Originally posted by Wolfeye There aren't any untaken photographs. Photography was always borderline as an artistic medium. The reproducability of negative and print meant that it would never have the same value or esteem as one-only works like painting or sculpture. And then digital came along. Then cell phones. Now, instead of art, you have saturation. To stand out you really have to be good. Better than good, you have to be great. There are a few Mozarts swimming in this sea of visual diarrhea, but most are Salieri - if they are lucky.
I understand this sentiment, but I respectfully see things differently; literally and metaphorically.
First sentence: Could not disagree more. So Sebastiao Salgado has covered the Amazon with amazing images. Don't bother going there, he's taken every image of it that will ever have value? If you believe that, it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. I took an advanced class of photo students to Molokai to shoot with ex-Nat Geo and Outdoor Photography column writer/photographer Dewitt Jones. I wanted to shoot in a unique special location with the class and he said, "Hey, that's cool, but I'm going to the Coconut Grove." Geez, I thought, I passed that place a bunch of times. Everyone shoots there; I'll pass. Later that evening we met up with Dewitt and he gave me an extraordinary infrared B&W digital image of the coconut palms....easily the best shot of the day. There aren't any untaken photos? Dewitt taught me, "if you believe it, you'll see it". And I would add, "if you don't believe it, you won't see it."
Second sentence: Photography was not an artistic medium in the beginning, mainly because it wasn't used to create art. It was used scientifically, journalistically, commercially, etc. 2016? Photography is no more borderline than any other media. Garbage in, garbage out...and what is art has just as much to do with the creator as it does the viewer.
Third sentence: Value or esteem=difficulty of reproduction? This perception may have been true decades ago, but is changing and not completely valid anymore. Research what are the top prices paid for contemporary photographs sold as art at the major art auctions. Compare that to the prices of contemporary painting and sculpture.
I've learned that believing in never or always simplifies everything but stunts creativity. The "successful" individuals in this world may have had luck on their side, but most of it was hard effort, work, and not worrying about all the mistakes and flaws, but finding the gems and polishing it. And do we all have to aspire to be the one Mozart of photography? Isn't the universe infinite enough for others to fulfill their own potential? If it feeds your soul, eat it.