Capturing something extraordinary

Having just released his first book on the subject, Melbourne photographer Misho Baranovic is carving out a niche in mobile street photography.

Interested in how the medium can be used for community building, Baranovic believes mobile photography can help people understand their environment.

“What makes a photograph captivating is the ability to either evoke a mood or memory – a sense of familiarity even. I’m drawn to images where light and content come together to unsettle or surprise the viewer. We all want to see something extraordinary,” he explains.

As an art form, mobile photography offers a new perspective on its subjects and treatment of central themes – offering immediacy and greater engagement with other artists and audience. According to Baranovic, mobile photography offers creative freedom and an ‘in the moment’ dynamic.

“The phone is always on me, enabling me to respond to the smallest of stimuli. I can find, shoot and sequence a story in less time than it used to take me to upload my pictures into Lightroom. Not only that, I am able to establish real-time dialogue with the online community.”

It could be said that mobile photography is reinventing the photographic image, encouraging people to be drawn to genuine, real-time photo engagement. New technologies, says Baranovic, are democratising photography through social sharing.

“For many people smart phones have hit the ‘good enough’ mark and are now their camera of choice. More people are capturing and consuming photos on the same device.”

In the future, Baranovic sees the most interesting art being created by harnessing the connectivity of mobile devices. Interactive, crowd-sourced, real-time storytelling will be the most likely area to generate exciting conceptual art practice.

To find out more about Misho Baranovic’s iPhone Photography eBook click here.

To connect with Melbourne photographers visit EyeEm photo walks and Mobile Photo Group.

Follow Liz Banks-Andersen on Twitter @lbanksanderson