I keep the memory of a childhood in which things changed at a normal and assimilable pace for most mortals. Today we are plunged into an era in which everything changes at breakneck speed: Blockchain, NFTs, Artificial Intelligence, clouds…
There is no time to learn how to pronounce a thing, and it is already becoming obsolete.
Photography was not going to be less.
We are experiencing very important changes in the paradigm of photography, and at ultrasonic speed, predicting the future becomes a very risky task.
Even so, to welcome the new year, it has occurred to me to get in touch with eight heavyweights from the world of photography and image, to sound out their predictions for photography in this 2022 that has just started.
Eight professionals from the world of photography and imaging: photographers, journalists, teachers, authors and disseminators, all closely related to photography, share their vision regarding the evolution of the photography industry in these coming months.
I don’t usually like the term “influencer”, but for me there are eight “authorities” who know what they are talking about and whose vision of photography in the immediate future is very enriching.
As you will be able to observe, the eight share predictions and visions in different areas of photography, from the merely technological and material to the most philosophical.
I start with Tino Soriano (renowned photojournalist, with many awards to his credit and collaborator of many publications of the stature of National Geographic), for whom 2022 is a year in which the polarization between three types of users will be accentuated: those of mirrorless or mirrorless cameras, those who continue to cling to SLRs, and the everyday user who shoots with a mobile phone.
Tino Soriano
“A year is perhaps a very limited period for a trend to be seen, but I am convinced that we will continue with the polarization of the teams. OM Digital Solutions, the former Olympus, has planned a revolutionary camera that in Micro 4/3 format will weigh approximately half of a conventional Full Frame equipment (teacher Hugo Rodríguez demonstrates in his videos the suitability of this format for different uses).
Then there are those who prefer to invest and are very comfortable with larger or proven quality cameras such as Sony, Fuji, Nikon or Canon.
But without a doubt, mobile phones will continue to be king. I believe that at least 95% of users take photos simply to collect experiences and share a tiny percentage of what they photograph on the networks.
Hence this polarization on three fronts, increasingly accentuated.»
Tino Soriano Instagram | Facebook
Catalan photojournalism and travel photographer, very close to the world of Medicine. He collaborates with very prestigious publications such as Paris Match, Der Spiegel or National Geographic. He has been awarded by UNESCO, WHO, World Press Photo among others.
Mario Rubio is, without a doubt, a benchmark in night photography. In his prediction of the Artificial Intelligence revolution and the end of digital SLR cameras:
Mario Rubio
«During 2022, a high percentage of professional photographers or those who want to be, will not have yet found a way to increase their sales by making themselves known and establishing effective marketing and communication strategies that make them monetize more.
Likewise, the technology and development of cameras will continue to be above the level and knowledge that photographers have about cameras.
I suspect that artificial intelligence will be more present in smartphones than in cameras and that mirrorless cameras will probably end up ending the manufacture of mirror cameras.»
Mario Rubio Twitter | Instagram
Photographer and reference in Spanish language on night photography. He spends much of his time teaching photography.
Toni Amengual, from his perspective as Director of a Master of Professional Photography, shares with us a prediction in which photography converges with new technologies and with other formats to give us new richer and more complete narrative experiences:
Tony Amengual
“It is difficult to make predictions in the age in which we live. And even more about the photography sector, which since its digitization has become a “liquid” medium.
But that liquidity does not mean that it will evaporate, on the contrary. Smartphones incorporate more sophisticated cameras every day. And we make massive use of photography in our daily lives.
By 2022 my prediction is that photography will continue to be a mass medium of expression that will hybridize with other media, video, audio, text… to generate new narrative formats. Because at the end of the day that is the power of photography, telling stories and transmitting emotions.»
Tony Amengual Web
Photographer with training in Photojournalism. Selected in PhotoEspaña Discoveries 2010. Arts Libris Award 2016. He is currently director of the Online Master in Professional Photography at the LABASAD School.
Eduardo Momeñe, an eminence in photography in Spain, sees upcoming changes in the concept of “photography as a profession”:
Eduardo Momene
«Probably we have to rethink the photographic profession and we must assume that the applied photography that we have known, has its days numbered as a trade, as a profession, as a way of making a living.
