Amazon Patents Basic Photography Technique?

Now here is a question for the ages – has Amazon overstepped the unspoken line by patenting what many deem to be one of the most basic photography set-ups? I am referring to the patent that was discovered earlier this May by the DIY Photography blog which claimed that Amazon had already applied for the patent known as “Studio Arrangement”, which is to shoot an object using your camera while said object is in front of a white background. That’s going to affect just like, every single photo studio, ever.

The details of the patent is not all that complicated, really, as it seemed to be rather straight to the point as well as unoriginal, sporting a ‘workflow’ diagram as you can see above which depicts the entire process in just four simple steps. “Start -> Activate rear light source -> Activate front light source -> Position subject on elevated platform -> Initiate capture -> End.” You can’t get any more complex than that, can you?

Petitions have begun to mushroom all over the place on sites such as WatchDog and MoveOn in an attempt to draw attention to this seemingly brazen move by Amazon, where in the future should you actually snap a photo against a white background, there is a possibility that Amazon is going to make money off you then. Or at least, this is the gist of what the general sentiment is at the moment.

Photographer Ken Rockwell, however, did mention that this process is “very clever and particular” and “saves loads of time making studio shots.” He continued, “Brilliant! Amazon didn’t patent the […] white background as the ignorati have claimed; they only patented a clever method to get the reflecting floor to blend seamlessly into the background.” What do you think of the situation?

Edwin Kee
Categories: General
Tags: Amazon, Patent, Social Hit