It’s not unheard of for photographers, just like other creatives, to lose themselves into their work or let it take centerstage in their life. Some would commend this life-long commitment to their craft; others would dismiss or even condemn it as an obsession. The latter was the case for a renowned Japanese photographer whose dedication to photography many believe ruined his life.

In the video above, UK-based Tatiana Hopper give us a brief but insightful introduction into the work of Masahisa Fukase (Hokkaido, 1934 – 2012). Hailed as one of the most radical and experimental photographers of post-war Japan, he remains best known for his series and subsequent photobook, Karasu (Ravens/Solitude of Ravens, 1975 – 1985). Hopper touched on this celebrated body of work and his other notable projects to explore his dedication to — or obsession with — documenting everything through photography.

Hopper found that Fukase’s work is a life-long undertaking of documenting life, death, and everything in between. His work touched on a wide range of themes and subjects, such as family, the mundanity of everyday life, love, pain, and horror. However, if there was anything that hinted obsession, it was his 1973 series From Window, which featured his second wife and muse, Yoko Wanibe, whom he married in 1964.

In this series, Fukase photographed Wanibe from their home’s fourth floor window with a telephoto lens as she headed off to work. This went on the entire summer of that year, which many regarded as a “season of compulsion.” However, as Hopper also noted, the series showed only a fraction of Fukase’s photos of his life with Wanibe, and of Wanibe herself.

Many believe that it was this voyeuristic and obsessive documentation that drove Wanibe away from Fukase. “He has only seen me through the lens. I believe that all the photographs of me were unquestionably photographs of himself,” she was quoted as saying about her shutter-happy husband. It’s widely reported that she was completely convinced that Fukase was with her only for the sake of photographing her and their married life. Their divorce in 1976 sent him into a deep and dark depression, which drove him to drink heavily and spiral into frequent negative thoughts about life and himself. However, this dark episode led to Ravens, which is considered as his most important work before he suffered a fall — which left him with permanent brain damage — in 1992.

What do you think of Masahisa Fukase’s so-called obsession with photography? Do you agree with Tatiana Hopper’s introspection into his life and work? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Additional readings:

Masahisa Fukase’s tale of obsessive love, shot through an apartment window

Masahisa Fukase: Solitude of Ravens

Lakeland has no shortage of beautiful natural scenery, but it takes a keen eye like photographer Andy Glogower’s to capture it on camera. His first gallery exhibit is set to open on Thursday, June 27 at the Mulberry Cultural Center (103 E. Canal Street, Mulberry).

Glogower got his start shooting his daughter’s dance recitals at Harrison School for the Arts. In just a few years’ time, he’s now a published photographer (you’ll see many of his shots in The Lakelander) and an international award winner — he won the bronze medal for Team United States in the 2023 World Photographic Cup.

The works in his exhibit, “Wings, Wonders & Wonderscapes,” feature the beauty of nature + wildlife in Lakeland, across the state, and even abroad. Visit the Mulberry Cultural Center Tuesday-Saturday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. through Friday, Aug. 9 to browse the 40+ photos.

Pro tip: Don’t miss the opening reception on Thursday, June 27, 5-7 p.m.

Meta is erroneously tagging photographs as being “made with AI,” and it could be triggered by basic tools in Adobe’s editing software.

In an effort to help users distinguish photos from AI-generated art, Meta announced in February that it would begin to label posts as AI-generated if it detected the image had been manipulated in third-party software like Adobe. Now, it appears that even basic functions, like preparing an image for export from an Adobe program, could lead to it being labeled on Meta products as being “made with AI.”

One of the most well-known photographers encountering the issue is Pete Souza, who served as the official White House photographer during the Obama and Reagan administrations. Last week, Souza posted digital scans of film images he had snapped at a 1984 NBA Finals game to his Instagram account. The post was labeled as “Made with AI,” which Souza told TechCrunch was “annoying” because Instagram “forced me to include the ‘Made with AI’ [tag] even though I unchecked it.” He noted that Adobe required him to “flatten the image” before saving it as a JPEG file, which he believes could have triggered the incorrect “Made with AI” tag.

In another example, a cosplayer posted to X about an Instagram photo of her work that had been incorrectly tagged as being “Made with AI.” They wrote, “My cosplay made with the physical labour of my own hands is being labeled as AI content on Instagram, with no way to correct this tag.”

Tweet may have been deleted

The accurate labeling of AI-generated or edited images is crucial to maintaining a safe and authentic online experience, especially as the 2024 election looms. AI-generated images have already duped older users of Facebook, a Meta product. Adobe’s AI capabilities, specifically, can be highly convincing.

A Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch about the company’s AI-tagging capabilities: “Our intent has always been to help people know when they see content made with AI. We are taking into account recent feedback and continue to evaluate our approach so that our labels reflect the amount of AI used in an image.”