This is Why Your Pictures Suck
- Thread starter Don Kuykendall_RIP
- Start date
Don Kuykendall_RIP
RIP :(
What is so funny about the article is that we know the ones the article was written about.
Don Kuykendall_RIP
RIP :(
Don't get me wrong, I would love to have a D600 or D800. Would it make me a better photographer? No. But I would love having it. I think I would have the ability to get better with the additional horse power these cameras have but in the end it would be me and not the camera.
I will pick on a fellow moderator for a little bit. Dave W. He shoots some of the best Nikons around But that does not make him a great photographer. Dave W makes him a great photographer. If I were standing next to him shooting the exact thing at the same time with the same settings his shots would be better because his equipment runs circles around mine. But I bet you could hand Dave W. a D3100 with a kit lens and he would make great photos with it. I am not putting down the D3100 here just using it as an example since it is the entry camera in the Nikon line right now.
I will pick on a fellow moderator for a little bit. Dave W. He shoots some of the best Nikons around But that does not make him a great photographer. Dave W makes him a great photographer. If I were standing next to him shooting the exact thing at the same time with the same settings his shots would be better because his equipment runs circles around mine. But I bet you could hand Dave W. a D3100 with a kit lens and he would make great photos with it. I am not putting down the D3100 here just using it as an example since it is the entry camera in the Nikon line right now.
Don Kuykendall_RIP
RIP :(
I don't want to bust anyone's bubble but there are VERY VERY few top guns around this website...maybe none really...and Don...you and me are not even close to that place...BUT...that doesn't mean our pictures suck.
As I have always said. I shoot to have fun. I do think we have some excellent photographers on this site. I named one but there are several others that I think are in that league. And I know I am not in that group but I have my good days.
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That whole article was designed to prey on amateurs...the dude who wrote it is a creep who wants the rest of us to look bad so that he can stroke his ego. Anyone could write such an uninspiring piece of internet drivel and discourage everyone even people who are good...easy...I'm just saying...
As one that wields a camera and takes picture, may we live -
Not by our fears but by our hopes - that is why, as "Charlie" and my pictures suck - but I continue.
Not by our words but by our deeds - dutifully take my camera out take more pictures.
Not by our disappointment by by our dreams - yes, my picture sucks now, but I dream I will be as good as "The Phoblographer" one day (sadly, I have not seen his work thought).
Not by our hate but by our love - so lets not get worked up about the blog and go out and take more pictures .. hopefully less "crap" ones... ha. ha. ha.
I should credit the quote above - but I have of no idea who. Maybe someone can help me out here.
Not by our fears but by our hopes - that is why, as "Charlie" and my pictures suck - but I continue.
Not by our words but by our deeds - dutifully take my camera out take more pictures.
Not by our disappointment by by our dreams - yes, my picture sucks now, but I dream I will be as good as "The Phoblographer" one day
(sadly, I have not seen his work thought).Not by our hate but by our love - so lets not get worked up about the blog and go out and take more pictures .. hopefully less "crap" ones... ha. ha. ha.
I should credit the quote above - but I have of no idea who. Maybe someone can help me out here.
Horoscope Fish
Senior Member
I agree. 100%.
The best advice I've ever gotten was also the harshest: "This is some bad photography; and to me that means *lazy* photography. Rule Number One in photography is, or should be: 'Photography is *WORK*,' and don't you think it's not. Did you give these shots any real consideration... No? Then why should I? Rhythm and balance; it's all about rhythm and balance. F--k Paul, you can't walk down the street without rhythm and balance. Find yours and show it to me. The world's full of s--t photography already, do us all a favor and quit adding to the problem."
At first I thought he was just being cranky and dismissive, but he wasn't. He was spot on and I couldn't have paid for better advice.
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
I'm going to take exception with this, because I see and hear similar statements a lot, as it applies to photography, guitars, and other tools of various trades. The exception I take has less to do with the spirit of the statement as it does with the finite nature of the separation of user and equipment. Let me explain as I dissect this into two perspectives.
