I think that there really is an issue and that it is perhaps related to the topic that this discussion intended to address.

Yes, there is a lot of quite loudly voiced insistence around posting pictures here, not there, or not bringing up a question one more time, because it has been discussed before. One truth is that sometimes folks make mistakes. Sometimes they are careless. Neither is likely to end the world when it happens in an online forum. The fact that a familiar topic has been discussed previously here is of absolutely no significance. The reality that posters prefer cute topic headings over useful ones, combined with an ancient crippled search function, means that past historical posts here might just as well be deleted in many cases.

Anyway...these are minor rules. Nobody dies if there is occasional deviation. Bad behavior is quite different and has been shown to sometimes lead to serious consequences.

I believe you are correct that the volume of topics of general interest in this section has declined significantly. I do not believe that the subsections are the reason for this drop, because many of them are not very busy either.

I have noticed several trends, however:

Attempts at serious discussion that are not directed toward promoting mirrorless technology are routinely attacked and denigrated by a fairly small but very predictable group of bullies and detractors.

Attempts at serious discussion that are not directed toward saving raw files and doing extensive post processing are routinely attacked and denigrated by a fairly small but very predictable group of bullies and detractors.

A number of knowledgeable and helpful posters have either ceased posting altogether or have significantly reduced their contributions.

Although the vast majority of members are certainly continuing to pursue their interest in photography with mirror box camera equipment, those in this group (including me) have demonstrated, and continue to demonstrate, that we do not feel that we have a viable platform to discuss those questions, issues, and problems here. I have a list of topics that I would like to initiate, but they will never see the light of day here, simply because I do not have any interest in dealing with the trolls and detractors. I have other venues where I am discussing those topics quite productively and without anywhere near the indigestion and heartburn that would arise here.

In short...I believe that you are observing the slow death of this forum due to the bad behavior of the participants.

I believe you are correct that the volume of topics of general interest in this section has declined significantly. I do not believe that the subsections are the reason for this drop, because many of them are not very busy either.

I have noticed several trends, however:

Attempts at serious discussion that are not directed toward promoting mirrorless technology are routinely attacked and denigrated by a fairly small but very predictable group of bullies and detractors.

Attempts at serious discussion that are not directed toward saving raw files and doing extensive post processing are routinely attacked and denigrated by a fairly small but very predictable group of bullies and detractors.

A number of knowledgeable and helpful posters have either ceased posting altogether or have significantly reduced their contributions.

Although the vast majority of members are certainly continuing to pursue their interest in photography with mirror box camera equipment, those in this group (including me) have demonstrated, and continue to demonstrate, that we do not feel that we have a viable platform to discuss those questions, issues, and problems here. I have a list of topics that I would like to initiate, but they will never see the light of day here, simply because I do not have any interest in dealing with the trolls and detractors. I have other venues where I am discussing those topics quite productively and without anywhere near the indigestion and heartburn that would arise here.

In short...I believe that you are observing the slow death of this forum due to the bad behavior of the participants.

Linda from Maine posted, in part, that those who use their smartphones for photography probably don’t have a lot interesting in reading through the Main Photography Section. I agree, in part, because there are some who use their smartphones exclusively and are only interested in the Smartphone Photography Section. But there are others, me included, who use our smartphones for cameras a lot, but also use our other cameras. I always look at the Main Photography Section because I get a lot of good information there. Not all of it applies to me, but I do learn from others this way. The same goes for the Gallery. One can learn a lot about composition from photos in the Gallery. So I appreciate the Main Photography Section. It’s for everybody, and those who don’t look at it are really missing out.

To your point, those that don't look at the subsections that mostly feature images, they are missing out too. If one wonders why B&W has mostly disappeared from the Photo Gallery, they should visit the B&W section.

Those that wonder why birds have mostly disappeared from the Photo Gallery, they should visit the Birds subsection.

Those that wonder if any hipsters from Brooklyn are actually shooting film, they should visit the Film subsection.

Those that enjoy great food and great images of that food, they should visit the Food Photography subsection.

And, of course, those that think a phone can't produce great images, they should visit the Phone Photography subsection.