Today’s Post by Joe Farace
Would newer, better equipment improve my photographs?—a reader question
I get the above question from time to time and wanted to share my response in case anyone might have a similar one. Please keep in mind that this is not the answer but is just one answer and it’s my answer. Feel free to ask other photographers their opinions on this topic and when all is said and done, make up your own mind based on the kind of photographs that you like to make.
The short answer to is, sadly, maybe it will but maybe it won’t. Ultimately it’s the photographer who makes the picture, not the camera. The most important photographic accessory you can have is the one between your ears. I think that the best thing you can do is…
Practice, practice and practice. If you can make a picture every day; that’s actually harder than it sounds but at least give it a try.- Don’t chase perfection, instead work on gradual and incremental improvement. And don’t worry about making mistakes because that’s how we all learn and be prepared that some mistakes that can give you some ideas that will lead to creating better, more interesting photographs.
- Don’t be afraid of trying a new, different photography genre. Tackle a subject you think is hard (but maybe really isn’t) such as macro photography or infrared photography. or maybe even pinhole photography, as in the featured image at right. To me street photography is a challenge, yet many people excel at it. So I’m going to trying it once again—double— in an upcoming post about film photography.
- Be budget minded: When trying something new don’t look at the most expensive ways to accomplish these things; instead look at the cheapest ways such as using on-camera IR filters for infrared or close-up filters for macro photography. There’s time later to spend money when you realize this is something you want to pursue further.
- If you want new gear consider purchasing used and demo equipment. After all, you’re going to use it anyway not wrap it up and kiss it goodnight. You can purchase used gear from eBay, Craig’s List or friends and sites like Olympus’ are a great source for refurbs. That’s where I purchased my Pen F. And I’ve have great experiences with KEH.
And if it doesn’t sound too self serving, please visit this blog from time to time. It has many tips with different themes that appear each day of the week. There are hundreds of posts here as well what you might find on my YouTube channel—Joe Farace’s Videos. I’m sure you’ll find something here or there that might grab your attention.
I’m always glad to answer questions from readers; just click the Contact button above and drop me a note. I promise to get back to you quickly.
If you enjoyed today’s blog post and would like to treat Joe to a cup of Earl Grey tea ($3.50), click here. And if you do, many thanks.
Along with photographer Barry Staver, Joe is co-author of Better Available Light Digital Photography that’s available from Amazon for $21.50 with used copies starting around eight bucks., as I write this. No Kindle version is available, sorry.