The other day Andy Adams from FlakPhoto tweeted “I think we’d all agree, #photobook culture is alive and well. But #photoblog culture…?”. It’s a good question. For one it made me wonder when was the last time I actually visited FlakPhoto’s website as I get everything I need from the Twitter or Instagram feed. That is possible where the problem lies. Alternative means of communication.
Earlier this year I was invited to a bloggers event at Sony HQ in London. I think everyone there would agree that blogging is not dead. I guess they are right. There’s probably more Apple bloggers now than in 2004. I know of many people who have made a living from being a pro blogger or a writer with their own space to publish on.
So maybe blogging is more alive than ever now but photoblogging? You’ve got fashion bloggers, music bloggers, camera porn bloggers, cupcake bloggers, anxiety bloggers. But photobloggers? Who needs it in a world of Instagrams and pictures attached to Tweets. Isn’t everyone a photoblogger now? Everyone Instagrams in the same way I blogged back in 2004. An unfocused stream of photos from one day to the next.
In the modern world where everyone is a “photoblogger” on Instagram the idea of running your own photoblog site that stands alone outside of the social network clubs seems crazy. Photoblogging is perhaps dead or dying by becoming an every day part of life. So what do us old school photobloggers do to be current? We have to make the blog better than something you could get on Instagram. I don’t want to say content is king but well content certainly helps. Good honest personal insightful well crafted inspiring thoughtful moving beautiful content. Whatever my site is now I’m trying to produce good content for it. Its all I can do.