Hobby's

[smoke665]

If you want to be a better photographer regardless of your equipment, shoot, shoot some more, add more and more. Experience is the best teacher. My two cents worth.

So would you agree based on your credentials, that there are some caveats to this statement?

 

[bulldurham]

So would you agree based on your credentials, that there are some caveats to this statement?

Of course...but I didn't do the educational part of it all to be a better photographer; I did it to get my bona fides to make a living teaching what I already knew. I never once followed a Florida Department of Education syllabus for how I should teach photography, which was crap developed by non-working photographers; I did it my way and my kids got into schools like Ringling, Daytona Beach State College, Savannah College of Art & Design, Haystack, RISD, Art Institute of Chicago, Art Center School, etc.. I had more students get full ride scholarships to these schools than all the sports teams combined every single year. I loved teaching, I loved my students and I loved developing curriculum but I so hated administration to the point had I not retired a year early, I might have gone postal.

 

[Don Fischer]

Funny, the day after I retired from teaching (photography), I tossed every book I had except the three Ansel Adams books, The Camera, The Negative and the Print. The rest are just opinions by mostly self-serving "experts" who for the most part are just trying to make a buck. More power to them. If you want to be a better photographer regardless of your equipment, shoot, shoot some more, add more and more. Experience is the best teacher. My two cents worth.

You have a guy downthere in Flordia, can't remember his name. He does landscapes with large format film cameras. Saw a video I think it was on him and really liked it!

 

[bulldurham]

You have a guy downthere in Flordia, can't remember his name. He does landscapes with large format film cameras. Saw a video I think it was on him and really liked it!

Clyde Butcher. He's our version of Ansel Adams. I have several of his prints, both in film and digital. I got mine when he was known, but not famous. couldn't begin to afford one of them now.

 

[Don Fischer]

Clyde Butcher. He's our version of Ansel Adams. I have several of his prints, both in film and digital. I got mine when he was known, but not famous. couldn't begin to afford one of them bow.

Yes. At this point in my life I'm having a hard time remembering names but say it and I got it. His stuff was super! I didn't know he was doing digital now!

 

[DanOstergren]

I think it depends on the individual photographer and the things that really interest them most. I don't judge those who chase the best gear because I imagine they have a strong interest in technology, and that's valid in my opinion. Others may have a strong interest in memories or just capturing and creating an image, and to them the newest or greatest tech may not be very important, and instead they focus on what simply let's them capture a moment without having to overthink it or worry about anything else, and I think that's also valid.

As an artist and hobbyist, I at least like to make sure that I have equipment that will render the images I envision in my head with a high enough resolution for quality printing. As a professional I also have to make sure that my equipment can keep up with the needs and expectations of my clients, and equipment that makes my job easy to perform while minimizing extra work so I can finish and deliver each job proficiently and quickly without sacrificing quality. That doesn't mean I need the highest quality gear to meet those expectations, though sometimes it becomes clear when the lesser quality gear gets in the way of being able to do that. For example, I use an old Canon 5D MKIII, and that camera has either matched or completely exceeded my needs and expectations, however my Neewer studio flash equipment often gets in the way of that process and using that gear has taught me where I can't cut corners. Those flash heads don't always have quick recycle times, they sometimes get overloaded with electricity after long periods of use, and don't handle rapid fire use well. Do they get the job done? Absolutely. Would they be enough for the average hobbyist? Most definitely. Professionally however, they slow me down and cause me to miss shots from time to time, illustrating the fact that sometimes higher quality gear is important to have depending on your needs and expectations as a photographer.

Anyways, enough of my ranting. This was just my two cents on the topic, and at the end of the day I believe every person has different needs based on their interests and priorities as a photographer.

 

[Dikkie]

Wise choice, there are three categories of photographers. Those so attached to their equipment that they won't change until it breaks, who eventually get stagnate. Those who recognize advancements that will benefit them and purchase accordingly, for them it becomes a journey. Finally there are those that always have to have the latest and greatest, for them it's always about the equipment. To each their own, but I tend to be one that likes to explore the capabilities of one thing before jumping to something new.

I'm more in the second group here.
I also follow the idea that a good photographer can make fantastic shots with a budget camera, and that people with expensive equipment shoot lousy snapshots. Both are possible. ... and in many cases the latter is very very true.
And imagine what the first person would be able to do with high end equipment...

 

[SunriseAvenue]

I'm a hobbyist, too, and I've never wanted to rely on photography as my main income, but I do enjoy everything connected to it, from working with people wanting to try out funny or unique styles to restoring old family photos and learning more Photoglory tricks along with learning the ways photography was back then. And I also believe one could be a better photographer once there is a passion for it, the gear or the price of it wouldn't exactly matter if there is no desire to make better photos.