I have a passion for iPhone photography. It’s hard to express in words the beauty and intimacy I see through my iPhone lens. I feel like I’m writing and drawing with light, capturing moments and emotions that speak to me.
I’ve been using my iPhone, as my main camera, since February 2011, when I was amazed by its capabilities and convenience. But it wasn’t until 2023 that I started to think of myself more as a photographer using an iPhone, not just an iPhoneographer.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m proud to call myself an iPhone photographer, and I love the community and the creativity that comes with it.
But I also realized that what I do is more than just using a phone to take pictures. It’s photography, pure and simple.
After all, what is an iPhone camera but a fancy box with a hole in it, that uses computational algorithms to collect light onto a digital sensor? It’s a tool, a medium, a device that allows me to express my vision and my voice. It’s not the camera that makes the photograph, it’s the photographer.
I’m not alone in this. Many of you share the same passion and the same level of dedication to iPhone photography. You know that it’s not about the megapixels or the features, it’s about the art and the story. You know that iPhone photography is not a gimmick or a fad, it’s a revolution and a legacy.
I’m convinced that the photographic legends of the past would be envious of us if they could see what we can do with a simple but powerful pocket camera. We have access to a technology and a platform that they could only dream of. We can take pictures anytime, anywhere, and share them with the world in an instant. We can experiment, learn, and improve our skills with a device that fits in our hands. We can create stunning images that rival those of professional cameras, with just a tap on the screen.
We are following in the footsteps of pioneers like George Eastman and Steve Jobs, who changed the history of photography with their vision and innovation. Eastman, the founder of Kodak, coined the slogan “You press the button, we do the rest” in 1888 when he introduced the Kodak camera and roll film to the public. He wanted to make photography easy and accessible for everyone and to make it a popular hobby and art form.
Jobs, the co-founder of Apple, unveiled the iPhone at Macworld in 2007, calling it a “revolutionary and magical product” that combined an iPod, a phone, and an internet device. He said the iPhone was way ahead of other phones and would reinvent the phone and photography industry.
The similarities are obvious: simplicity and technology, packaged together, democratized photography forever. We are the beneficiaries of their genius and their legacy. We are the heirs of their vision and their spirit. We are the iPhone photographers. We are photographers.
I’m proud to be one of them. I love iPhone photography and the fairy dust it leaves behind.
2023 was an incredible year, behind the lens, that I won’t soon forget.
It’s not like I will stop calling what I’m doing in the mobile space, “iPhoneography” or “iPhone Photography”.
But behind the labels and monikers…it’s still photography and I am a still photographer.
“A good photograph is one that communicates a fact, touches the heart, and leaves the viewer a changed person for having seen it. It is, in a word, effective.” – Irving Penn
Click.
Jack
