Comments on: If a tree falls in the forest and no one posts it on Youtube, does the tree actually have a healthier sense of self? http://www.ethnography.com/2009/07/if-a-tree-falls-in-the-forest-and-no-one-posts-it-on-youtube-is-it-actually-better-for-the-tree/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=if-a-tree-falls-in-the-forest-and-no-one-posts-it-on-youtube-is-it-actually-better-for-the-tree A group blog on a wide variety of topics realted to anthropology Sat, 31 Jul 2010 01:50:39 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Cindy http://www.ethnography.com/2009/07/if-a-tree-falls-in-the-forest-and-no-one-posts-it-on-youtube-is-it-actually-better-for-the-tree/comment-page-1/#comment-1633 Cindy Wed, 08 Jul 2009 02:02:57 +0000 http://www.ethnography.com/?p=333#comment-1633 Oh, for heaven's sake. I am not against candid photos, I am questioning the *relentless* documenting of the physical appearance. My daughter went to Costa Rica and brought home 48 photos of herself and her friends and 6 of Costa Rica. I went to France in high school and brought home 48 photos of France, 5 of my friends, and 1 of me. And for god's sake, are we really going to be surprised that KODAK wants to encourage people to think of every moment of their life as one to be documented? Or to use your even more disturbing terminology - to "capture authenticity"? My point entirely was to highlight the problematic nature of the visual as a defining medium - the *authentic me* is not a candid photo of me - there are many authors in anthropology and other disciplines who have discussed this quite thoroughly...and to think of all of those young people searching for authentic experiences in their digital cameras only makes my point more poignant. It is far from being about not "accepting" the authentic you, as you suggest, it is in fact about inappropriately substituting the "image" of you AS the authentic you. Oh, for heaven’s sake. I am not against candid photos, I am questioning the *relentless* documenting of the physical appearance. My daughter went to Costa Rica and brought home 48 photos of herself and her friends and 6 of Costa Rica. I went to France in high school and brought home 48 photos of France, 5 of my friends, and 1 of me. And for god’s sake, are we really going to be surprised that KODAK wants to encourage people to think of every moment of their life as one to be documented? Or to use your even more disturbing terminology – to “capture authenticity”? My point entirely was to highlight the problematic nature of the visual as a defining medium – the *authentic me* is not a candid photo of me – there are many authors in anthropology and other disciplines who have discussed this quite thoroughly…and to think of all of those young people searching for authentic experiences in their digital cameras only makes my point more poignant. It is far from being about not “accepting” the authentic you, as you suggest, it is in fact about inappropriately substituting the “image” of you AS the authentic you.

]]> By: mark http://www.ethnography.com/2009/07/if-a-tree-falls-in-the-forest-and-no-one-posts-it-on-youtube-is-it-actually-better-for-the-tree/comment-page-1/#comment-1632 mark Wed, 08 Jul 2009 01:38:31 +0000 http://www.ethnography.com/?p=333#comment-1632 When I worked at Kodak, I saw similar things as the difference between how parents and the kids treated photos. The mother had two photos of a 1st grade gradation: In the first, that she showed us, the kids are all properly standing and smiling with little suits and dresses. This was the photo she had displayed. She had a 2nd version of the photo(the "messed up" one in her view" that I asked her about when I noticed it) was apparently one where one of the kids had a very loud fart. In the photo, the kids are doubled over in laughter. From the outsider view, the 2nd photo was more interesting, appealing, and looked like kids having fun. In short, its the backstage that we recognize as being more authentic. That's the drama of photojournalism, the authenticity of the moment, those backstage moments where people are at their most natural can be them at their worst, but often its at their best. When I have spent time talking to teens and people into their late 20's, this notion of authenticness is a touchstone for the products they buy, media, and each other. People want to see the backstage, because they know thats the real thing. Not the formal photo. Does it take the mystery away? Sure. Does it deny you downtime? Well, yes and no. Being captured authentically, means you are captured in downtime. But, if you cant accept the authentic you (and that took me years and years to do) then today, you indeed don't get downtime, When I worked at Kodak, I saw similar things as the difference between how parents and the kids treated photos. The mother had two photos of a 1st grade gradation: In the first, that she showed us, the kids are all properly standing and smiling with little suits and dresses. This was the photo she had displayed. She had a 2nd version of the photo(the “messed up” one in her view” that I asked her about when I noticed it) was apparently one where one of the kids had a very loud fart. In the photo, the kids are doubled over in laughter. From the outsider view, the 2nd photo was more interesting, appealing, and looked like kids having fun. In short, its the backstage that we recognize as being more authentic. That’s the drama of photojournalism, the authenticity of the moment, those backstage moments where people are at their most natural can be them at their worst, but often its at their best. When I have spent time talking to teens and people into their late 20′s, this notion of authenticness is a touchstone for the products they buy, media, and each other. People want to see the backstage, because they know thats the real thing. Not the formal photo. Does it take the mystery away? Sure. Does it deny you downtime? Well, yes and no. Being captured authentically, means you are captured in downtime. But, if you cant accept the authentic you (and that took me years and years to do) then today, you indeed don’t get downtime,

]]> By: Cindy http://www.ethnography.com/2009/07/if-a-tree-falls-in-the-forest-and-no-one-posts-it-on-youtube-is-it-actually-better-for-the-tree/comment-page-1/#comment-1631 Cindy Wed, 08 Jul 2009 00:35:48 +0000 http://www.ethnography.com/?p=333#comment-1631 I actually almost called this, "If a tree falls in the forest and nobody posts it on Youtube, does the tree still think it's fat?" Which is better? You be the judge. I actually almost called this, “If a tree falls in the forest and nobody posts it on Youtube, does the tree still think it’s fat?”

Which is better?

You be the judge.

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