iPhone or Canon? A veteran photographer debates digital versus analog

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"I’m tall and shy -- so I can’t be inconspicuous. That means a lot of my traditional portraits are shot from the side or the back," Marcolina says. In this 2009 shot, he was able to compose it carefully, because the subjects weren't facing him, and it expresses his "what-you-see-is-what-you-get" no-cropping philosophy for analog photography.

During his 25-year career as a photographer, Dan Marcolina has captured moments of everyday despair and delight, from beaches and backyards to bus stations and wedding celebrations.

His work exhibits the ease of an inside joke or a knowing wink; the images are visual juxtapositions that live up to a high point of praise from Richard Avedon, who once commented that Marcolina makes images that aren’t “trying to be beautiful.”

An early adopter of mobile photography, Marcolina swapped his trusty Canons for an iPhone. Rather than bemoan the demise of traditional photography, he clicked immediately with the new technology, going on to write popular books about mobile photography and organize an iPhoneography event called Mobile Masters Sessions. Digital photography is democratic, he says, putting a camera in every pocket, to be used at any moment.

Seven years after the debut of the revolutionary and magical device, iPhone photography has developed to the point of being used for war coverage in The New York Times. Apple’s smartphone models take four slots on Flickr’s five most-used cameras list (the only traditional one is a Canon EOS REBEL T3i).

“People don’t know the rules about photography, yet they’re discovering images from their heart and their experience,” he says. “It’s more about sculpting the image and less about worrying about expensive stuff, like camera lenses.”

His work has developed two distinct looks, he says, depending on which device he’s using. With a traditional camera, he aims for WSYWYG, which translates into a no-cropping rule and minimal post-processing. It’s all about patience and being in the moment.

In mobile? “It’s more like: ‘Push it man.’ You can change the composition completely or make it more iconic. You can simplify the background, telling story that you thought you saw in your mind.” Marcolina likens digital photography closer to the work he does in his multimedia design business, saying it forces him to think graphically.

For some of his iPhone candids, Marcolina literally shoots from the hip. He recommends that when you see a something photo-worthy about to happen, you hold the camera button down and walk into the scene. A simple rubber bracelet — like a LiveStrong wristband — can act as an ad-hoc camera strap to tether the device to your hand.

He also takes advantage of the iOS7’s “burst mode,” which lets you snap up to 10 pics per second by holding down the shutter button. Camera-replacement apps can come in handy for stealth mode, he says, since many of them allow you to touch anywhere on the iPhone screen to snap a picture.

“The advent of digital is as important in my mind as Kodak coming out with color photography,” he says. “It’s brought major artistic breakthroughs and provides instant feedback on your work.”

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