Cellphone cameras and Instagram....Saviours or Destroyers of Photography?

There have been a lot of professional photographers out there that have stated that Instagram and cellphone cameras are the destroyer of traditional photography! I on the other hand think that in a lot of ways Instagram and cell phones have rekindled interest in photography in the general masses, to a level not seen since the Polaroid days. 

Back in the 70's I think photography had hit an all time interest level high, mostly because of the popularity of the Polaroid cameras. I can remember that everyone had one, and I can remember being at family parties and there being a few Polaroid's snapping away. My family still has photo albums full of fading Polaroids. 

Jump to now to modern times and cell phones and Instagram, we have a simular interest in general photography. In my opinion, the addition of cameras to todays cell phones and the ability to post pictures to sites such as Facebook and Instagram as soon as you take them has re-stirred an interest in general eveyday photography. 

Now in my opinion it has created upsides and some downsides to the fields of photography. On the upside end of things, one of the most interesting is an interest in "still life" photography. This is evident by how many "food pix" you see on Instagram. If some of these people would put that interest in using real cameras we could have new generation of product and still life photographers. The cellphone cameras have also led to an increase of interest in the field of street/urban photography. Almost eveyone has a camera with them now when thy see something interesting while walking down the street. A positive side benefit is that few people are intimidated by someone taking a picture with a cell phone allowing you to get the shots you would have a hard time getting on the streets with a DSLR. 

In my mind one thing that can be considered both a positive and a negative is the rise of the "selfies". As annoying as it can be, it can also lead to an increase interest in modelling and portrait photography. 

So in my opinion there are both positive and negative aspects to the rise of cell cameras and sites like Instagram. It will take time to see what this will all mean for the art of photography.