Photography has always been a passion of mine because it has kept my head above water, and I know thousands of others feel the same. Throughout the past decade, our technology has changed drastically causing our world to become almost completely digital-based. This affects a variety of areas besides photography, including books, social life, learning and more. This personally affects my values because I have too much love for old fashioned, darkroom photography. Now photography is everywhere at anytime, because people are able to use a simple touch of their smartphones to capture what they believe is "amazing art." Taking pictures is not as simple as most people believe, because if one actually cares about the outcome, they are able to understand the time and process in which it takes to create good photographs, especially with film. During my experience with photography, both digital and film, I have learned to become more patient in order to create the photographs I want to take, instead of just "snapping" a picture. Now I know not everyone finds meaning in this, but their digital use of pictures is mocking our artwork. 

Is photography still art? The article "Photography is an Age of Smartphones" supports the idea that everyone is constantly taking pictures, instead of experiencing what is right in front of them.  Smartphone cameras and other digital technology are overshadowing darkroom photography, because no one has the patience for real art anymore. Classic photographers are being forgotten because photography has now become the "touch of a button" on most cellphones and cameras. Anyone and everyone can "snap" a picture, but we shouldn't forget all of the work and talent that made this art medium. Historian Nancy Newhall discusses the idea that we the literacy of words may be dying, causing the literacy of pictures to be rising. This forms the idea that everyone is always taking pictures instead of taking the time to experience what is right in front of them because they want to remember them, like they remember stories. The problem though, is that most people do not know how to read photographs like they do words. This article may be bias towards the idea of photography being an art, but it is certainly not opinionated on the specifics of film photography. Jed Perl focuses on the idea of smartphones taking over this type of art and destroying its beauty, but he has several argumentative points that back him up and follow through with his credibility. 

 Younger generations are less likely to understand darkroom photography because it is not commonly taught in schools, but for those who do have the opportunity to learn film photography, become better artists because of it. It is a very difficult process, especially when you first begin, but it gives younger artists a chance to learn the techniques of a camera and the composition, time and creativity it takes to compose the perfect images. In the long run, photographers are learning how to be more patient and make the best of what they have. One of the most frustrating parts of film photography is waiting until you develop your negatives to see if or how your images turned out, unlike a digital camera where you can look at the pictures instantly after you snap them. Learning how to wait for your art at a young age is very critical to how one takes photographs, because of the time it takes before you just snap away and waste the limited film you may have. Daniel Dern, a freelance writer who focuses on art and the changes that technology creates, does not have much bias in this specific topic because he is not a photographer himself and does not know the struggle of wanting to capture the perfect photographs. Dern is just putting the hardship of photographers into words. 

"Photography has never been so popular, but it's getting destroyed. There have never been so many photographs taken, but photography is dying." This quote pretty much sums it up. Everyone is the world is constantly taking pictures, but no one seems to care about the actual art medium. Everyone who is taking pictures after pictures with their cellphones are mocking those people who spend their lives trying to take the perfect picture. People spend thousands of dollars on SLR digital cameras, but then again most people are just using the simple touch button on their iPhone, so what is the point? The biggest point is that psychologists have argued that there is a "photo-taking impairment effect." By saying this, they mean that since we take a photo of something, we are less likely to remember it than if we looked with our eyes. Everyone is relying on technology to remember their experiences, but this creates a negative experience causing them to not remember the same events. Stuart Jeffries is a feature writer for The Guardian, and holds no bias to the world of photography. Jeffries is sharing this experience with the world, informing everyone of just another way that technology is taking over our lives.  
