Filter or NoFilter
“#Nofilter is one of the most popular hashtags on Instagram. Using it is a way of telling people that you haven’t used any of Instagram’s built in filters to enhance the photo. But with over 40 million photos uploaded on Instagram daily, there are obviously quite a few cheaters out there”. Adweek
I’m fascinated by the vast number of images on Instagram and other image platforms, that use the #nofilter tag. What does #nofilter really tell us? What intrinsic value does it add to an image? Does it really matter to anyone other than the creator? Apparently, for some, the answer is yes; cue Filterfakers an online tool which detects if Instagram filters have been used. Of course this only works on images created with instagram, and therefore has little practical use.
We know photographs, film or digital aren’t true representations of reality. Even before intervention they are a result of a number of complex processes covering; technical - (camera ,sensor, output format) and environmental factors - (light, movement), together with human agency - (skill,experience, judgement).
Over the years serious photographers spent many hours in the darkroom processing and manipulating their prints. As photographic technology developed, they worked within its limitations and built on its strengths to amplify their intentions.
How many of us believe that an image has more validity, or is a more authentic representation of a subject, if it as captured directly by our device, than one which has been subsequently processed using one-touch filters or photo-editing software?
The art of nostalgia
Many photographic app for smartphones and most photo-editing software tools include filters to recreate the look, and feel of film cameras and film. Light leaks, scratches, blurs, and numerous vintage film artefacts can be added using one-touch filters. Polaroid ‘style’ borders and textual data are commonly added to images to complete a retro or vintage look. Interestingly when film was the only photographic medium available, these were usually considered faults and some film developing labs did not even bother printing pictures they thought were flawed.
The use of one-touch filters are usually easy to spot, and as Nathan Jurgenson suggests in Cyborgology — the use of filters may be self-defeating.
In an attempt to make oneself look distinct and special through the application of vintage-producing filters, we are trending towards photos that look the same.
Today’s advanced level image editing software enables you to create your own effects, save them and re-apply to other images, whilst one touch-filters can be used creatively in contextual projects allowing some originality.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence (AI) in computing is making huge inroads into image technology. There are quite a number of cloud based services available to process images based on AI and computer vision. In the example below no filter app is used to colour the image, nor has it been hand-coloured. All colourisation has been created automatically in the cloud using Algorithmia’s API . You can try it out for yourself here.
Authenticity
In 2015 Reuters announced a policy change banning Raw or Filter Processed images altogether.
“As eyewitness accounts of events covered by dedicated and responsible journalists, Reuters Pictures must reflect reality. While we aim for photography of the highest aesthetic quality, our goal is not to artistically interpret the news.”
Whilst this might avoid technical manipulation of an image, it is still highly dependent on the photographer's eye which will always be an interpretation of a scenario and an unavoidable factor.
After all, reality is in the eye of the beholder.
