So long, DSLRs?

[r.harris1]

@Eric @mollyc Yes! Those who know me know I'm definitely an example of someone who spends much more than I should (but not as much as I want) . What's really important to me though and to Eric's point, is to always, always remember that there's no real relationship between cost and quality of output. Or maybe a better way to say it is that any fool with a 5k+ camera won't produce "5k+ quality images". And that to get the best possible quality of output you absolutely must learn the tool, so much so that it is an extension of yourself. This goes for every photographic instrument, from phones to large format cameras. Blindly using animal or car AF at zillions of frames per second and image AI (or whatever, as examples) without understanding where it works and where it doesn't, without understanding where YOU need to control the camera, won't automatically produce a great image. Relying on a camera to save your ass isn't a path to happiness and certainly not the path to great images .

I LOVE photography. It's my lifeline. I'm not great, but I want to learn everything about any system I may shoot and make it an extension of what I feel when I see a scene. I think the "camera wars" are pretty silly, to be honest. They're all pretty on par at this point. There's always leap-frogging but no catching up really needed. The tools we choose to use are actually important to us as individuals (I like this essay by Sean Reid (free version) - https://www.reidreviews.com/examples/yes.html) but we can't make blanket statements about anyone else (i.e. YOU need to use Canon, Nikon, Sony, etc).

Choose DeWalt or Makita, Apple or Windows (or Linux). Choose Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fuji or whatever. But learn the system, make it count.

 

[mollyc]

i’m not in the market for a camera right now, but if i were, i’d choose one that has worse AF than what i use now. because that’s not a priority for me.

 

[Eric]

@Eric @mollyc Yes! Those who know me know I'm definitely an example of someone who spends much more than I should (but not as much as I want) . What's really important to me though and to Eric's point, is to always, always remember that there's no real relationship between cost and quality of output. Or maybe a better way to say it is that any fool with a 5k+ camera won't produce "5k+ quality images". And that to get the best possible quality of output you absolutely must learn the tool, so much so that it is an extension of yourself. This goes for every photographic instrument, from phones to large format cameras. Blindly using animal or car AF at zillions of frames per second and image AI (or whatever, as examples) without understanding where it works and where it doesn't, without understanding where YOU need to control the camera, won't automatically produce a great image. Relying on a camera to save your ass isn't a path to happiness and certainly not the path to great images .

I LOVE photography. It's my lifeline. I'm not great, but I want to learn everything about any system I may shoot and make it an extension of what I feel when I see a scene. I think the "camera wars" are pretty silly, to be honest. They're all pretty on par at this point. There's always leap-frogging but no catching up really needed. The tools we choose to use are actually important to us as individuals (I like this essay by Sean Reid (free version) - https://www.reidreviews.com/examples/yes.html) but we can't make blanket statements about anyone else (i.e. YOU need to use Canon, Nikon, Sony, etc).

Choose DeWalt or Makita, Apple or Windows (or Linux). Choose Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fuji or whatever. But learn the system, make it count.

Well said. I used to work in a music store and would see people come in and want to spend thousands on gear without even knowing it's something they really wanted to do. I would always recommend getting a student level guitar and taking some lessons to see if it's their thing first, same can be said for camera gear, I started out with a kit from Costco way back when and steadily improved my gear as I went. I also know a lot of people who did the same and barely pulled the camera out of the box and left it to collect dust in a closet ever since.

Of course if one wants to spend thousands on camera gear - just because - and they don't care to learn it that is certainly their prerogative, just seems like such a waste and you're right that it won't make much of a difference if they don't understand it anyway.

You're 100% right that it's just the tool you use as it's an extension of you and your craft, I'll use whatever camera is best at the moment whether it's my iPhone or my Sony depending on the subject matter. While I love my Sony I still find myself using the older 20 megapixel Canon almost as much lately as well.

I really don't subscribe much to wars between brands, they all make really great cameras, even mobile devices. My focus is always on the subject, lighting and composition. I try to encourage anyone interested to just keep shooting no matter what they have, they'll eventually find their way into better gear if they're interested enough.

 

[stingx]

My favorite camera in my collection is my Nikon D700. It's old, doesn't have a gazillion megapixels (12 actually), and to me, irreplaceable. It renders images unlike any other camera I've owned. I sold my Z6 because I was still using the D700 and my even older D300. Once you know what you're doing, you can take pictures that look great from any device. I have been fascinated with photography since I was a kid. I even took a few credits worth of classes at college to learn how to develop b&w and then color. The best thing I learned was you don't need the latest and greatest to take excellent pictures.

 

[Citysnaps]

The best thing I learned was you don't need the latest and greatest to take excellent pictures.

Amen to that! A phone works well for what I like to shoot. And while I know this has become hackneyed on photography forums, it's always with me.

Of course a phone isn't the right tool for some kinds of photography (professional sports, many weddings, studio portraiture, etc.

 

[stingx]

Amen to that! A phone works well for what I like to shoot. And while I know this has become hackneyed on photography forums, it's always with me.

Of course a phone isn't the right tool for some kinds of photography (professional sports, many weddings, studio portraiture, etc.

If they would only stop concentrating on making phones super skinny and start putting in at least 1" sensors and minimum 3x zoom they could replace pocket cams like my Sony RX-100 and Lumix LX100. You wouldnt see any more new non-mirroless or DSLR cameras. My iPhone 13 mini takes amazing videos. No gimbal needed. Perfect for what I use it for.