South-east Asia in thousands of pictures

AS an art form, painting is over 42,000 years old while sculpture is a little younger at around 34,000 years of age. Photography is a few years shy of its 200th year mark, making it a baby by comparison. 

But looking at the vast proliferation of photographic images on the Internet and social media today, it feels as if there have been more photographs produced in this world than there have ever been paintings and sculptures. All it takes now to produce a photo – or several in quick succession – is to tap a button on a screen. 

What then makes one photograph matter over the rest? How does one assess the quality of a photograph when tastes and aesthetics rapidly shift? How can a photograph produced today secure a lasting position of importance when pitted against billions produced daily?