An infant in a highchair holds a cell phone, appearing to be focused for the time being on exploring this device. “Cell phone baby” by SparkCBC is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.A young boy holds a cell phone to his ear, perhaps speaking with one of his parents while his grandmother takes care of him. “Hello Operator” by Derek Olson is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.A group of adolescents walk together as one of the older girls holds her cell phone, which she has been using to take photographs. “Young explorers” was taken by Erwin Soo, and is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.“Are We Done Yet” by peasap is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.A young man appears to be having a satisfying interaction on his cell phone while seated in on a bench in a public setting. “44 Jessica Salmon. 23.03.2019 Newcastle. A man on his phone on the Bigg Market” by Cartridge Save – A Day in the Life is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.Two women appear equally engrossed in their cell phones while sitting inside a train car. “I call my sister.” by Joram Huyben is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.A teenage girl takes a photo using her cell phone in pedestrian traffic. “Selfie girl on 34th street” by Susan Jane Golding is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.Two women pose for a selfie in front of a landmark. “004/366 – Einsichten / Insights” by Boris Thaser is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.A self-media professional highlights the technology he pairs with his cell phone to produce online video content. “Live from the streets” by Go-tea 郭天 is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.A man in China takes a break from work by using his cell phone. “Keep in touch” by Go-tea 郭天 aka Gauthier Delecroix is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.A modest fruit stall owner passes time on her cell phone in the absence of customers. “Simple life” by Go-tea 郭天aka Gauthier Delecroix is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.A hospitality worker takes a break from work by chatting on his cell phone. “Isolation” by Go-tea 郭天aka Gauthier Delecroix is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.Three adults occupying a bench at a New York City subway station in Brooklyn pass time waiting for their train by browsing content on their cell phones. “Staying Social” by Leon Fishman is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse.Adults pass time in a subway car by consuming content on their cellphones. “The Reading Room” by Susan Jane Golding is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.Two older gentlemen cooperate to view content on a cell phone. “You’ve Got Mail” by Georgie Pauwels is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.An elderly man talks on a cell phone. “Old man, new technology” by Brooke Hoyer is licensed under CC BY 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse. No changes were made to the image.
This photo essay is a compilation of black and white photographs showing humans interacting with cellphones from their earliest moments in life through to their later years. Each image tells the story of how we use cell phones in our daily lives and how central to our lives cell phones have become. I am old enough to remember how life was before humans were so dependent on cell phones. My maternal grandmother had a rotary dial phone through until the 1990s that we had to use at a little table in her hallway, while my parents had a phone with a longer cord that meant you could move around a little more while on the phone. By the time I was in my late teens, we had a cordless phone in our home and call waiting, so I could chat with my friends on the phone for hours from almost anywhere in the house. My first cellphone could send text messages and make calls, but cost 20 cents per text, so it wasn’t ideal. My point is, my childhood was spent connecting with people, rather than connecting with technology. While cell phones have provided humans with all sorts of conveniences, in my view they have robbed us of many opportunities for real human connection.
My interpretive lens for this photo essay was influenced by uses and gratifications theory, which suggests that people actively seek out different media to fulfill specific psychological and sociological needs. The cell phone is a technology that provides instant access to countless types of media, and it is a tool that can provide users with gratifications almost instantly. I also wanted to illustrate through my photo essay that adults are introducing cellphones to children as early as infancy, and so by the time children reach adolescence cell phones have become a big part of their lives.
I opted to use a timeline to structure the arrangement of the photographs, so I did this in terms of the age of the central character or characters in each photograph. I did this to show cell phone interactions at different stages of life and in different social settings. For example, the use of cell phones varies from infancy, adolescence, into the adult years when people are in the workforce, and during retirement. The photographs show people at different stages of life and imply that at different stages of life one may have different reasons for using cell phones. Younger people may do so to connect with others, or to disconnect from situations. While some of the older characters in this photo essay may use their cell phones for social connection, or to relax.
I selected black and white photos, because I found that the emotions these photos evoked felt stronger than colored photos. The colored photos I had compiled initially varied too much in terms of color, quality, and composition that I felt they would not fit together in a photo essay. I chose several photos of people on cellphones that were set in China, because I found that the emotions these photos evoked really struck a chord with me and aligned with my theme.
