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It ain't the equipment
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Oct 10, 2017 14:21:15   #
rpavich Loc: West Virginia
 
Ched49 wrote:
If a person starting out in photography and has the aspirations of becoming a professional sports or wedding photographer then yes, your point is well taken. Their the ones buying the latest equipment every two or three years. Do I need a DSLR that shoots 10 or 15 fps? no. Or a camera that has 50 mega pixels? No. Or a camera that has a lightning fast focus system? No. I can see the poster's point...you can be a camera enthusiast who loves to take pictures but their are other more important things in life.
If a person starting out in photography and has th... (show quote)


I think that most folks here on the 'hog who THINK that they need all that really don't. "Can't get the shot" doesn't hold water most of the time from what I see.

I'm sure I'll get slammed but that's my take on it.

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Oct 10, 2017 14:22:18   #
Bill_de Loc: US
 
Ched49 wrote:
The key words here are PROFESSIONAL camera and lens. The only thing a PROFESSIONAL camera lets you do is get to the different settings quickly. If you would put a photo taken by a $350.00 D3400 and one taken by a $6000.00 D5 side by side...you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference.



That's true. What you wouldn't see from the $350 camera are the shots you missed because of the slower frame rate or slower focusing, etc.
Most of us don't mind missing those shots, but it would be nice to get them on a more regular basis. Those are the shots that when some folks get them they feel it's because they were lucky. It is still a good feeling.

---

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Oct 10, 2017 14:31:04   #
tdekany Loc: Oregon
 
joer wrote:
Right on target SS.

Practice, knowledge and skill are important but so is the right tool for the job. A professional camera and lenses provide photographic opportunities that entry level equipment can never match.

Many people that think the photographer is every thing have never tried top notch equipment.


Creativity, composition and subject matter needs no camera. Those come from the photographer and makes or breaks the outcome. So in what way is the gear more important?

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Oct 10, 2017 14:38:52   #
Photocraig
 
barbie.lewis wrote:
I really like the photo!

You are so right. Powerful images have been made with pinhole cameras, Argus C-3's, and all sorts of things.


I remember when I had a Kodak Pony and my younger brother got the advanced Argus C3. Later my High School had an Argus C-4. Both had coupled rangefinders instead of the scale focusing on my Pony. Since the lens was the lens, usually 40+mm, unless it was a Schneider, we never noticed. Of the photos on my walls, one is from my Pony and one is from my dad's Kodak Signet (which did have the Schneider lens).

The theory of relativity for life is summed up in the phrase, "Compared to what?"
C

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Oct 10, 2017 14:48:46   #
Stirling_Bartholomew
 
My infatuation with film photography was fairly short-lived. I started in summer of 1970 and by 1980 it was overwith. I have noticed in retrospect that my preoccupation with aquiring equipment increased toward the end. I was captivated by the fallacy that having one more telephoto would get me back to 1970-72. It didn't work. From 1980-2005 I didn't own a camera. Took not one photograph for 25 years.

In 2005 I started dabbling in postprocessing digital scans of transparencies from the film days. Having logged countless hours in the 70s working in studio darkrooms and ProLab in Seattle, I was captivated by the flexibility and potential of Photoshop. It was so painless by comparison to working in a darkroom.

Couple of years later found myself headed toward photo gear acquisition fever once again. It was mostly about lenses. I started pixel peeking and became preoccupied with optical performance. Unloaded my kit lenses and picked up two decent 4/3 Zuiko units. About the time I started shooting micro 4/3 a friend dumped all his 1970s Pentax gear on me. There are high-performance lenses made specifically for micro 4/3, I don't have even one of them. Every time I see someone selling the Zuiko 75mm f1.8 for half price, I mount up my Pentax 85mm f2 and take it out for some shooting. There's no comparison between these lenses. The Pentax is soft as melted butter at F2. I like it. Think of Sally Mann or Jack Spencer. You can get that look with post processing or you can get it with an old lens wide-open. The Post processing approach begins to look all the same after a while. Actual lens faults have a characteristic that's difficult to duplicate artificially.

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Oct 10, 2017 19:42:21   #
mas24 Loc: Southern CA
 
Ched49 wrote:
The key words here are PROFESSIONAL camera and lens. The only thing a PROFESSIONAL camera lets you do is get to the different settings quickly. If you would put a photo taken by a $350.00 D3400 and one taken by a $6000.00 D5 side by side...you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference.


I've heard those comments before, and I believe it. However, that D3400 will not cut the mustard at a NFL pro game. Your D5 with a 70-200mm f2.8 (Nikon) will certainly fair much better than someone with a D3400 crop sensor, under the hands of a professional. Night football games especially.

