Between technological and social evolution: digital photography as a framework for (im)material experiences

Résumé En

This article explores how the potentialities of digital media amplify processes of production anddiffusion of photographs on the Internet, allowing for a diversity of experiences, each of thempotentially meaningful to those who see or those who are seen. This work was envisaged as a dialoguebetween the field research based on qualitative and ethnographic tools and some theoretical aspectsrelated to photography and communication. The field research is based on interviews and observationson social networks (Instagram© and Facebook©), aiming at some aspects of digital photographicbehavior in the context of the use of these networks as platforms for communication and creation ofsocial ties. First, we will outline the (im)material features of digital photography and how such featuresinform the practices of production and diffusion of digital photographs in social networks. Secondly, wewill present the modalities of influence of the technological evolutions on social behaviors. Third, we willtry to understand how the processes of producing and circulating photos on the Internet allow for "new"forms of experience. The interviews contribute to the process of making apparent the technologicalstructure that underlies the experiences of production and diffusion of photographs online,corroborating the diversity of experiences.