In my post, I don’t think I’m an equipment freak, I said, “back in those original film days whenever people seemed more obsessed with their gear than the kind of photographs it made, they were called equipment freaks.”
Today’s Post by Joe Farace
“I always pass on good advice. It is the only thing to do with it. It is never of any use to oneself.” ―
I never miss a chance to quote the always quotable Irish playwright. Once upon a time, I was lucky enough to spend a few nights in the Cadogan Hotel, in the heart of London’s Chelsea neighborhood. Way back in the day, Oscar frequently hosted friends at the hotel’s bar. Me? I had breakfast tea and toast in a cozy area just off the hotel’s lobby. What’s that got to do with photography? Let me tell you a story…
It Ain’t the Gear
When I was a young photographer just getting started back in the 1970’s, I’d often read comments in magazines, like Popular Photography, from photographer’s I admired saying “It Ain’t the Gear, it’s the photographer.” And I would think to myself, “well, that;s easy for you to say because you have the latest Nikon or Hasselblad camera and here I was shooting with hand-me-down a Minolta SR-1 and Mamiya C33.” But now I find myself saying the same thing toy young photographers. So I guess, what goes around…
As I said, my first SLR was a 35mm Minolta, a SR-1 that I bought used from my friend Eddie who had upgraded to the much better, new Minolta SRT-101. When I finally started making a little money, I was able to shoot with Nikon and Hasselblad cameras and did so for most of my early professional career, before later switching to ContaxSLRs and rangefinder cameras in a move inspired by a former editor of Shutterbug.
When DSLRs came along I settled on the Canon EOS system but much later at a Panasonic press event for the launch of the Lumix G5, I became enamored with the Micro Four-thirds system because of their compact size and large number of lenses that were available. That’s why nowadays almost all of my recent gear purchases were of Panasonic and Olympus mirrorless equipment.
By mentioning all this history, it’s not my intention to convince you to switch camera systems. If what you currently own works for you and you’re happy, keep on truckin.’ My wife, for example, shoots with Nikon DSLRs and mirrorless cameras and she loves them.
How I Made This Photograph: This photograph was captured in Prospect, Colorado using a Pentax K100D and one of my favorites Pentax lenses for outdoor photography, the DA 18-55mm lens at 45mm. The exposure1/125 sec at F/18 at ISO 200.
You don’t have to spend…
…thousands of dollars on equipment to make high quality photographs. There are plenty of reasonably priced cameras offering interchangeable lenses and sophisticated electronics. Be sure to check out camera manufacturer’s lower and mid-priced models instead of their expensive top-of-the line cameras. You might be surprised at how capable entry-level cameras can be.
If you’re a beginning photographer, I think you’ll find it much more useful to have a $400 – $500 camera with a few lenses and a speedlight, instead of a $2,000 camera and a single lens That’s why you should also consider purchasing a used camera—you’re going to use it anyway. When any new DSLR or mirrorless camera in introduced, lots of photographers who want to be the first with a new camera, trade their older model in for the latest one. That’s the best time to buy the previously latest model and let the other person take the depreciation hit.
There are subsets of used cameras called “demo” and factory refurbished models. My EOS 1D Mark II N was a demo unit that was never sold and had the warranty card but it had been handled, the box opened, and somebody played with the camera. Similarly my Olympus Pen F was a refurb purchased directly from Olympus before OM Systems took over. Many camera stores also offer demo gear at good prices so it pays to have a sales person you work with on a regular basis to keep you informed of bargains. Refurbs are similar but somebody may have previously owned it and there may or may not be a warranty in the package.
And lest we forget, there’s eBay. I’ve bought and sold cameras and lenses on eBay and while the bargains that abounded in eBay’s early years have pretty much evaporated, it remains a great place to locate and purchase hard-to-find items—if you are a careful shopper. (Maybe a topic for a future post, although I did cover some of the topics on my YouTube channel in this video and this one too.)
Special Note: All of the cameras and lenses that are used to make the photographs featured on this blog were made with gear that I purchased with my own money. Any exceptions are when I was testing equipment for a review. You may be surprised to learn that after I’ve finished writing a review the gear must be returned to the manufacturer. There are no freebies although I expect that may not be true of some bloggers and YouTubers.
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