terry44 Loc: Tuolumne County California, Maui Hawaii

The following is off an email from Chris O'Donnell at Creative Raw titled Why you should care less about your camera, not so sure the title is accurate as I believe the equipment we use is a very important part of our process but it kind of puts our craft into perspective I think. What are your thoughts.

When it comes to choosing your photography gear for landscapes, many photographers are presented with a huge question:

Does it REALLY matter what kind of equipment I use?

...or can a true photographer create beautiful landscapes without pro-quality cameras and thousand dollar lenses?

Here's the problem: Some photographers believe that you need high-end gear to create outstanding landscape images.

And others think the opposite: that gear doesn’t matter, and only raw talent will give you those highly coveted photos…and with that, more attention directed to your work.

…and the rest know that there’s a delicate balance between the two.

This balance is what I want to focus on...because this is the right mindset to have.

For example....if you take an award-winning photo with $8,000 worth of gear…many will just give the expensive gear all of the credit and dismiss the talent that you, the photographer, invested.

In actuality, the high-end camera didn’t capture your photo....you did. There's an overlooked link between your gear and your photo.....and that is your creativity and your ideas.

It’s a simple concept – acknowledging that the photographer is responsible for the photo he creates – but so many ignore it and begin to over-analyze their own work.

Photographers will sometimes not give themselves enough credit where credit is due; that they are the talent and creative force behind each photo....which is worth much more than any camera or lens.

Yes, you do need to have specific gear to take a certain type of landscape, but that doesn’t guarantee that it will be an outstanding photo. There needs to be both creative talent and technical knowledge to get the photo you want.

You can’t skip this step and buy a truckload of equipment and expect outstanding images….and then get frustrated when your photos look no different than the ones you took with your iPhone.

The missing piece – the fuel behind all of your photographs – is your talent. Without that, your camera is absolutely useless, no matter what the price tag is.

So let’s get back to the main issue here: how do I strengthen my talent and develop my skills so I can easily create outstanding photographs?

Camera, lenses and photo gear are simply tools. There still needs to be a creative force (you) behind the camera to produce the images you want.

It’s the most important symbiotic relationship in landscape photography: the tools and the photographer.

And creative knowledge through expert education is the driving force behind this relationship.

In order to improve your talent and strengthen your creativity, you need to flex those muscles often through education. Otherwise, your craft will become stagnant and unfulfilling....churning out repetative images that fail to excite and inspire you as they once did.
I consume photography education like candy. I LOVE to learn new techniques, and it's GREAT to never get that "plateau" feeling where you don't know what to do next.

Instead, I'm constantly inspired to get out and try something new in the field or with my processing....with the goal to create an image even BETTER than my last.

It's the best feeling, and I never lose it.

lukevaliant Loc: gloucester city,n. j.

good points,all!

terry44 Loc: Tuolumne County California, Maui Hawaii

He is a pretty good writer on photography and able to get his point across in a simple understandable way.

mas24 Loc: Southern CA

As an amateur, I like it. Good points to follow.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

Very good points. I'm a firm believer that one must have the equipment necessary to accomplish the task at hand. However, without the appropriate amount of knowledge to use that equipment, the results are going to be less than sterling. Likewise, not being knowledgeable in the equipment's capabilities will bring less than an optimum result, or an occasional combination of luck and timing will result in a good photograph. Good photographs are the combination of knowledge, skills, and great equipment to combine those creative forces and produce noteworthy photographs.
--Bob

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

No camera, no matter the cost will create the composition for you, or decide what lens to use in certain situation, nor will it decide what DOF is preferable for an image, but a quality camera/lens combination sure will help to realize what the photographer envisioned and show it in high IQ!!
So yeah, equipment matters (duh)!

Joe Blow

I'm just tossing this in there as a third variable. Besides the equipment / photographer balance, there is also the "subject". Simply put, you can't get that 11 pt buck jumping over a brook unless you have a 11 pt buck jumping over a brook, regardless of the equipment or photographer.

However, as you suggest, it is what you do with that equipment, including post processing, that really matters.

GalaxyCat Loc: Boston, MA

You should care less about your camera? Try using out-dated technology. Try needing 6.3 MP files, but your 2002 SONY camera has only 5 MP. And besides that, your SONY 's battery charger is putting out 2.0 Volts, not the 4.2 Volts needed to charge the battery. So you need a new charger, and your old SONY is dead until then. Then, like me, you try to use a dinosaur Canon EOS 620, film, and you are aware that you have wasted a LOT of film, making obvious mistakes, and all of the sudden you have 5 rolls of film needing to be developed, and it really isn't worthwhile to spend the money.

GalaxyCat Loc: Boston, MA

Chris O'Donnell has no idea what he is talking about. Let him walk in my shoes for a while!

terry44 Loc: Tuolumne County California, Maui Hawaii

Agreed.

Kmgw9v Loc: Miami, Florida

Adequately stated; but there is nothing new under the sun.

terry44 Loc: Tuolumne County California, Maui Hawaii

For sure. I am always learning new features about my cameras and different combinations which help us grow as better an more enlightened photographers. You are so right we need to get to know the equipment we have and put it to work with our creative process to create a nice shot, if we do not know how to use what we have it is senseless to me to buy anything more (except lenses, Tripod, flash) until we are sure we need the new equipment.

terry44 Loc: Tuolumne County California, Maui Hawaii

Exactly.

terry44 Loc: Tuolumne County California, Maui Hawaii

True we need to know what we want at what angle, to put together what our minds eye sees and as well use a bit of post processing to get it to the point that we are satisfied with what we created.

terry44 Loc: Tuolumne County California, Maui Hawaii

That is part of the process he is talking about it is us who come up with the blueprint of what we wish to compose our shot then it is the knowledge of setting, lens, and what equipment then will fill this need.
Always make sure you have the tools with you and that includes some extra batteries, and if needed the extra camera if you have one film is still a nice medium to work with and it helps sharpen your knowledge as you say you have rolls of film and not all of them are keepers but the value is in the learning and getting out there and working the shot in the outdoors, your yard, an event whatever you like to shoot. Why do you think film is a dinasaur it is just another medium that a photographer can work with and you 5mp can put out some pretty good photos, in the sceme of things it really was not that long ago that was all there was in digital they have made some fantastic advances but as rmalarz stated not being knowledgeable in the equipment's capabilities will bring less than an optimum result, or an occasional combination of luck and timing will result in a good photograph.
I think that is where an older camera and film come in they do not have all the features today's cameras have so we are forced to use our knowledge to create the best shot even more so.