ABSTRACT
Goodness and badness are illusory when we venture into the esoteric world of picture making. No parameters, no rulers, no waveforms; the subjective cannot be subjected to the conventions of measurement. Yet we often hear remarks such as, ‘Aren't the pictures good …’Or bad, middling, nice, pretty. Who can measure prettiness? We can only measure what we can touch, take hold of, do things to. And now a huge shift has taken place; the centre of gravity has moved. Video has lifted picture making out of the exclusive preserve of the professional. Now, it is the consumer in the driving seat, with digital and wide screen, PC editing, and all the bells and whistles of the big screen. And there we have the paradox… the expectations have gone askew. The man in the street has all of these but what of the rest… that which makes for good craft—good pictures? A tripod? The latest ‘How to Make a Movie’ book? Why do we still see him shooting like he's got a pistol or a hose pipe? Well, the camera's got anti-wobble technology, hasn't it? The consumer's driving the technology. Is this the Good Picture?
