The New Digital Darkroom
Flickr Censors Popular Flickr API Developer, Developer Threatens to Kill Flickr Application FlickrLeech This Week
I'm Houser, and I'm now a moderate on Flickr – Photo Sharing!
From the more bad news from your friendly Flickr Censorship Bureau, apparently Flickr has pissed off one of their most significant developers big time. Andrew Houser, the developer of the popular FlickrLeech program, posted on his Flickr stream yesterday that Flickr has censored 100% of his Flickr photostream. Not only is Houser a kick ass photographer and popular Flickr user in his own right, he is the developer behind what I consider the number one Flickr API application on the internet today.
FlickrLeech allows you to browse Flickr in chunks of 200 photos at once rather than require a member to page endlessly through Flickr’s own pages. I’m not sure if this recent move on Flickr’s part is some sort of retaliation against Houser because they don’t like how he’s using the API, but it sucks big time. I rated Houser’s FlickrLeech application the number one hack on Flickr in an article last year on the top 10 hacks on Flickr.
From Houser:
“I just received an email. I’ll save you all the long of it and sum it up with the following sentence:
“If you don’t apply filters correctly, there’s a very good chance another member will let us know – in fact that’s why we’ve taken action today. (No need to be upset – it’s every member’s right to let us know if they ever feel uncomfortable. Yours too.)”
I’ve had a couple drinks this evening, so I’m probably best advised not to convey my actual feelings on this matter. I am typically very careful to mark anything that contains any hint of direct nudity as restricted and anything that is close as moderate. I suppose I have a bit of a European view of nudity and the body, and think that the American puritanical double-standard is, well, ridiculous and hypocritical.
What this means is that if you are not a Flickr member and you have not set your Safe Search filter to Moderate, you can not see my work – ANY of it. Not my child. Not my landscapes. Nothing. How ridiculous is that??? It makes me almost want to close my account. It’s removes any possibility that people looking for my landscape work – local publishing editors, etc – can ever see my work. It is, in no mixed words, censorship.”
Houser goes on to say that if Flickr does not uncensor his account this week that he will be closing his account and taking down his popular Flickr API app FlickrLeech.
Again, from Houser:
“I am one of Flickr’s longest standing paying members. I’ve been using Flickr since it was a Flash application! I have asked Flickr/Yahoo to assist me in moving my account from Moderate to Safe status and I will take whatever action I need to do in order to facilitate the change. If they fail to respond, I will be removing this account and taking down FlickrLeech – removing all support for this service – this week. “
Quite frankly, this sucks.
Flickr’s censorship sucks. As great a place as Flickr is for hosting photos, the ongoing censorship issue continues to be a huge pain in the ass. Whether it’s not letting Germans see boobies or taking down politically sensitive photos, or removing text that they disagree with in community forums it sucks. I’m going to be pissed if this action causes Flickr to lose FlickrLeech. I use FlickrLeech every single day as part of my Flickr experience. I’m also going to be pissed if we lose the great photography of Andrew Houser from the Flickr experience.
The other part about this this sucks though is that even if Houser’s account does get uncensored, it probably only will happen because he’s a popular user and people protested about it. Flickr censors thousands of other users every year who have little recourse but to either put up with it or close their account.
Flickr, do the right thing. Treat us like the adults that we are and unrestrict Andrew Houser’s account. You are stewards of one of the greatest collection of photographic imagery on earth. You owe us more than this sort of censorship.
Update: Although the censorship issue does not appear to be resolved, Houser has put FlickrLeech back online and added the following note to his Flickrstream: “I’ve decided to put FlickrLeech back online. I’ve received too much support over the few years it’s run to, in good conscious, pull it from people who use it. There have been enough infractions this week on what we can and can’t see, so I won’t add to it. I just will ask that you consider the censorship issues Flickr has to deal with – which, granted, are numerous and not easy to manage the traffic of – and urge Flickr to spend some time and money making the system better.”
New Artist of the Week Series #3, rouge rouge, Back to Film
This is the continuing series of profiles on new artists publishing their work online that I started two weeks ago. The idea is that each week I’ll highlight a different artist that I’d recommend.
One of the things that so many of us have forgotten in the new world of digital is how powerful real film photography can be. There is something about what happens when colors and chemicals collide that is wonderful and beautiful. With film you have to be precise. Film is money. With every click you pay a price. It’s a sacrifice. For some more than others. It takes discipline. A single photograph emerges from the Polaroid when you click.
I don’t ever see myself going back to film, I have fond memories of doing darkroom work back int he day and I can appreciate but I lack the discipline needed with film. It’s probably a weakness in my own work.
