the corners of the SK lens are sharp when shifted on back XYZ?

 

[B L]

I would like to agree but no. with respect I disagree. If someone at a given moment takes a picture of an animal with £$10K equipment, who am I to complain about how he/she uses it?
It is ,I think,, not reasonable for me to expect everyone to be top notch photographers.
I agree that not all posted photos are "goog enough" but they represent low nomber, to you most of them are bad. That is where the contrast it.
@AJ, yes Sir, even with my basic level of education, I am aware of what "context" means.
Regards.

 

[Paul Spinnler]

Look, everyone is free to like whatever. Its just my view and I've even mentioned that it doesn't matter.

My point is: I just have a hunch that this forum's future source of financial survival won't exactly be the next tree or dog picture and that at the core it is more about gear, tech and maybe in the future printing, so actually I was underscoring the conclusion of the ownership that the creative corner is maybe not the forté to bank on.

On the tech and gear side sponsors can address the community of enthusiasts buying the gear and equipment and its a great way to exchange info on that.

We'll see how it develops!

 

[pegelli]

My point is: I just have a hunch that this forum's future source of financial survival won't exactly be the next tree or dog picture and that at the core it is more about gear, tech and maybe in the future printing, so actually I was underscoring the conclusion of the ownership that the creative corner is maybe not the forté to bank on.

Well, my hunch is that avoiding posting images from and talk about equipment with sensors smaller than 33x44 mm will drive a large part of the current membership away. And since Olaf actually wants to grow the membership I can't see how further specialising will attract more new members than the site will lose that way. My hunch might be wrong and it's for the site owners to decide but if it becomes cropped MF or larger alone I'm no longer interested in this site.