The Rise Of Cell Phone Cameras: A Comparative Essay On DSLR Cameras.

Current Trends and Advancements in Camera Use

Question:

Discuss about the Camera Phone Photography and Locative Media.

The changes in the current market have the clear impacts on the perspective value of the people. Currently, the advancements in the smart phones are affecting the traditional method taking photographs. The hobbyist photographers usually prefer the DSLR camera for their interests in the photography Lillie (2015). Even though the cell phone features in this current scenario has the specific features for capturing images easily, many people still use the DSLR cameras for the photography purposes. The study would present the ideas about the replacements of the DSLR cameras by the cell phones. The technological advancements and the trends of using cameras would also be discussed in this study.

The aim of the research is to identify whether cell phone has replaced the technologies of DSLR cameras in terms of capturing photographs. The study also attempts to identify the preference of the DSLR cameras among the hobbyist photographers.

• To identify the emerging trends of cell phone usages for taking photographs
• To present the comparison of the photography aspects through cell phone and DSLR cameras
• To critically analyze the possible trends of cell phones that are becoming the mainstream media of photo imaging

H₀: Cell phone photography is not the mainstream media of photo imaging

H₁: Cell phone photography is becoming the mainstream media of photo imaging

The development of the technological trends has been the major concern in every media channel. The mainstream media is highly influenced by the technological advancements and current methods of media use. However, there are still some of the contradictory views and arguments present regarding the use of these media methods (Hjorth and Pink 2014). Especially, the easy use of the cell phones for capturing images has been replacing the camera uses. The literature study would thus provide the insightful ideas about the current trends of the cell phone, which is replacing the most common mainstream media for capturing images.

The enormous changes in the world seek betterment in every aspect. Accordingly, people shift their choices towards the advancements. The technology and art world also experience such changes in the patterns. It is notable that the photo imagining industry is much concerned with the progressive increment since the times of Renaissance (Alper 2014). People usually use the high quality camera for capturing the priceless moments and the photographs. The hobbyist photographers are even fond of using the well-featured cameras to make their photographs more attractive to the viewers. However, it has been observed that since last couple of decades, the emergence of advanced mobile technologies has been replacing the use of these traditional methods of capturing images. In current time, it has been observed that people have been using the easiest and quickest ways of capturing moments of their precious events. The highly advanced mobile technologies are influencing the minds of the people in a significant way. Therefore, the use of the DSLR is degrading continuously (Shipley 2015). The report even reflects that the sales of the DSLR cameras have been degrading since last few decades. It is thus assumed that the sudden fall in the sales ratio may affect the use of the mainstream media of the DSLR cameras in the photo industry. On the contrary, some of the hobbyist photographers prefer to use the DSLR effects and cameras for making the pictures more attractive. In the professional photo industry, people use the professional cameras for their imaging purposes. Hence, it is a contradictory view that the use of the mobile phone is situational for the professional photographers.

The Rise of Cell Phone Cameras and their Impact on the Photography Industry

The professional photo industry has the ultimate bond with the DSLR and well-featured professional cameras. The industry is almost dependent on such ecosystem. The features of the Mirror less cameras are specifically seen in the DSLR cameras, which are chosen mostly by the professional photographers. However, Rubinstein (2005) argued that the current advancements in the technologies have been improving the mobile camera quality that is becoming more competent in front of the DSLR cameras. It is giving the mobile phones more opportunity to replace the traditional method of capturing the photos with proper effects since the features are already available in the cell phones. It is important to mention that the declines in the sales ratio of the DSLR cameras and the rise of the cameras of cell phones have influenced the professional photography world quite drastically (Shu 2016). Generally, now-a-days, people usually do not seek the professional cameras when they can get the similar effects and features in their cell phone camera.

Photography is undoubtedly one of the most difficult skills to adopt by the people. The adequate knowledge about the photographs and tactics would make a perfect capture. However, it has been observed that the rise of the modern cameras has brought the drastic changes in this scenario. These big cameras are thus becoming affordable and smaller. The use of the films even made it more accessible to the users. Eventually, photography gained the most popularity among the hobbyist photographers (Boissin et al. 2015). However, it has been observed that the films used in the cameras are quite expensive and it is quite time consuming. The developed world then introduced the high-tech facilities to minimize the errors and become more available and user-friendly to the people. The professional photography world was thus affected by the emergence of the cell phone cameras. Currently, it has been observed that people are more inclined to capture images through the cell phone instead of the professional cameras. In fact, now-a-days, it is not necessary for the people to become a knowledgeable one too use these technologies. The user-friendly features present in the cell phone cameras are quite helpful for them to capture the images instantly (Villi 2015). As a result, it is observed that the world of professional photography has been declining and dying with time. In fact, it is also observed that the future of the professional photography is also uncertain. Now, the ordinary people are capturing their moments at wedding, while travelling, or in any events. However, it is needless to mention that the cell phone camera has not yet reached to the quality of the DSLR cameras. The optical filters, flashguns, tripod, and other essential activities are not available in the cell phone. Hence, if the comparison is present between these two methods of photography, the DSLR cameras would win the show with its most remarkable image quality that attracts the customers much significantly.

