When something is reproduced so many times, I feel that it definitely loses its artistic elements. When something is created by an artist, it has uniqueness and rareness to it. The artist that initially produced that particular piece of art put their strengths, talent, and feelings into that piece.
Consider The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci. A quick search on the internet shows how frequently this piece has been reproduced.
The first two representations of Leonardo da Vinci's last supper seem to be "close" to originals, but you can also see how the colour in the image is brightened. The third image is obviously a blatent reproduction of the original:
 |
| http://www.knowledgerush.com/kr/encyclopedia/The_Last_Supper_(Leonardo) |
 |
| http://www.thebricktestament.com/latest_additions/archive_2007.html |
Once it is reproduced over and over again, those intimate feelings are lost. At times, however, the reproducibility of art can be important. If art was never reproduced, the people of today may not have had the chance to witness such beautiful creations, even if it was a reproduction. No doubt, some of the unique elements of the piece will be lost in a reproduction. However, a reproduction can still give people of today a taste of the work of talents of the past. That said, when a piece of art is mechanically reproduced over and over again, society loses the true essence of that piece of art was meant to symbolize.
In my opinion, photography IS art. It is meant to express something. It is meant to capture something. It is meant to show the viewer of the photograph something through the eyes of the photographer. How can one view the following photograph of model/acress Lily Cole taken by photographer Sølve Sundsbø and not consider it art?
One of Henry Peach Robinson's most famous pieces was Fading away, created in 1858. It was composed of five negatives which shows a girl dying from tuberculousis, and her family around her. People were not used to this type of imagery being in a photograph; people were used to seeing such images in paintings. Perhaps Hentry Peach Robinson was trying to break down walls and show that photographs "were allowed" to have such imagery in it as well.
Digitalization has made photography much more accessible to a wider range of people. It allows one to immediately view a photograph after it has been taken as opposed to having to wait for the developing process to take place first. It allows even the most novice user access to taking a decent photo. Photography has continued to advance over the years and I am sure that there is much more advancement to be seen in the future where photography is concerned.
