In the early days of digital photography, the type of equipment you had mattered a great deal. Most phone cameras are now so incredibly advanced that the hardware is rarely the limiting factor in creating incredible pictures
Does gear matter?
11–20 of 67 posts
Re: Does gear matter?
#12I'm at the early stages of learning photography. I've always taken lots of photos, but without much skill or care. I have an entry level DSLR and understand that the quality of my photos is almost entirely determined by my skill as a photographer. However, I don't really enjoy using the DSLR due to the size and weight. Any recommendations on what might be a better setup for me? I like travel and nature photography, b…
Kind of in the same boat - but I've found that just like this article mentions, there's nothing small enough that I have found that is always with me when needed other than my iPhone... so I've used that to justify getting the version with the best camera at times when I upgrade.
Re: Does gear matter?
#13It matters at a certain level that most don’t reach.
I used to play pool a long time ago and there was one player that was far and away the best in the billiard hall. He would always say, “It’s the Indian not the Arrow” when people would come in with their fancy personal pool cues. To make his point he would grab the most warped pool cue off the wall and generally beat anyone he went up against.
The saying isn’t PC these days but the lesson did stick with me.
Re: Does gear matter?
#14I'm at the early stages of learning photography. I've always taken lots of photos, but without much skill or care. I have an entry level DSLR and understand that the quality of my photos is almost entirely determined by my skill as a photographer. However, I don't really enjoy using the DSLR due to the size and weight. Any recommendations on what might be a better setup for me? I like travel and nature photography, b…
Personally I love my Ricoh GR III. There are two versions, one is 28mm and another is 40mm (GR IIIX). They are fixed lens which sounds bad, but in reality it prevents you from constantly thinking about buying new lenses and switching lenses.
There is essentially no other camera that can fit in your pocket. So if you want interchangeable lens, it kinda doesn't matter what you get at all because they will all require a camera bag.
EDIT: btw, when buying camera gear I highly suggest buying used, places like keh, mpb and b&h used department are great and I've never had a problem.
Re: Does gear matter?
#15"The hobby" and "the gear associated with the hobby" are effectively two separate sorts of fandom. Not just for photography but for music and other activities. Outdoor sports. Cookery. Crafting. You can encounter detailed, militant fandoms for types of lens from people who don't own it and don't take photos.
Re: Does gear matter?
#16Having studied technical optics (in the analog camera age) it's just so hard for me to imagine that those tiny, tiny apertures we have on our phones can replace a well designed lens. However, I'm not a skilled enough photographer to beat what my mid-range phone can do and I'm happy not to have to lug my DSLR around very often.
Part of my day job is optical metrology so I realize that traditional optical design will never fully be replaced by the smarts in our phones and the super advanced miniature lenses.
Re: Does gear matter?
#17The author is describing his personal journey, but the real question is not fully answered. And the answer is yes, it matters.
For sports, action, wildlife (i.e. not in zoos), deep-space astro-photography (not milky-way), micro-photography (not macro), etc - you need good gear to make high quality photos. By quality I'm referring to technical elements of quality - ample detail, minimum optical aberrations/distortions, good color accuracy, good accuracy of focus, etc. You can intentionally make a picture which is blurry, has intentionally bad color casts, etc - but then we're getting into art here, which is subjective.
Having said that, a boring subject will result in a boring photo, and this is true regardless of gear.
Re: Does gear matter?
#18I'm at the early stages of learning photography. I've always taken lots of photos, but without much skill or care. I have an entry level DSLR and understand that the quality of my photos is almost entirely determined by my skill as a photographer. However, I don't really enjoy using the DSLR due to the size and weight. Any recommendations on what might be a better setup for me? I like travel and nature photography, b…
I believe that, in terms of compactness and image quality, it is hard to beat Sony's mirrorless, but personally I can't stand their ergonomics.
Re: Does gear matter?
#19if you're wondering whether gear matters you probably have enough kit. Get out there and shoot instead!
This was a point I hit with guitars and gear too.
I can't imagine what else I'd need right now, might as well learn to play.
Re: Does gear matter?
#20For what the author is doing, the main consideration is that the type of gear you use affects your process, which is going to affect the end results. There's not a better or worse, but it's inevitable that you're going to get different results if you use a digital camera with an old manual focus lens vs an iPhone vs a medium format film camera, because the act of taking a photo is different for each one. I think it's easier to overlook this in photography more than other artistic hobbies because camera companies are very interested in convincing you to buy more expensive gear. And because expensive gadgets are fun.