Undoubtedly there will be many exceptions that contradict this, but perhaps we have to think of photography as other means of creation do: make our photographs so that they can be acquired by someone who wishes to have them hung in their house, as painters do, or put them in a book that someone wants to buy, as it happens to writers and their publishers.
For this, it is necessary to take it very seriously every time we look through the camera viewfinder. Those who do, do well.”
Eduardo Momene
Consecrated photographer, author of several books, director of the documentary “La puerta abierta”, professor of the EFTI Film Photography Master, among other occupations that all revolve around photography as a form of communication and expression.
Joan Vendrell sees an evolution both on the “main stream” side, with smartphone camera technology, and in the quality of photographic production by a more established and “faithful” group of photographers.
Joan Vendrell
“Smartphones will continue to gain photographic capabilities and computational capabilities to make it easier and easier. What matters is the result, nothing more. We prefer to click and get a perfect photo of a “computational” moon (invented, from a database) than spend hours learning how to get it for real.
A niche of professionals and lovers of photography will continue to work to create artisan content, deepening and telling stories. During this 2022 we will have a good opportunity to learn from each other. The community of “photo lovers” will grow and develop, creating new spaces, learning new techniques, developing new methods and contributing to the development of visual culture.»
Joan Vendrell Twitter | Instagram
Freelance photographer, trainer and promoter. In addition to being a professor in the Documentary Photography and Reportage Postgraduate course at the IDEP school, he collaborates with brands such as Fujifilm, Vanguard and others.
Jesús Rodríguez, specialized in nature photography and founder of Bluekea, is committed to Blockchain and NFT technology applied to photography as a relevant trend for this 2022:
Jesus Rodriguez
“2022 may be the year of widespread takeoff of NFT technology applied to photography. An NFT associated with an image works as a certificate of authenticity, identifying the original and allowing the author to sell it to buyers or collectors seeking that exclusivity. There are already many photographers selling photos with NFTs, but this coming year may be the year that many more join the trend, with an uncertain outcome in the photography market.
For professionals and amateurs who are aware of climate change (we should all be) I think it is very important to find out about the carbon footprint caused by these technologies, which today and in many cases is very high.»
Jesus Rodriguez bluekea
Photographer and creator of Bluekea. Founding member of the collective of nature photographers Portfolio Natural
Iker Morán from Photolari sees 2022 as the year of the transition to the mirrorless world:
Iker Moran
“It seems clear that this will be the year that the transition from SLRs to mirrorless is complete. That of which we have been talking for a lot of years now but it has become clear that it is not the future, but the present. Canon still has work to recover if not its position in terms of sales if its image as the undisputed leader after a few years in which Sony has done very well and has managed to dominate. Maybe not sales, but setting times and trends.
Everything seems to indicate that we will continue to see mechanical and optical parts of our cameras disappear (the shutter has two newscasts left, as Nikon has already made clear with the Z9) while the shadow of computational photography on mobile phones and what they are capable of achieving will continue terrorizing camera manufacturers and tempting their users.”
Iker Moran Twitter
Photographer and journalist. Known for his stage in QueSabesDe, he is co-founder of Photolari, medium specialized in photographic news in Spanish. She collaborates with NatGeo, La Vanguardia and 20 Minutes, among others.
Iker wasn’t very far off the mark. Days after he emailed me back with these ideas, Canon’s CEO announced that they will stop investing in reflex cameras, in favor of a more determined commitment to mirrorless.
And I end this round of predictions with Rubén from RBG Escuela (better known as Runbenguo), who is reluctant to enter into technological predictions and prefers to put the emphasis more on the philosophical part of photography:
Ruben Jimenez
«When I look deep inside I realize that really on a human level hardly anything changes. It is not about guessing what people will want next year, or what the new needs will be, or how radically different we will be in the years to come…
I believe that the secret lies in discovering as archaeologists what are and have always been the purest human needs, which, except for slight adjustments, never change. And when we satisfy that with our visual creations, we’ve hit the nail on the head.
Now, I do venture that the methods to become masters in this task, and in the art of capturing moments, will be increasingly easier, with training accessible to everyone and technologies that allow us to transmit those timeless messages, in ways. ..