Photography is a diverse sector comprising several specialisms, ranging from fashion to travel photography. Many people dabble in photography from time to time, but it is a full-time job for others. According to Indeed.com's most recent data, you can expect to earn an average annual salary of £26,146 if you are a photographer in the UK. Much like several other technological innovations, photography welcomed several innovations that revolutionised it in the past decade. Below are some of the greatest photography innovations over the last decade.
Selfies
Very few people seem to remember when phones had one-back-facing cameras only, and you could not take a photo of yourself without someone else's involvement. That was until selfies came along. Selfies were undoubtedly one of the biggest photography innovations of the previous decade. Life and business coach Jennifer Lee was the first individual to use it as an Instagram hashtag. By the end of 2012, Time Magazine ranked 'selfie' as one of the year's top 10 buzzwords. Also, the Oxford Dictionary announced it as the word of the year in 2013, solidifying its position as a true social media phenomenon. Selfies have revolutionised how we view and portray ourselves via recording and communication mediums.
Consequently, many phone camera manufacturers have rightly revised their cameras' physical designs and capabilities to accommodate this self-portraiture trend. For instance, every modern smartphone has a front-facing camera to make selfie-taking easy and convenient. Selfie-sticks have also become a sensation among avid picture takers, allowing them to extend their front-facing camera's range of vision, take better group photographs, and sharpen their overall photography skills. Inexpensive selfie sticks can cost as low as £10 and have limited features. However, the more pricey options come with features like the ability to mechanically turn your camera downwards.
2. Drones
Drones were once the purview of the most powerful militaries on earth, so their mere mention sparked imaginations of sophisticated military-grade aircraft. However, drones have adopted a much friendlier connotation in recent times, with the introduction of several consumer-grade unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Consequently, drones have evolved from expensive specialised equipment to easily accessible and popular imaging tools that many people are using to break the bounds of how we take pictures of subjects. Indeed, today's professional photographers and hobbyists alike are no longer restricted to working from the ground. As such, we are seeing more and more photographs that were previously impossible or, at the very least, quite expensive.
One of the greatest things about drone photography is that it has also grown more powerful besides being readily accessible. Drone cameras are increasingly catching up with the sensitivities and sensor sizes of smaller, hand-held pro cameras. As such, drone videography has also made significant strides. Indeed, flying a standard, high-tech drone over picturesque locations like beaches, cliffs, and national parks will deliver breathtaking footage that will come in handy for various kinds of video content. Over the past decade, advancements in drone technology have also led to their use in public safety. For instance, first responders and rescue teams use powerful drones like the DJI Matrice 30 series to handle emergencies more efficiently. It is nice to see how drones have been used in these few years of their commercial availability. However, it is even more exciting to imagine how they will be used as they keep evolving and become more accessible.
3. Mirrorless camera
Mirrorless cameras, as they are known, first came to light in 2008 with the invention of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1, the world's premier digital mirrorless interchangeable lens camera. Still, it was not until the 2010s that mirrorless cameras became truly popular. During this period, they overtook single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras as the most common type of interchangeable-lens cameras and are here to stay. Indeed, many manufacturers are focusing their resources and attention on mirrorless cameras rather than any other type of camera. Like any other revolutionary technology, these cameras took time to convince people of their worth. However, it wasn't long until many people realised their incredible competence in several applications, even outdoing digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras' capabilities in diverse ways. It will be fascinating to observe how mirrorless cameras will evolve in the 2020s.
4. Better smartphones
Whether you love or hate them, you cannot deny that smartphones are arguably the most impactful technology in the world of photography in the previous decade. Many photographers remain adamant that they aren't even real cameras. Still, the truth is smartphones like Samsung's Galaxy devices and iPhones have changed what we now expect from a camera. Smartphones have almost displaced compact point-and-shoot cameras. Given that 6.6 billion people worldwide now own smartphones, they are now the most common type of camera globally.
Consequently, smartphones are now the cameras you will always have with you. iPhones debuted in 2007, and the concept of smartphones has been around for a while now, but the 2010s are to thank for modern smartphones with state-of-the-art camera systems. It will be interesting to see how smartphone camera technology will evolve over this decade and whether these devices will make standalone cameras sink deeper into oblivion.
5. WiFi and bluetooth in cameras
WiFi and Bluetooth in cameras are among the most underrated photography innovations of the last decade, and they will undoubtedly remain key in the 2020s. These two wireless technologies are opening up the photography world to align with our social media habits. Consequently, developing and printing your film doesn't have to take a day or two anymore. Similarly, you don't need to wait till you return to your desktop before unloading your memory card or wait to open your laptop before previewing your photographs. Thanks to these wireless connectivity technologies, you can bring out your smartphone and connect it to your camera. This way, you can instantly transfer your photos and share them with the rest of the world. It is surprising to imagine that this technology was impossible just a decade ago, so this is surely something we should not take for granted.
6. Full-frame
Full-frame is presently the most popular camera sensor format. These sensors are made after most 35mm film cameras' image formats and have utilised older lenses better since the focal lengths are similar in terms of field of view. One of the most compelling things about these sensors is that they succeed several cameras which used smaller sensors as the standard. Although full-frame sensors have been in existence since 2009, it wasn't 2005 and 2008 that the Canon EOS 5D and Nikon D700 made them popular, respectively. More full-frame models like Sony's first a7-series cameras entered the market during the 2010s, and full-frame has since become a standard expectation in sophisticated cameras. Although APS-Cs are still popular and have great capabilities, full-frame sensors remain the most sought-after sensor format by far.
7. In-body image stabilisation
In-body image stabilisation is one of the prominent features of mirrorless cameras like the Sony A7 III, Canon EOS R5, and Nikon Z7. It is a relatively novel technology within cameras that stabilises sensors to guarantee stable video footage and sharp still images. In-body image stabilisation works by shifting your camera's sensor to compensate for its movements. Built-in accelerometers and gyroscopes calculate your camera's motion and rotation, moving the sensor accurately to keep images stable. This technology started showing up in a handful of cameras in the late 2000s, and by the mid-2010s, it was a standard feature. In-body image stabilisation has opened up several fresh opportunities for taking clear and shake-free images without relying on extra specialised equipment.