I know it’s not very original to be saying this now but as much as others seem to rant, moan and complain about it, I am still no closer to understanding people’s obsessions with photographing literally everything and anything they see and do. An obsession that was once reserved for the Japanese tourist, it seems photo-mania has gone international and now you can’t move at a festival, gig, art exhibit or public event for people with their cameras out, instinctively and blinding punching buttons on their tiny camera-phones or huge digital SLRs; a mindless clicking that encourages them not to think, not to imagine, not to feel. What’s wrong with looking at and simply remembering something? What is their compulsive urge to snap everything that moves? It’s like an addiction.

There is something intrinsically, psychologically backward about a person standing in front of a beautiful view or piece of art and without actually looking at, engaging with or appreciating what they can see, they simply point and click. Then no sooner than they’ve arrived, they turn on their heels and walk away. As if somehow because they know they’ve got a photograph of the thing preserved, of their own, they don’t have to actually look at it.

Part of my very cynical head wants me to give into the idea that these people rarely get out much and by photographing everything in sight it somehow validates their existence and gives them a life but that can’t be true. Some claim they are documenting it all for their own personal use and enjoyment at a later date but I still don’t understand why. Perhaps they feel embarrassed about actually taking the time to look and appreciate something in front of them and would rather do it in their own time without people looking at them looking at it? Maybe it’s something to do with our screen dominated lifestyles; if it hasn’t got a frame around it and isn’t been illuminated on an electric, digital screen, then it isn’t real enough. Do they think that going back and looking at the photos another time is going to be nearly as impressive? If that was true, people wouldn’t go on holiday; they’d be content at just looking at images of the beach on the internet. I really do find it hard to believe that they are going to sit down a few days later and look through the library worth of images they’ve been snapping – they’ll be far too busy taking photos of other things!

Maybe it’s a knock-on effect of our million miles an hour lifestyles (“not enough time to look, I’ll just take a photo”) or our shallow facebloke culture; to somehow celebrate our existence by carving out our own corner of individuality on the internet for all to see. I don’t buy that either though, surely not ever individual is a facebloke addict?

Maybe it’s all of these things, together – and maybe it’s none of them? Whatever the reason, people, get a life and leave the friggin’ camera at home.