The Kodak vs. the King . Images of the the Belgian Congo (aka the Congo Free State) from it's heyday under the personal rule of the very evil King Leopold. The contrast between the photographs used by Leopolds apologists and those used by his enemies (lead by the remorseless E.D. Morel) is probably unsurprising but interesting as evidence of perhaps the first propaganda war to be dominated by photography. Also, the first genocidal atrocity to be, very partially, documented photographically.

The kodak has been a sore calamity to us. The most powerful enemy that has confronted us, indeed.... Every Yankee missionary and every interrupted trader sent home and got one; and now -- oh, well, the pictures get sneaked around everywhere, in spite of all we can do to ferret them out and suppress them.

Mark Twain, King Leopold's Soliloquy

(most links go to the excellent boondocksnet site which takes as its starting point Mark Twain and his anti-imperialist campaigns and branches out most impressively from there)
posted by thatwhichfalls on Mar 20, 2004 - 6 comments

Animal, Vegetable, Video — vibrant vids of vitality.
posted by pedantic on Dec 3, 2003 - 4 comments

Some would say that Holga never really died... Welcome to the surreal world of plastic photography. The run away champion site is DigitalSucks, though great galleries and daring feats of technical innovation are scattered across the net. I'm already looking to get my first Holga.
posted by kaibutsu on Feb 13, 2003 - 11 comments

Lyudmila Putina and Laura Bush apparently forgetting there are cameras around. Switching gears now, for the smokers out there: just drink water, and you'll be able to satisfy that nicotine craving and quench your thirst with a single hand motion.
posted by Why on May 24, 2002 - 11 comments

Big Brother really IS watching you. Hey, at least if they put these on the web, you’ll be able to watch me walk to work.
posted by MrMoonPie on Feb 13, 2002 - 2 comments

The crimes they are a'changing. This comes from the daily police log of The Union newspaper Grass Valley/Nevada City, CA. Surveillance cameras (and apparently not very effective ones) were stolen while mystery powders kept the cops hopping.
posted by tnadeau on Oct 25, 2001 - 5 comments

Government GPS surveillance through your digital camera. A DOJ project to go after pedophiles and obscenity-mongers by regulating digital still and motion cameras is slated to be introduced in Congress:

A DOJ project code-named "Indecent Images" plans to implant technologies developed to automatically recognize hard-core Internet sex images into the next generation of cameras. An II-compliant camera will refuse to take illegal photographs or videos, and could even quietly tip off law enforcement to illicit behavior. . .

The II draft says that "any variant" of digital still or video camera must include a GPS device and a transmitter that is compatible with U.S. pager networks. When a child pornographer takes an illegal photo, the camera recognizes it and transmits an encrypted message containing the image, the date, and the location to the local police -- who would then raid the home and save the child from continued erotic exploitation.

They've got to be kidding. I'm not endorsing exploiting kids, natch, but I can't believe this this kind of surveillance is even being contemplated. . .

Then again, remembering Ashcroft's beady little eyes. . . (via J. Orlin Grabbe)
posted by aflakete on Apr 2, 2001 - 26 comments

Is FOJM a reflective version of Lomography not tied to a specific camera?
posted by plinth on Dec 5, 2000 - 9 comments

Lomo Shoots the OreS(o)und - The Lomographic Society plans to mark the opening of Øresund Bron, the longest bridge in Europe, linking Sweden and Denmark, with a huge photo party.
posted by magnetbox on Jun 7, 2000 - 1 comment

Everybody is blogging the intraoral camera link on Wired today. When I first saw it I was like "EEEEEEW!" I mean, it's bad enough I have to *hear* them drilling a(nother) hole in my head - I sure don't want to WATCH! I suppose as long as they don't use the same camera they use for this, it doesn't really bother me too much.
posted by CrazyUncleJoe on Feb 17, 2000 - 0 comments