Absolutely true. Even since the early days of digital imaging it has mirrored advances in the early days of photography and which saw significant improvements in film emulsions and lenses. But in one sense digital can go “one better” and produce very sharp images, and this is what buyers mostly seem to be looking for. I know I have. However, this can lead to too clinical looking images.

But I have been finding that increasingly these technically very sharp images seem to be lacking a soul and this has been brought home to me in recent months ever since I started to digitise a lot of my old negatives. Here I am limited to 2820 dpi from an old Minolta Dimage Elite II (35mm only) scanner, but surprisingly I have not noticed the apparent lack of sharpness. Instead, I have wondered afresh at a number of my photos and find myself looking at them rather than how sharp they are, or not. I find I’m looking at the subject, and not the technical means that achieved it.