Searching After Wildness - journals of a photographic artist

I am frequently asked what type of camera I use and I’m not quite sure how to answer. Well, yes, I do know what type of equipment I have, but what is someone really trying to know when they ask that question? Most of the time, I think the question is merely used as an ice breaker. Cameras are intriguing, complicated equipment. It’s an obvious conversation topic when addressing a photographer.

To get this question out of the way, I currently use a Canon 5D, although many of the images on my website were shot with a Canon Rebel XT. Now, all of you can go out and purchase the same equipment, and then I can take pictures just like you do. grin

If another photographer is asking the question, then that person could be exercising our right to be gear geeks. Yep, some, er, most… um, yeah, I am a gear geek. There, I’ve confessed it and no one is surprised. Goto a book store and notice all the magazines available that review photography gear. Photography equipment coverage is not only plentiful, but also fierce. The cover of the current issue of Popular Photography magazine raves “Olympus fights back! Two hot DLSRs”. Another cover states, “The 10MP DSLR War is On”. All this war language makes it seem like our equipment choice is part of a values struggle that’s worth killing over. What other “art” has this type of coverage? Do oil painters have “Brush Review Monthly”? Do sculptors enjoy articles titled “10 New Chisels Smackdown!”?

This competitive positioning can make photographers place a high value on their equipment choice. The marketing messages start to convince us that the camera is the single most important factor in creating good images. Don’t believe this. The camera is a tool, and cameras capable of excellent image quality have been around for decades. Recent automation may help compensate for a skill gap in using a camera, but that still leaves oh, what was it… creativity.

Most of us have the “equipment” and amount of automation to write and speak. That merely places us at the starting point to be poets.