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Well, Neil, I don't really have any questions for you....
While on lockdown I decided to make a new website just for the hell of it and to pass time stuck in the house https://neilwilliamsfineart.com/ There is a mixture of FF MF LF and 120 film, but for me my favorite pictures are shot with a Nikon FF camera.
Sorry for the long post but hopefully this will answer some of your questions
Hello DarrWho cares what gear you use as long as it does not get in the way.
I shoot APS-C, medium format digital and film, and 4x5. My favorite camera is whatever I am using at the moment.
If someone thinks a medium format digital camera will miraculously change their photography for the better, then they are drinking merchandising kool-aid. What it will do is make you slow down as it dictates a more methodical way to shoot than say an APS-C.
There are subject matter that is not conducive to a methodical way of shooting. I enjoy still life more than action so I continue to shoot 4x5 in a studio environment. Whatever speaks to you and brings you joy, that is where you should go.
Enjoy your Nikon!
I must admit I get that same warm fuzzy feeling whenever I use my Nikon gearHello Darr
. On the other hand , I love to "play" with my precision gear . It gives me a nice time and feeling .
.MattReading the original and subsequent posts, here are the key takeaways for me personally.
1. There are no bad cameras, just bad purchase decisions.
2. The amount of money you have is in no way related to your ability to understand what you need and buy accordingly.
3. High end or expensive cameras do not correlate with better images unless they fit specifically within your requirements.
4. Your most valuable asset is your ability to critically analyse what it is you are missing from your current system and research and identify a more suitable system. If you buy what is right for you, then how can you be wrong?
Every single genre of photography has a different set of parameters for what makes a good camera, every individual also has their own, the reason there are so many choices are because there are so many requirements. An Instagram influence carrying an IQ4150 and a tech cam makes as much sense as a corporate photographer delivering 10m wide landscapes for offices and boardrooms carrying an iphone. Making the wrong choice then realising it and going back to something that fits with your style, location, budget and wants, is in no way a step backwards equipment wise, if it allows you to work more efficiently and get more enjoyment, as these are the things that are much more likely to allow you to take better pictures .
The other things I have taken from this are, it's great if you find what works for you, but anyone who writes that they can see no reason why anyone would need or want x or y, is a fool, you not understanding it is of no consequence to those who do, let them get on with it.
Just my opinions obviously.
Mat
At first, skimming through your posting, I thought you being sarcastic!Okay let me try and explain. I worked in the Oil & Gas industry (offshore oil Rigs) for 40 years. Its a tuff life in every sense. Out of that 40 years I have spent 20 years away from my family and friends working in extremely difficult environments and working hard 12 hours a day everyday,in return I have been paid really well............... Okay enough of that bit.
So my thinking was this, if I am going to risk my life every time I get onto a helicopter to go and work in the North Sea then I am sure as hell going to enjoy myself when I get home, and enjoy myself I did.
Back in 2009 I had some immigration issues in Thailand so me and my Thai wife went and stayed in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia. Before I came off the rig I called my wife and asked here to bring my Nikon D something camera from the bottom drawer in our bedroom as I fancied trying my hand again at photography. When I got home, after taking care of business I had a look at my old camera sitting on the kitchen table and noticed that all the rubber parts had perished, I made a few phone calls and asked around and was told that they have a big Nikon service center in KL. So later that day me and my wife went into town to visit the Nikon service Center. I asked the staff if they had any cleaner that I could use on my camera as it was sticky to which they replied for about 50 quid they could replace all the rubber parts. So I dropped off the camera and was told to come back in 2 hours time. On returning I couldn't believe it was the same camera......it looked so so new. While waiting to pay the bill I noticed a poster on the wall saying that they were holding a two day training class for the new Nikon D7000. I asked the lady if i could join the class and she said sure you can. She started to take my details when one of the other staff members came over and asked me if I had a D7000, I showed her my D something camera and said this is my only camera, she then told me that the class was for customers with the D7000 and that I would not be able to do, so me being me, I had to argue the fact that all I wanted to do was learn the basics so that I could stop shooting with the GREEN AUTO button. She again said no so we went back and forward yes/no yes/no to eventually she just walked away and didn't want to listen to my BS any more.
I paid for the repairs to my camera and walked across the shopping mall to another camera store and bought a new Nikon D7000. I walked back to the Nikon Center and asked the same lady to sign me up for the nikon class (She is giving me the look of WTF doesn't this guy understand to which I pulled out the new D7000 and we proceeded with the registration for the class.
