Saturation

There has never been a better time to look at photographs. Or a worse time.

Every day we're shown beautifully lit interiors, immaculate clothing, perfect coffee, mountain roads, old Land Rovers, watches, portraits, architecture, ceramics and landscapes. None of it is particularly difficult to find anymore - just open your phone and it's all there within seconds.

The standard has become incredibly high. The problem is that volume has risen even faster.

We're consuming more images in a day than we used to in months. By lunchtime you've probably seen enough "great" photography to fill a gallery wall. After a while, even genuinely good work begins to blur into everything else. It's not because the photographs aren't good - It's because we've forgotten how to really look.

The internet promised endless inspiration. Instead it often feels like endless consumption. We scroll from one image to the next, giving each one barely enough time to register before moving on. The next image has already arrived. Then another. Then another. Nothing has time to settle.

I sometimes wonder whether we've confused collecting references with developing taste. Saving images isn't the same as understanding them. Knowing what looks good isn't the same as knowing why it looks good.

Perhaps that's why so much of what we see now feels strangely familiar. The references are shared. The colours are shared. The compositions are shared. Eventually everyone arrives at roughly the same place - not because people lack talent, but because they're all looking in the same direction.

Recently, I've found myself becoming less interested in making images that shout and more interested in making images that simply ask you to stop for a moment. The world hasn't become less interesting. We've just become accustomed to looking past it.

Perhaps the antidote to saturation isn't making louder work. Perhaps it's paying closer attention and attention might be one of the rarest things we have left.

What do you think?

The Journal was never intended to be one-way.

If this piece resonated - or you disagree - leave a comment below.

Words & photo by Thom Barnett and Craig Fleming