Mark writes: > Ok I will throw out some stink bait. I am often amazed at how many people think that they MUST have the latest and greatest new equipment. They have great stuff but no idea of what to do with it. Others take junk and excel which begs the question, "Just how much of a part of the total success is the tool, and how much of it is the person running the tool?" I've always felt the old adage 'a bad worker blames his tools' only hold true if the worker is 'craftsman' enough to have good tools to start with.. That is to say, if he knows enough to go find the tools to do the job right. A good worker given dodgy tools can only do his best, though he may by choice pick a better grade of wood, a harder narrower chisel - whatever, but given half arsed tools he's going to be hard pressed to excel. And a really good worker/craftsman will probably be found to own tools both old and new, beaten and shiny, from all manner of places, gathered together to give him the *best* selection of tools to do whatever job needs doing with no mind to how good they look or how others view the collection. a bad worker can have the worlds best tools - he's still likely to cut his thumb off before he makes anything decent. > I use some old stuff. I have an old Voigtlander that was bought in the 50s that I still use. I have an old 4x5 view camera that is probably about that old. Both still work well, with some limitations. every camera has limitations! It's like that silly question we all hear - 'what's the best camera?' which begs a question in return - 'for what?' I happen to like 8x10 - but not for family happy snaps.. I also am really fond of a certain 16mm I have, but lord forbid I even dream of approaching a landscape with it! I LOVE my 3200 ASA film, but not for portraits! And the 25 ASA Tech pan always makes me drool, though there is NO way I would shoot a rock concert with it even if there was enough light to do so! both cameras you mention are good cameras to my eye, probably less so to the younger generations ;) > Lenses are another long term investment. Do you upgrade every time a new lens appears? Who buys used lenses?? How used??? grin Zoom or primes??? Oh the choices. I got 'em all, and put my hand out to grab a *specific* lens almost without thinking. though I don't think I have ever taken along a zoom because I've not known what focal length I'll need. Most of the time I use primes, but zooms still play an important part - maybe I should call them 'multi-focal length lenses' , for that's the way I choose to use them. Moving the feet changes perspective and I don't always want that, but then the angle of view slips between the gaps on my primes .. so out comes the zoom ;) > Digital with its short life expectancy is a much tougher choice. It's .. <clip> .. Each new model does bring improvements, but when is the improvement enough to justify the new investment? It's not like the old one quits working. All tough decisions. but DO they all bring improvements? I still don't treat autfocus as an improvement over manual focus, but then I loathe the standard focussing screens in most AF cameras - they're lousy for manual focussing! > Its all part of the overall product. IF money is no object, you always get new stuff. uh.. not always. As I amassed gear over the years I found myself using the grottiest looking bodies, the most taped together battery grips and I always approached the cameras I'd managed to keep clean with a degree of trepidation in case they got hurt - so much so thet I've sold all the prettiest ones and work with cameras I don't worry about - I can hurl myself in front of rearing horses with no fear that I'll get dust on my camera body however.. I really try hard to look after my lenses >Still that rarely is the case. So it brings us back to how much of a great photo is tool, and how much is between the ears of the person running it? Popper argued that limited language cramps the thinking process, or to put it another way, if you don't have the language - the words you need, you aren't going to be able to form the thoughts. however, I know plenty of people who produce brilliant work with a single camera and lens. ..but we're discussing ideas hey? :) k