Professional Photography and the Use of DSLR Cameras

The study concentrates on the comparative analysis between the cell phone cameras and the DSLR cameras. The major concern of this study is whether the cell phone cameras are becoming the mainstream media or photo imaging by replacing the DSLR cameras. The research is conducted by developing the mixed method process where both the primary and the secondary data are collected. The secondary information developed in the literature review section is collected from the secondary sources, such as journals, research articles, newspaper articles, websites, and books. On the other hand, the primary data collection process is associated with two major methods, such as quantitative data collection process and the qualitative data collection process. In order to derive the results from the primary data collection process, aa set of questionnaires is formulated.

The opinions and perceptions of the people will be collected regarding their interests in photography. A wide range of people participated in this data collection people and presented their interests on photography skills. The major focus of the research was to gather the ideas about the photography interests from a number of people who have been quite fond of this particular field. The public opinion was collected to ensure the effects of the emerging cell phone cameras that are eventually replacing the DSLR cameras. The survey has covered a diverse community, such as university students, workplace, social media, and friend groups. An informative and simple set of questionnaires were formulated there were 4 different kinds of questions that covered the vast area of research subject. The research focused on 50 subjects containing the age groups between 18 to 46 years and above. The data was collected from both the online and offline sources. The copies of the questionnaire were sent to people through the online sites. On the other hand, the set of printed questionnaires were distributed among the offline people in order to gather their responses over this subject matter. The further study would concentrate on such collected data and would present the analysis to understand the perception of the people.

This section of the study would present the findings obtained from the quantitative and qualitative data collection process. The findings and the discussion of the information is presented further.

Option	Response Frequency (%)	Number of Responses	Total Respondents
Yes	56%	28	50
No	44%	22	50

Mean	1.44
Median	1
Mode	1
Standard Deviation	0.501427

The above table indicates that majority 56% of the respondents are interested on photography whereas remaining 44% of the respondents are not so much interested. Therefore, it is clear that majority of the people are much fond of the photography field, be it casual or professional. Mean and median in this questionnaire is 1, which indicates that majority of the respondents selected the first option. The standard deviation is 0.50, which tends to 1. It implies that the risk in this questionnaire is low.

Option	Response Frequency (%)	Number of Responses	Total Respondents
Yes	92%	46	50
No	8%	4	50

Mean	1.08
Median	1
Mode	1
Standard Deviation	0.274048

The obtained idea from the above question highlights majority 92% of the respondents mentioned that they are interested in capturing pictures whereas remaining 8% of the respondents did not show any interests. It is thus defining that majority of the people has the casual interests in capturing the images for any events or any moment. The median and mode in this questionnaire is 1, which indicates that the majority of the respondents selected the first option. The standard deviation is 0.27, which tends to 1 and indicates that the risk is quite low in this questionnaire.

Option	Response Frequency (%)	Number of Responses	Total Respondents
Casual	32%	16	50
Hobbyist	24%	12	50
Enthusiast	16%	8	50
Professional	28%	14	50

Mean	2.4
Median	2
Mode	1
Standard Deviation	1.212183

Mixed Methodology in Data Collection and Analysis

The obtained idea from the above questionnaire highlights that majority 32% of the respondents are the casual photographers who capture random pictures of an event or any moment. This ratio is followed by 28% of the respondents who are professional photographers and require the high quality DSLR cameras for their photography purposes. Almost 24% of the respondents are hobbyists who use photography as their favorite hobby. Remaining 16% of the respondents are enthusiasts who are much enthusiastic about using their photography skills. The mean of the responses is 2.4, which indicates the average responses in this questionnaire. The mode is 1, which implies that majority of the respondents selected the first option. Median is 2, which is in the middle option in this questionnaire. The standard deviation of this questionnaire is 1.21, which tends to 2 and indicates that the risk in this questionnaire is quite higher.

Option	Response Frequency (%)	Number of Responses	Total Respondents
Cell phone camera	64%	32	50
Digital Camera	22%	11	50
Professional DSLR Camera	14%	7	50

Mean	1.5
Median	1
Mode	1
Standard Deviation	0.735402

The ideas derived from this questionnaire indicate that majority 64% of the respondents usually use their cell phones for taking pictures whereas 22% of the people use the normal digital camera. It is also noted that remaining 14% of the respondents showed their interests towards professional DSLR cameras. It defines that majority of the people take the casual pictures with the normal quality of their cell phone. These people are much fond of using the easier and quicker way of capturing moments rather than using the difficult and time consuming method of capturing images. Some of the people even prefer using the digital cameras for their personal uses. The mode is 1.5, which indicates the average responses in this questionnaire. Median is 1, which is the middle option. Mode is also 1, which indicates that majority of the respondents selected the first option. The standard deviation is 0.73, which tends to 1. Hence, it implies that the risk in this questionnaire is quite low.

