FA+
Shop
178
Views
Views
0
Favorites
Favorites
Category
All / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 847 x 516
File Size 308.5 kB
Report this content
More from ElSeven
Listed in Folders
A nice camera won't make you a better photographer. Geegaws and fancy display screens won't make you a better photographer. Shooting film for film's sake won't make you a better photographer. White lenses, red dots, and Swedish brand names won't make you a good photographer either. And while none of these things will hinder you, the absolute best thing that they can do is put as little resistance between you and the moment you want to capture. A camera is a tool, and nothing more.
And these are the tools I use most regularly. Like tools, or brushes, or pen nibs, I use a different one for different situations. Are they the best cameras in the world? No, but such a camera would be wasted on me. Could I get by with just one? Yes. I can, and have done. But this is what works for me right now. Shooting indoors in available light? Something light weight that I can pack into a canyon? Something quiet and unobtrusive? Something I can stick into my pocket? Just something foolproof and indestructible? Yup! I can do that. And at the end of the day, I might even have some descent photos to back up all my rhetoric :)
And these are the tools I use most regularly. Like tools, or brushes, or pen nibs, I use a different one for different situations. Are they the best cameras in the world? No, but such a camera would be wasted on me. Could I get by with just one? Yes. I can, and have done. But this is what works for me right now. Shooting indoors in available light? Something light weight that I can pack into a canyon? Something quiet and unobtrusive? Something I can stick into my pocket? Just something foolproof and indestructible? Yup! I can do that. And at the end of the day, I might even have some descent photos to back up all my rhetoric :)
Category All / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 847 x 516px
File Size 308.5 kB
Listed in Folders
Oh, certainly! Nicer tools can only help you make better pictures. It's undeniable, and between some things there just isn't any comparison. If I could get away with it, I'd haul my medium format rig everywhere, and shoot all day, but it's just not practicable. It's too big, too heavy, and too loud for the sorts of thinks I like to shoot, and frankly, I feel like a huge goober just hauling it around, while I can drop one of those rangefinders into a coat pocket or shoulder bag, and go about my business. Given the choice between getting the shot with a scale focusing pocket camera, and missing it with my big black boat anchor, I'll take getting the picture. The trade-off is worth it to me.
Of course, I shoot mostly film, which gives me an advantage in frame size, over most compact digitals (or SLRs this side of 1k).
Again, it's just what works for me :)
Of course, I shoot mostly film, which gives me an advantage in frame size, over most compact digitals (or SLRs this side of 1k).
Again, it's just what works for me :)
I'd still like to use film, but there's only four or five places in the whole country that do processing now, it takes weeks and costs a lot, especially compared to digital, which is instant and costs nothing. I remember back in the old days, my good lady friend (professional photographer) got all gleeful over the arrival of the 36 exposure film, and sounded like an excited child as she told me how it was a whole 50% more than the 24s she had been using up until then. I like my SLR, it's cheap (even though it was fooking expensive) and out-of-date, and the sensor has more dust on it than the surface of the moon, but it's the only camera I've had that doesn't stifle my creativity. I've wanted a decent camera since the age of about 5 years old, waited all my life, and finally got enough spare cash to get one.
But, agreeing with you, I think I've always had a natural talent, albeit a bit raw, and miniature in comparison the the talents of my afforementioned good lady friend, and I've taken some great shots with throwaway fixed-focus stuff. So I don't think my SLR makes me a good photographer. But it does take good photos.
Erk. Yeah, I don't think I'd shoot much film if I was in that situation either. I guess I'm kind of spoiled in that regard. I'm shooting mostly black and white these days, and am processing it myself in my bathroom cum darkroom, and color print film is only a matter of walking down to the corner for one hour negative only processing. Slides are a different story. None of the shops here do them in house any more, so, it's either cross process, or, send them off myself to save some money. Or just shoot all my color in digital, which is almost what I'm ending up doing, because it's cheap and instantaneous. But I miss the controls of the old cameras. It's mostly why I use them. I can just look, and see what my exposure settings are without futzing with extra buttons, squinting through viewfinders or at LCD displays. Aperture ring is there, shutter knob is there, and you're ready to go. I'd be all over a digital that gave me that option (provided it didn't cost $8000. Screw you too, Leica).
But! What sort of camera are you getting? That Canon that you were lusting after in picture "B"?
But! What sort of camera are you getting? That Canon that you were lusting after in picture "B"?
I progressed though cameras. I started off with a 240x320 webcam (shot) which let me down by ditching its entire memory of some really important shots. It got replaced about an hour after that incident, with the camera I used for example A. The quality of that camera was horrible, as you can see. The most part of my life's savings and financial achievements had gone into my car, and a few months ago, I got rid of the car so I could afford the camera I have now. That Canon EOS, as used in example B. That's why dirt on the sensor frustrates me; it's the sum of my entire life's work, ruined by a tiny speck of dust.
Comments