Caught in the Moment
Camera phones aren't just fun accessories; they're necessities
By KIMBERLINA ROCHA
Snap. Surprise! You’re on camera — a camera phone, that is.
With one click of a button, your image is captured on the handheld device.
Look around. They’re on campus, at concerts, sporting events, family
reunions and at the mall.
They’re everywhere.
What makes the camera phone so appealing is its portability and the convenient
ability to capture those hard-to-catch moments in life.
Julie Martinez, a senior photography major, uses her camera phone to create
a personal collage of everything that’s important to her. She said
she has more than 50 images of family members, friends and her dog, Neo.
“I didn’t warm up to my camera phone at first,” Martinez
said. “Now, I realized that I have a camera with me at all times.
So I started taking more pictures.”
The first camera phones came out in Japan in the late 1990s, where they
continue to be a hot commodity. The camera phone didn’t make its
debut in the United States until 2002.
In 2003, more than 70 million camera phones were sold. Last year, that
figure surged to 150 million, according to Info Trends Research Group.
The cell phone industry projects to sell 420 million camera phones this
year.
Camera phones run anywhere from $150 to $400 apiece, depending on their
features. Since its beginning, the camera phone has become better equipped
with storage space and the ability to play MP3 music files, videos and
Web browse. One of the newest technologies is Bluetooth, which allows
users to talk on a wireless headset.
As with any new gadget, the camera phone has its drawbacks.
Some of the major drawbacks for Ramon Meza, a junior history major, are
the image quality and the time it takes to snap the perfect picture.
“I usually have to pause to focus and stand there to take a picture,”
said Meza, who uses a Motorola V600. “You just can’t sneak
up on someone and take one.”
The opportunity to take pictures of unsuspecting strangers has led to
the type of voyeurism that’s behind Web sites that support camera
phone imagery.
If someone has caught an embarrassing moment on a camera phone, these
images can easily be transferred and uploaded on a camera phone Web site.
Such tactics have led authorities to ban camera phones in public restrooms,
gyms and even strip clubs.
A New Jersey bill proposes camera phones make a beeping sound or flash
when a picture is about to be taken. If it passes, the bill will go into
effect in 2007.
In spite of the negative aspects associated with camera phones, some people
consider them a positive staple within our society.
Sociology professor Tim Kubal finds images captured on camera phones as
a liberating force against corporate interests.
“Camera phones have the potential to create and sustain popular
culture that is created by and for the people,” Kubal said. “Not
by and for corporate interests.”
Sandra Winters, a sophomore pharmacology major, said she likes her camera
phone because of the convenience of taking pictures when she doesn’t
have a regular camera handy.
“Sometimes you don’t have a camera with you to capture those
Kodak moments,” she said. “You can’t capture those moments
out of nowhere.”
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