Have you bought anything that made you a better photographer
- Thread starter mikew_RIP
- Start date
Good answer,never thought of that.
Horoscope Fish
Senior Member
Formal training has been invaluable for me as well. Classes especially but also a few books that stand out. I will say that I think better kit has helped me get shots I want, shots I may not have been able to get without them (I'm thinking "tripod" primarily) but in the final analysis tools don't make good photographs, good photographers do.
As one of my instructors liked to say, "If you think a better [insert whatever] will improve your photography you just let me know. I'll give you access to all my pro-level gear and I'll shoot with yours. We'll go to the exact same location at the exact same time and shoot for a couple hours. At the end of the day, we'll see who has the better portfolio." I have no doubt he was dead-serious about the offer.
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As one of my instructors liked to say, "If you think a better [insert whatever] will improve your photography you just let me know. I'll give you access to all my pro-level gear and I'll shoot with yours. We'll go to the exact same location at the exact same time and shoot for a couple hours. At the end of the day, we'll see who has the better portfolio." I have no doubt he was dead-serious about the offer.
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Excellent question, Mike. And not really easy to answer. It took me a while of pondering, but I think it was the purchase of Nik Tools together with Photoshop CC. I'm not exactly sure if it made me a better photographer, but certainly opened my eyes to a completely new world of post-processing. Before that, I used to put straight-out-of-camera JPGs in online albums for my family and friends to see, but I've never been entirely happy with my presentations. I never realised how much was hidden in many apparently dull looking images. Now I take pictures with post-processing in the mind and can see a lot of potential in scenes that I'd consider flat and uninspiring in the past.
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
Nothing I've purchased has ever made me a better photographer. Many things I've purchased have inspired me to become a better photographer.
I really think that the first requirement is the ability to care.
We all have heard and know many things, like how early and late daylight hours are better light, or how bounce flash can run circles around direct flash (etc, etc), but a great many of us simply don't care, and cannot be bothered to do more than just a quick snapshot. There's no way to fix that, no matter how many cameras we buy.
We all have heard and know many things, like how early and late daylight hours are better light, or how bounce flash can run circles around direct flash (etc, etc), but a great many of us simply don't care, and cannot be bothered to do more than just a quick snapshot. There's no way to fix that, no matter how many cameras we buy.
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
OK, that was the right answer, but also the cute one, and I know you want a little meat to go with it. First off, I'm going to relate this only to the taking of the picture, which for me is where photography is concentrated. There are many things I've purchased that have immediately made me a better producer of photographs - but that's a different thing (we can go there later if you want).
There are two ways to improvement for me that would relate directly to adding new equipment. First, I am finding a limitation with the equipment I have and need something else to express myself as a photographer. Second, the equipment opens a creative door for me that I didn't know was there or that I wanted to explore.
Both of these happened for me when I got my Sigma 8-16mm. I'd lived life with an 18-105mm and a 28-300mm, and a few primes, but as I looked at the work of folks that inspired me I knew there was something about WIDE that I wanted to do and couldn't. The minute I put it on my camera I was able to grab hold of that vision. But at the same time, after seeing the world from that perspective I was never able to look at it again the same way. Pretty (boring) landscapes now became these huge vistas when the light and the clouds were right. Corners of a building now became these divided scenes open for exploration. Once I saw them I couldn't stop seeing them, and any time your eye is looking for a photograph where it hadn't before you're a better photographer.
Well said and cheers to you
Michael J.
Senior Member
I think everything I bought is leading me to a direction to become a photographer, not a better one, ( I don't compare myself with others) but to see things a bit different. New gears and equipments inspires me to do something different as well. For example wide-angle. New gear is a challenging using it til to the limit not blame the gear for no good photos, so I don't purchase often new gears or equipments.
So, if I read your question again, using my gears to the limit makes my perhaps a better photographer; so yes, I bought all my gears and equipments to become a better photographer.
So, if I read your question again, using my gears to the limit makes my perhaps a better photographer; so yes, I bought all my gears and equipments to become a better photographer.