You Tubers And Bloggers; Missed Opportunities

Bicycle Rentals; Albuquerque, New Mexico. (click to enlarge)
What caught my eye was the fact that the bicycle seemed so out of place with its surroundings.
Nikon D810; 24-120mm f/4 lens @ 92mm; 1/160th sec. @ f/8; ISO 200

We are so lucky to have the Internet and all of its information available to us at home, work, while mobile and almost anywhere in the world.  The potential for good is literally infinite.  On the other side of the coin, of course as with most things, there are negatives to having so much information available in so many forms as well.  In relation to photography, the availability of information at our fingertips makes learning photography, improving our photographic skills, researching photographic information as well as helping us with buying decisions infinitely easier.  But....

In my opinion I find it a shame that so many of those You Tubers and bloggers with prime platforms given them now squander their ability to help, teach and provide valuable information to those who really need good information to get into photography, improve their photography or want to buy gear that will serve them best.  Most of us have limited time and resources and many of us are hungry to learn and expand our knowledge.  We can't afford spending our time and money on things that, in the end, don't serve our needs.

Don't get me wrong.  I'm not saying all of these digital presenters or even the majority of them are squandering their opportunity (and, I believe, their responsibility) to do such a great service to the general photographic population.  But it seems to me the prevalence of putting out "click-bait" headlines with really inane content is increasing.  I don't think most of the people who do it started out to do it but because of the way the monetization of internet content is structured, they easily fall into the trap of counting "clicks" as a priority rather than providing excellent content as their priority.  It is truly a slippery slope.  Frankly, it needs to stop.  That being said, I'm a firm believer in free speech and they have every right to put out what they want.  I would never advocate stopping them or censoring them.  But...

A while back I stopped rewarding those who post "click-bait" headlines.  Off the top of your head, you can probably think of a few to whom I'm referring.  I simply refuse to "click" and watch any of their content if it appears their content is pretty worthless or they are just trying to stir up some faux controversy.  I only watch and/or listen to those who care enough to prioritize the educational public service they can provide to those who need it.

I don't know if you feel about this subject the way I do.  I think it is getting worse with time.  The only way to change this trend is to not visit those sites that practice this behavior and support those sites that don't.  I choose to give through Patreon to those I find valuable.  A lot of the You Tubers and Internet bloggers who spend a lot of time, money and effort providing free information to us have Patreon accounts.  (I do not, I self-fund all of my content and tests and buy my own gear. Nothing is provided to me) I realize I can't support all of the providers who I think provide valuable content but I can support my top five as a way of thanking them for their time, effort and expense.  

"Nuf said.  Let your conscience be your guide.

Join me over at Instagram @dennisamook or my website, www.dennismook.com. 

Thanks for looking. Enjoy! 

Dennis A. Mook 

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