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Oct 10, 2017 19:51:24   #
le boecere
 
tnturk wrote:
Please understand this is an observation. Not the magic do all, fix all.
I am a grinder. By grinder I mean just a guy that loves photography and have loved it all my life.My equipment is sparse and in almost all cases entry level. Not a complaint but a fact of life. Kids, college, weddings, all came first. Photography is a passion but in most cases comes lower on the list of must haves. I watch posts on UHH and almost daily people ask for this vs that and seem to think this will make them better. What makes you better is practice and knowledge of the equipment you have. My lenses are kit lenses. My camera an entry level DSLR. My enjoyment has been and is over the top. I love what I do. I love getting better. I love the knowledge. So for all you people out there who think the equipment will make you better. Nope it's practice, read, understand. That's what makes you better.
Please understand this is an observation. Not the ... (show quote)


On a short UHH thread, yesterday, an individual with a premium-quality mirrorless pocket camera was told that (s)he needed a DSLR to capture racing boats. Today we discover "It ain't the equipment". I'm still waiting for the experts to get into agreement.

http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-489793-1.html

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Oct 10, 2017 21:31:37   #
BebuLamar
 
tnturk wrote:
Please understand this is an observation. Not the magic do all, fix all.
I am a grinder. By grinder I mean just a guy that loves photography and have loved it all my life.My equipment is sparse and in almost all cases entry level. Not a complaint but a fact of life. Kids, college, weddings, all came first. Photography is a passion but in most cases comes lower on the list of must haves. I watch posts on UHH and almost daily people ask for this vs that and seem to think this will make them better. What makes you better is practice and knowledge of the equipment you have. My lenses are kit lenses. My camera an entry level DSLR. My enjoyment has been and is over the top. I love what I do. I love getting better. I love the knowledge. So for all you people out there who think the equipment will make you better. Nope it's practice, read, understand. That's what makes you better.
Please understand this is an observation. Not the ... (show quote)


The equipment made me better. Not better than you but better than I was when I had bad equipment. And I don't just mean the results are better but rather I actually learned more and know more with better equipment.

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Oct 10, 2017 21:51:19   #
TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC
 
Ched49 wrote:
The key words here are PROFESSIONAL camera and lens. The only thing a PROFESSIONAL camera lets you do is get to the different settings quickly. If you would put a photo taken by a $350.00 D3400 and one taken by a $6000.00 D5 side by side...you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference.


Not if it was a night football game, an indoor basketball game or an available light (no flash) indoor wedding 🙄

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Oct 10, 2017 21:55:42   #
LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field
 
tnturk wrote:
Agree'd. When the ultimate destination is pro, then equipment matters. Your knowledge has to have a basic start point. You don't start with an advanced camera


I respectfully disagree. If you take a lot of photos, you will outgrow your camera. If you don't, then you are not stretching yourself beyond your current capabilities. It's better to have room to grow than to bump against the ceiling created by your camera. So buy to stretch. One thing not mentioned is the quality of your glass. The higher end cameras benefit from (and "require") better glass.

Of course, one has a budget. What I'm really talking about is a "penny wise, pound foolish" approach to photography.

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Oct 10, 2017 22:05:07   #
TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC
 
I dunno - when I look at a tack sharp image taken with a good piece of glass, it makes me smile. When I look at a soft one (unless intended) or one with excessive CA from a poor lens, not so much.

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Oct 10, 2017 23:17:08   #
SteveR Loc: Michigan
 
Ched49 wrote:
The key words here are PROFESSIONAL camera and lens. The only thing a PROFESSIONAL camera lets you do is get to the different settings quickly. If you would put a photo taken by a $350.00 D3400 and one taken by a $6000.00 D5 side by side...you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference.


Given what paramaters, Ched? Tell me, are you more liable to get a good photo shooting a burst with the D5 or with the D3400? Are you more likely to get a good photo under low light conditions with the D5 or the D3400. Now, if you're just going to take one shot with each using the same settings during good lighting....you're probably right.

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Oct 11, 2017 05:47:03   #
pithydoug Loc: Catskill Mountains, NY
 
SharpShooter wrote:
LoL!
Wait till you're advanced and you can't get the shots you want because your entry level camera doesn't have the focus system capable of getting the shots?!
Suddenly the equipment becomes brutally important, no matter HOW good you are.
Don't judge a camera by how good you are not!!!
SS


A little heavily said but a good point. Either directly or indirectly you have learned to work your equipment the best you can. How many times have you had to settle on a shot because it's the best you could get but wish it was just little bit Yada, yada, yada. Or the light was so minimal, the photo was more grain then a filled solo?

I had an entry level some many years ago and like you, I learned it's limitations and did well. Then I sold my kids and bought a high end camera. Let me assure you, you don't have to simply settle, is amazing. The sensors and focus today are incredible.

Or said differently, you don't know what you are missing.

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Oct 11, 2017 05:52:20   #
jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY
 
Nice shot. Yes, experience does matter.

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Oct 11, 2017 05:53:34   #
dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida
 
tnturk, well said and echoes my philosphy well.

As a 2A Brownie at 4 with no film, and my own Hawkeye Kodak at 10 and my small closet dark room.... well yep, KIS, Keep it simple. I now have good DSLR multi lenses [Minolta left overs] but my Pocket SuperZoom steals the show. it is with me 24/7. My tripod is fast shutter speed; my lighting is on board flash with toilet paper diffuser. My photos consistently get award status at the Camera Club ... to me Composition is King and IQ is secondary.

I have a friend in England who I have mentored who is now getting mudded down with meters and the learning curve of the LightRoom Religion where every thing gets complicated. If you count the number of LtRm problems in UHH main section vs straight forward editing or simple Raw to Tiff/JPEG adjustments with other simpler yet specialized programs .. well the problems and questions with LtRm sure tell us it is a problematic club that people enter to carry a cross and scourge themselves. The way to photo heaven is simplicity not pain.

My post work is done mainly with either PSE or PSPro with Topaz Plugins. My prediction is that programs like Topaz Studio will make Adobe the manual transmission of the past... still around for the old purest but lacking in popularity and smooth changes.

For composition: http://truecenterpublishing.com/photopsy/article_index.htm

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