We are talking about discipline here. You will see me often using my 1963 Nikon F with a prime lens, in this case an old 50mm f1.4 and a hand held exposure meter. When I do that I "zoom" with my feet and I do what I used to when film was more prevalent, select my subjects very carefully.
This view of the Miami buildings was made late in the evening, when there were still light colors in the sky. I used my Nikon F loaded with Fujifilm 200 set to ISO 160 on my Manfrotto tripod with a Linhof ballhead. I used my Minolta meter for the exposure, which I regret I cannot remember what it was.

I had an old Graphex 4x5 camera that I enjoyed using. I learned an important lesson by using that camera. Do not waste film! I didn’t have a darkroom, so processing and printing one photo would cost me around $5.00.. Back then, 5 bucks was a lot of money.

So, before I squeezed off a shot, I double checked my composition, lighting, and any obscurity or objects in the background, or on the body, if it was a portraiture, that would ruin my final print. Than, and only then did I take the shot.

Now that we have digital cameras, I still treat each shot as if I was still paying that 5 bucks for the shot. I don’t pump off my shots and hope that one will come out great. As far as I’m concerned, I’m still shooting my Graphex 4x5 camera.. and rules are still the same.

I wish that all new photo enthusiast had the opportunity to use a land-camera and learn the importance of rechecking everything, before shooting that special image in front of him.

I wish I knew what I ever did with that camera. Hmmm.