Reflection on Susan Sontag | Photography in Today's Age

Back in Week 6 of lecture, Professor Nericcio showed up an excerpt from Susan Sontag's "On Photography," a collection of essays written in 1977.  You can find it here: http://writing.upenn.edu/library/Sontag-Susan-Photography.pdf

Excerpt shown in lecture

When I found out that this was written in 1977, I was shocked.  If anything, this quote is more true today than ever before with the invention of the smartphone and the introduction of easy to take pictures.  Our generation is filled with blooming "photographers," with many people documenting even the most mundane part of the human experience.  Whether a picture of the lunch they just had, a picture of someone sleeping, or a selfie of themselves taken at the end of the work day, the ease of taking a photo makes it easy for anyone to practice photography.

With the rise of social media and platforms such as Instagram, it is interesting to see that Susan Sontag called photography a social rite many years ago.  In today's generation, photography is easily a defense against anxiety, as people often alter their photos using filters or photoshop to portray a better image of themselves.  Unaltered pictures are a source of anxiety for many people, as we do not like to see our imperfections.  Photography can be used a tool of power, as described by Sontag, as the number of likes that someone receives on social media is an artificial measure of how popular they are.

The above is another quote from the text.  I find that this quote relates to another popular social media platform: Snapchat.  With the introduction of Snapchat in many people's smartphones, people always will always take a photograph, or a "snap," or what they are currently doing.  In the case of Snapchat, it has basically become a way for people to prove that they are doing something in their lives.

Of course, even I myself partake in social media platforms.  In a way, photography has become a part of everyone's life, and in many ways is a great way to document our history.  The photographs we take are ultimately a part of who we are, and it is important to embrace the medium.