BebuLamar

You get it the wrong way! There are many bad photographers with good cameras. What I said is that there are not many good photographers with bad cameras. So if the picture is good so the photographer is good then very likely the camera is good too.

DeanS Loc: Capital City area of North Carolina

Perhaps you should have just ignored it and skipped on by. I suspect a few newer Hoggs enjoyed the story.

Kissel vonKeister Loc: Georgia

You must have wonderful brushes Mr daVinci.

salmander

My younger brother is a good example. He's 66, and his main interest in life is world travel. He has been somewhere in the world (usually for 10 to 14 days) at least 40 times. He's the best photographer I know personally, and he only uses a cell phone. He has studied art all his life, and he - gasp - "crops" his photos in-camera before he presses the shutter! They don't even need minor adjustments, from what I've seen. How can anyone do that? I'm so envious. His photos would make a better exhibition than many I've seen. He doesn't think of himself as a photographer - perhaps because he has no desire for a better camera - and, as such, doesn't think of himself as being much more than an ordinary cell-phone user who takes pictures of subjects he finds interesting.

joegim Loc: Long Island, NY

To quote a photographer: "Great pictures are created in the mind. The camera merely records pixels."

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

Ignore those comments, Dean. Some members seem to lack a sense of humor.
Mark

DeanS Loc: Capital City area of North Carolina

Thanks Mark. If there is a serious side to this story, I suggest it is thus: when paying a complement to someone, regardless of the subject, I consider it far more important to complement the producer rather than their equipment. This is not meant to impunge anyone or their own approach to human interaction.

Thanks for watching, and I have just dismounted from my soapbox. 😎😎😎

salmander

What does that even mean? My post was in agreement with the general jist of the point of humor in the joke, so it looks like you thought it meant something else, which I can't imagine. Perhaps you thought that the last statement I made was serious, as in anyone can make wonderful photos, even with no experience? I thought that it was obviously a sarcastic comment. The last two sentences had the exact opposite meaning of the one before them. Did you not get it?

aellman Loc: Boston MA

Excellent. Right on target, but non-shooters have been influenced by advertising to believe that a better camera is the answer. People buy DSLRs (sometimes expensive ones) who know absolutely nothing about how to operate them, not to mention how to make a decent photograph. And AUTO doesn't help. >Alan

markngolf Loc: Bridgewater, NJ

DeanS Loc: Capital City area of North Carolina

Thanks for the clarification on the equipment.😎😎😎

Lucky Jim Loc: San Diego, CA

Here are a few similar situations:

What NOT to Say to a Professional Photographer

Are you using a compact camera? What happened to all your great gear? (Too heavy.)

I put my camera in the P, A, S, and M modes, but it still won’t shoot videos. (Professionals take still photos, not videos.)

I love your pictures, you must have an amazing camera. (It’s the photographer, not the camera.)

(Very similar.) Look at those terrible pictures. You need a new camera. (Again, it’s the photographer, not the camera.)

I see you have this tall tripod; you must be a professional. (It’s not the tripod that makes great pictures.)

I’m a fireman and I’m looking for a less stressful, better paying occupation, some- thing like a wedding photographer. (Dealing with guests, children, and parents in a wedding is more stressful than fighting fires.)

Congratulations on winning that photography prize. I noticed the blurry area in the corner of your winning photo. Is that a new, revolutionary trend in photography? Shall I follow it? (This was a mistake that no one was supposed to notice.)

I’m a professional photographer, but I love the iPhone, and for artistic reasons. (The iPhone is not for professionals. No interchangeable lenses and it does not even have a manual mode.)

Those are great shots of yours. Hey, we have a party this weekend. I would love you to come and take some shots. We cannot a↵ord a professional photographer. (A personal, though unintended, slight.)

I can be a great photographer, only I cannot a↵ord the gear. (It’s the photographer, not the gear.)

Hey, would you like to see my photo creations. I keep them all right here, on my iPhone. (Again this iPhone.)

Let’s take a group shot before parting. Who’s got the best camera? (It’s the photographer, not the camera.)

MadMikeOne Loc: So. NJ Shore - a bit west of Atlantic City

That was the version I heard, also.

BebuLamar

So when you show me your pic I will say "Wow, how the heck you get such good pictures out of that piece of junk?"

DeanS Loc: Capital City area of North Carolina

You're spot on Mark. I thought to myself, since no one else was present, that surely if I titled the piece as HUMOR, that would be a sufficient warning that it was just a JOKE. Perhaps I made a serious error in judgement. 😎😎😎