Addicted to photography, not gear when?
Addicted to gear, not image making when?
Those are good questions to ask yourself on a regular basis. I find asking myself those questions opens up internal debate on my focus, and helps me determine whether I am gear collector or a lover of image making.
The dangerous aspect of this internal questioning is that it is easy to fool yourself, so take a moment to consider these additional points. I spend x amount of time a week making images, and I wish I could do it more! I spend x amount of time looking a camera shop and review websites drooling over the latest camera, lens, etc.
If you find yourself loving the image making process, congrats! If you have the latest gear that's fine, but there is a good chance that you don't really care. You might even be using gear that is a generation or two behind the cutting edge, and that doesn't bother you. Nor does it get in the way of your love for photography as an art form. You buy equippment to aid the process, not define it.
If you finish this self evaluation and find yourself loving gear more than photography, take a step back and think about why? Collecting gear can be fun, and bragging about having the latest and greatest is too, but lets face it, if a you don't use it, what's the point? If 98% of your images made with your D800 or 5D MK3 are of your cat or dog lying on the couch, do you really need that high end gear? Not that pet photography is bad, but the point is, why bother spending so much on high performance equippment if you are limiting yourself creatively?
At the end of the day it is up to you, but if you got into photography to open up your creative side, start thinking about ways to enhance your creativity, no matter what side of the fence you fall on.
Addicted to gear, not image making when?
Those are good questions to ask yourself on a regular basis. I find asking myself those questions opens up internal debate on my focus, and helps me determine whether I am gear collector or a lover of image making.
The dangerous aspect of this internal questioning is that it is easy to fool yourself, so take a moment to consider these additional points. I spend x amount of time a week making images, and I wish I could do it more! I spend x amount of time looking a camera shop and review websites drooling over the latest camera, lens, etc.
If you find yourself loving the image making process, congrats! If you have the latest gear that's fine, but there is a good chance that you don't really care. You might even be using gear that is a generation or two behind the cutting edge, and that doesn't bother you. Nor does it get in the way of your love for photography as an art form. You buy equippment to aid the process, not define it.
If you finish this self evaluation and find yourself loving gear more than photography, take a step back and think about why? Collecting gear can be fun, and bragging about having the latest and greatest is too, but lets face it, if a you don't use it, what's the point? If 98% of your images made with your D800 or 5D MK3 are of your cat or dog lying on the couch, do you really need that high end gear? Not that pet photography is bad, but the point is, why bother spending so much on high performance equippment if you are limiting yourself creatively?
At the end of the day it is up to you, but if you got into photography to open up your creative side, start thinking about ways to enhance your creativity, no matter what side of the fence you fall on.
No comments:
Post a Comment