Option	Response Frequency (%)	Number of Responses	Total Respondents
Professional Photography	24%	12	50
Cell Phone Photography	76%	38	50

Mean	1.76
Median	2
Mode	2
Standard Deviation	0.431419

The above table specifies that majority 76% of the respondents interested in cell phone photography whereas 24% of the respondents were interested in professional photography. Therefore, it can be implied that the cell phone photography has become the major interest areas for the photographers. Moreover, the advanced features available in the cell phone is becoming more user-friendly and less time consuming for the users. The mean is 1.76, which determines the average response. Median is 2, which refers the middle response in this questionnaire. Mode is 2, which indicates that majority of the respondents selected the second option. The standard deviation is 0.43, which tends to 1 and indicates that the risk in this questionnaire is much lower.

In the qualitative data collection process, few of the customer responded that they would have purchased the cell phone cameras for capturing photos. According to these respondents, capturing images through cell phone is quite easy, quick, takes lesser time. They can easily capture their moments of interests instantly with the cell phone camera. Even the technological development in current time has improved the features in the cell phone. Hence, they can even capture the images with the help of the voice recognizing software or touching the phone screen once. Therefore, they indicated that the use of the cell phone camera is more convenient to these people. On the contrary, a group of the respondents indicated that the professional camera is better than the mobile phone camera. It is stated that the photos captured through the professional camera is higher in resolution and quality. The clear and attractive image quality of the professional camera is incomparable. The superior image quality makes the pictures more alive and impressive. Hence, professional camera is preferred mostly by these customers.

In the qualitative data collection process, a very few amount of people stated that they can use the cell phone camera to capture the pictures for any professional purposes. However, in most of the cases, it is noticed that the quality of the cell phone camera is not much impressive in front of the high definition and high resolution-based professional cameras. Hence, it is preferable that majority of the people would still want to use the professional cameras for any professional purposes. It is important to mention that the cell phone camera has not yet reached to the quality of the DSLR cameras. The optical filters, flashguns, tripod, and other essential activities are not available in the cell phone. Hence, if the comparison is present between these two methods of photography, the DSLR cameras would win the show with its most remarkable image quality that attracts the customers much significantly.

The responses gathered from the quantitative data collection process indicate that in current situation, people mostly prefer the cell phone camera. The technological advancements have improved the cell phone usages. Moreover, people are much fond of using the user-friendly techniques to save their times and efforts. It is true though that the quality of the professional camera is better than the cell phone camera. However, the rapid growth in the technological world predicts that due to the technological advancements the cell phone camera would replace the digital cameras in future. The high-defined features are also expected to be developed within the cell phone for providing the users a greater experience in capturing the images.

Conclusion

The study develops the comparative discussion regarding the use of the cell phone camera and the professional DSLR cameras. The thesis statement of the study reflects whether the cell phone camera would become the mainstream media by replacing the professional cameras. The responses derived from the respondents in the primary data collection process and the information received from the secondary data sources indicates that the cell phone camera may replace the professional cameras sooner in future. The advanced features would be added to develop the high definition picture quality. Hence, the professional photography world may face the considerable challenges from the trends of the cell phone cameras.

References

Alper, M., 2014. War on Instagram: Framing conflict photojournalism with mobile photography apps. New Media & Society, 16(8), pp.1233-1248.

Boissin, C., Fleming, J., Wallis, L., Hasselberg, M. and Laflamme, L., 2015. Can we trust the use of smartphone cameras in clinical practice? Laypeople assessment of their image quality. TELEMEDICINE and e-HEALTH, 21(11), pp.887-892.

Hjorth, L. and Pink, S., 2014. New visualities and the digital wayfarer: Reconceptualizing camera phone photography and locative media. Mobile Media & Communication, 2(1), pp.40-57.

Lillie, J., 2015. A Critical-Cultural Look at the Early Days of Camera Phone Use and MMS Picture Messaging. In Encyclopedia of Mobile Phone Behavior (pp. 1151-1162). IGI Global.

Rubinstein, D., 2005. Cellphone photography; The death of the camera and the arrival of visible speech. The Issues in Contemporary Culture and Aesthetics, 1, pp.113-118.

Shipley, J.W., 2015. Selfie love: public lives in an era of celebrity pleasure, violence, and social media. American Anthropologist, 117(2), pp.403-413.

Shu, L., 2016, How digital photography reinvented itself to become better than ever, viewed August 23, 2017 https://www.digitaltrends.com/features/dt10-how-digital-photography-reinvented-itself/

Villi, M., 2015. “Hey, I’m here Right Now”: Camera phone photographs and mediated presence. Photographies, 8(1), pp.3-22.