This week I’d like to recommend the work of rouge rouge. I don’t know a lot about this artist except that he does amazing work with film photography and I believe he may be French. rouge rouge seems to be working with Holgas, Dianas, and Polaroids mostly. You can check out his website here.
interdit au rougerouge
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(holga) la revolution
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Previous artists showcased in my New Artist of the Week Series:
New Artist of the Week #1: Carlotta Fancypants
New Artist of the Week #2: Troy Paiva
Rock My World
Two Cops, Two Bikes, Plate 2
Yes We Can
"This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can."
Wordle made from Barack Obama’s acceptance speech last night. Best viewed large.
Boston.com’s 35 Photos of Barack Obama
The next President of the United States – The Big Picture – Boston.com
This is one of the best collections of photographs of Barack Obama that I’ve seen on the internet. Historically significant photographs in large format. Well worth a visit.
Video Tape of Oakland Unified School District Police Chief Art Michel’s Altercation with Photographer
[Warning: Profanity in this article]
The Oakland Tribune has made public today a videotape that was originally seized by Oakland Unified School District Police Chief Art Michel during an altercation that I blogged about yesterday between Michel and Tribune videographer Jane Tyska.
The video is troubling on many levels. I believe that police in our society are given an enormous amount of authority and power over everyday citizens. I believe that with this power and authority ought to come a great degree of prudence and composure when dealing with photographers. Especially in this case, where a photographer was shooting a politically sensitive protest, I think that the police chief in question handled the situation very poorly and ought to be disciplined for his actions based on this video.
Even if a police officer has good reason to detain a photographer (which I seriously doubt in this case) I think that they still ought to deal with the person involved with respect. Unfortunately, on the videotape released, Oakland Unified School District Police Chief Art Michel does anything but interact respectfully with a very upset and shaken Jane Tyska. In my opinion people like Michel do not belong in law enforcement.
Chief Michel repeatedly uses profanity with the photographer when she never used profanity with him. Not only did Michel confiscate Tyska’s videotape (which should only be done in extreme cases if ever in my opinion) he tells Tyska that she is “going to jail,” that she needs to “get in the fucking car,” and that she’s a “pain in the ass.” He also threatens her physically saying that he’s going to stuff her in the car and proceeds to call her a “lying son of a bitch,” and says that she was trying to incite a “riot.”
You can see the videotape for yourself here.
Photography is not a crime.
Oakland Unified School District Police Chief Art Michel in Altercation With Photographer
From the Oakland Tribune:
“While filming a protest by students outside the Fruitvale BART station today, an Oakland Tribune videographer was detained at about 10:15 a.m. and her tape was confiscated by Oakland Unified School District police.
The videographer was placed in back of a patrol car for about a half-hour and released without citation.
The protest was part of a larger rally by students who were headed to San Francisco for a immigration rights event.
Troy Flint, the spokesman for the Oakland school district, said OUSD Police Chief Art Michel was trailing the student-protesters as they made their way down International Boulevard.
Flint said Michel reported that Tribune videographer Jane Tyska, who was filming from the street at the time, elbowed the police car as Michel drove by.
“The officer confiscated the tape as alleged evidence of the photographer’s interference with his ability to conduct his responsibilities, which in this case was protecting student-protesters,” Flint said.
Tyska said the officer grazed her with his car as she was walking backwards, videotaping protesters in the middle of the street. He then stopped his car, began yelling profanities at her and accused her of hitting his car and inciting a riot, Tyska said.
“I immediately identified myself as a photographer for the Oakland Tribune, showed him my press pass, and said I was just doing my job, but he continued yelling and screaming profanities and said he was going to arrest me.”
“I asked the officer why it was illegal for me to shoot from the street and he said it was a ‘moving crime scene’. To my knowledge, there is no such thing, and photographers are always in the middle of the action at protests.”
It’s disappointing to me that a police chief would behave so badly with a photographer if these allegations are true. Especially when photographing something politically charged like a protest I’d expect someone of Michel’s seniority to respond more diplomatically. It sounds to me like another power hungry cop looking to abuse a photographer who dared to challenge his authority. Photography is not a crime. I’m especially disappointed that if these allegations are true that a police chief would use profanity when dealing with a street photographer.
I hope that Michel is investigated and if these allegations are true, disciplined for his bad behavior.
For what it’s worth, I covered some of the same protesters after they made their way to the immigration offices on Sansome Street in San Francisco later that day and had no issue when photographing them or the police in SF whatsoever. I’ve found the SFPD generally to be pretty good about allowing photographers pretty much unfettered access when covering political protests in San Francisco.