Well, I am not at all happy when a flash-using photog gets all "capture the moment while destroying it," either, but what really gets me is the tendency of people to post all their photos, rather than just the good 'uns, on websites. I've gotten some really nice photos of myself and others I make music with from Getaway and WFF and musical-gathering 'diaries,' and I appreciate seeing those. I even like the photos I'm not in, sometimes.

But when they post seventeen photos of the same Morris team, shot from too far away and all looking the same, complete with a spectators' elbow in the frame, not to mention the sun flare and slightly sloppy focus, that just gets my goat. If you're going to take pictures, you probably have some sense of artistic feeling, so use that and choose the three or four best ones, maybe crop or enlarge and fix the red-eye (there are free and cheap options -- you don't have to spring the big bucks for PhotoShop). You'd think that pride would call for doing this, if nothing else.

Also, there is a place for the snapshot, breaking the rules I just mentioned, to present a feeling for an event others may have been at or even missed. "Last night's house-party" pictures, even with the not-so-carefully-chosen shots, can be fine. But if it's going onto a more permanent website, like Art's, mentioned above, use your head. Post the best ones, and you'll get more attention than if you just unload the camera chip and post it.

Sounding like a grump, just because it's too freaking hot to go outdoors (I'm even working from home), I remain

Yours truly,

Bob Clayton