Better (different) equipment alone does not make a photographer good, or bad. I think this is the sentiment of the original post, and if so, I agree with it. A photographer's skills first and foremost are built upon the way they see the world through the viewfinder, even when they have no camera in hand. That vision is then interpreted through their knowledge of how to interpret what they see through the optics they have at their disposal. Can you look at something and see it in 18mm, 35mm, 50mm, 85mm and 200mm? Do you know the difference that choice will make in how the image is perceived from the aspect of depth of field, composition of objects in the photo? If you're still letting the equipment drive you and not the other way around then giving you a new piece of equipment will not improve you one bit, though it may change what you produce.
Better equipment prompts you to be better. While the change is not instantaneous, I posit that giving someone who is reasonably skilled in their art and who has a penchant for learning a better piece of equipment and there will be a quick and noticeable improvement in their "performance". I've played guitar since I was a kid. Usually through relatively inexpensive amplifiers. They sounded good, and I thought I sounded good through them. One day I was in a shop and a friend encouraged me to plug into something different, hand made by a small company. The difference I heard was immediate. But it wasn't just that you could hear the improvement in the quality of the sound, but you could also hear the flaws in my technique that the lesser equipment masked. Money was laid down and the "wood-shedding" commenced. I experienced the exact same thing when I got my D600. The better equipment immediately showed me aspects of my photography that were lacking precision. And the bigger sensor turned on a switch in my head that harkened back to my days shooting film where what I saw with my eye once again began to line up with what I could frame in the camera. The better equipment has made me a better photographer. Not a great one. Heck, not even a "really good" one. But it was a course correction I needed on my road to where I want to be.
All that said, the key here is the motivation, work ethic and, let's face it, the innate talent of the person holding the equipment. It's the silk purse out of a sow's ear analogy. But I'll never tell someone that better equipment won't make them a better photographer until I first ask them if they honestly believe they've fully explored the equipment they have already and can articulate what they think the step up will give them.
Don Kuykendall_RIP
RIP :(
I think that is what I did say. " I think I would have the ability to get better with the additional horse power these cameras"
Jake, You are a good photographer and that is you and not your equipment. Your equipment allows you to do better photography but only because you work at it and have ability. It all comes down to that statement we all hear on occasion. "The is a great photo you must have a really good camera."
chasing praise in life is like a dog trying to catch his tail. There is a difference in sharing photos for other to enjoy/use and looking for positive feedback.
Gear are just tools, but ,,, then again,, why not take pleasure in fine tools. If you ever used fine hand wood working tools, you know what I mean. Building a cabinet with low quality made in China copies is just asking for trouble.
but in the end, gear is the 5% effect of the photos nowadays.
Gear are just tools, but ,,, then again,, why not take pleasure in fine tools. If you ever used fine hand wood working tools, you know what I mean. Building a cabinet with low quality made in China copies is just asking for trouble.
but in the end, gear is the 5% effect of the photos nowadays.
BackdoorArts
Senior Member
I know that's what you said, but to me the difference is "have the ability to get better" vs. the equipment immediately driving improvement. Every photographer should have the ability to get better over time regardless of the equipment. It may seem like a subtle difference, and it may be what you mean, but the idea that the answer to the "Will a more expensive camera make me a better photographer?" question is always, "No", is a fallacy, and that's my point. Not looking to pick on you, or pick a fight. I just want people to realize that the answer isn't, "No", but more of an "It depends".
While I have improved immensely, I'm still IMO a water-boy hoping to one day at least make it to the minors. From my perspective better equipment will make you a better photographer if you have done the hard work first. However, any equipment can do amazing things in the hands of a master. Prior to shooting my recent Milky Way pictures I was planning on doing it all with my 35mm prime because it is better equipment. However, just prior to making the trip I viewed some amazing pictures done on a simple point and shoot - clearly this simple equipment was in the hands of a master. From what I saw accomplished with a "lowly point and shoot" I thought there's no reason I shouldn't/couldn't use the kit lens.
Don Kuykendall_RIP
RIP :(
Well Jake we are saying the same thing. I have been saying all the time that "It Depends" on the person using the camera and not the camera itself. I have a friend who prides himself on his top of the line Canon (yes it is a great camera) He uses it as a point and shoot and has never bothered to learn how to use the camera or even learned anything about composition. He thinks he is the greatest photographer of all times jsut because he has a expensive camera. My wife does a better job with her Nikon L120.
Better camera does a better job as long as the person operating it works at it, learns the camera, and constantly strives to be better.