I took the class and it was at that point I was hooked on Photography. I signed up for many camera workshops not only to learn photography but to find other photographers to go and shoot with. Over the next couple of months I had joined a group of photographers and went away on my first photo trip to Cebu in the Philippines. While on that trip I met a professional photographer called Yusuf Hashim who kind of took me under his wing and would tell me to do this and that and what for. Yusuf shoots with a Canon but because I had already bought the trinity of Nikon lenses being the 14/24 24/70/70/200 he advised me to stick with Nikon but to maybe upgrade to a full frame body. As soon as we arrived back in KL I went to the Nikon center and bought a D3S (Man I liked the look of that camera). I was on a roll and me and my beautiful wife would go out taking pictures everyday, one of the guys I met invited me to go and take bird pictures so I rocked up with my 70/200 on the D3S to see him with a cheap 24/800 or something crazy like that and dressed in full battle fatigues. As you can imaging the birding experience was a disaster. Later when I got home I called Yusuf and asked him about it. He started telling me about this new 300mm f2.8 lens that Canon had given him to go and shoot the bull races in Pacu Jawi Indonesia. He asked me if I wanted to join the trip which was in 6 weeks time (perfect timing, go back to the rig make some money and yes buy myself the 300mm f2.8 lens so that I could look like Yusuf That is my picture below
View attachment 149257
While on this trip there were a couple of knobs who had Leica rangefinders with them and they were in the back of the bus talking Leica this and Leica that, to which Yusuf would say I cant wait to see your bull racing pictures taken with your bling bling shiny Leica cameras and laughing away.............I couldn't help but notice these little shinny cameras looked quite Neil like so I made some more enquiries and the following trip I bought myself my first of many Leica M cameras and lenses. By this time I was hooked on the Leica brand and to Yusuf disgust he would alway rib me about how most of my pictures were either out of focus or the composition was off or anything. Another very good photographer called Hamni was a Nikon guy, he had a D3s the same as me and we would go out shooting street photography in China Town in KL. He would have his D3s and 70/200 and I would be fumbling around with my M9 and Noctilux 0.95 missing shots and getting frustrated every time Hamni came up to me with a WOW picture on the back of his LCD.
By this time I was friendly with the owner of the Leica store in KL and vented my frustrations of why Yusuf and Hamni could always get better pictures with there Nikon/Canon gear that what I could with my Leica gear, to which he replied it probably had something to do with the speed of the AF verse the fiddly rangefinder.............2 days later I had a new Leica S006 and 3 new S lenses.
The following trip me and my wife went back to Scotland for a family vacation and I took my new shinny Leica S gear with me, on day 2 of the trip the S70mm auto focus **** itself followed 3 days later by the S30mm lens. I was gutted and yes very pissed off. When I arrived back in KL I dropped the two lenses off at Leica and was told I would get them back in a few weeks...........2 1/2 months later I got them back.
The following trip me and my wife went to switzerland and this time the camera lasted 4 or 5 days before the S120 mm lens **** itself not only that but I was spending more time pulling the battery than taking pictures.
Speaking of photographing my wife at first she was cool with me taking beautiful portrait style pictures, now when I point a camera at her she scours at me and hands me her iphone to take her picture.
So where is all this leading to. Both my mates Yusuf and Hamni still shoot with there Canon and Nikon cameras and take amazing pictures of everything. Wildlife, pretty girls landscape street photography everything. Whereas I have spent 100s of thousands of dollars chasing a dream picture that I keep getting with my Nikon gear and every now and then with my H6D100c or my S007 or my M10 Q2 and more.
Since being diagnosed with PTSD back in 2017 I no longer enjoy street photography and limit my photography to wildlife, birds and nature so the trusty Nikon gear is my camera of choice. Yesterday I sold my D810 and bought a new D850 (I guess I haven't lost the urge to spend spend spend) but at least its in the 3k range rather than the 30k range
I have sold all the Leica M gear the H6D gear and Im left with my Nikon D850 a few lenses and my film gear (maybe one day I will venture out and try my hand at that side of photography) The Leica S gear is still with me but due to the fact that it all cost me ~$40k and is now only worth 4k I will keep it and give it to one of my kids if they show any interest in Photography.
While on lockdown I decided to make a new website just for the hell of it and to pass time stuck in the house https://neilwilliamsfineart.com/ There is a mixture of FF MF LF and 120 film, but for me my favorite pictures are shot with a Nikon FF camera.
Sorry for the long post but hopefully this will answer some of your questions
Neil
Basically agree with your observation.It seems to me that MF digital made sense some years ago ... Even though the backs and their integration were clunky, expensive and perhaps not as reliable, people who needed the benefits of what higher resolution has to offer (not just in print size) had to bite the bullet and get into the MF .... Once FF cameras hit the 40-50mp mark, MF digital stopped making sense ... As I see it, only two MF systems make any sense today ... Fuji GFX100 and Phase 4150.
Don't have PhaseOnes but my lowly Fuji GFX can easily do TTL with Elinchrom, Godox, Profoto. Wouldn't bigger issue with PhaseOne would be slower AF more than not having TTL? I have both GFX and Sony A7rIV and still prefer GFX. Not doing any birds, sports anymore.Stan
Have you tried strobes both with a MF camera and with a dedicated TTL camera ? Of course pros have been using strobes with every type of camera since the days we evaluated exposure with a HB and a Polaroid back . Strobes used in manual require either a fixed setting (e.g. studio ) or really strong craft skills. If can control the environment and have time to dial in the balance ,exposure etc ...using strobes manually works well . The advances from vendors such as Profoto have been in creating MOBILE systems (e.g. A1 ) and integrating the TTL functions into the camera . This can be a game changer for event and wedding photographers dealing with changing light situations . Also pretty darn nice for fashion and editorial assignments .
So it always depends on “what you plan to shoot “ and the “craft skills” you are willing to master .
Roger
Well, I would say that MFD is quite affordable now, it is just that the name plate says Fujifilm and not Phase One.I did it about 8 years back right after the D800e was released. My take at the time was that net IQ was "close enough" to being on par with my IQ180/tech cam and newest digital MF glass that the net differences didn't matter very much. Even for big prints, which I was doing fewer of... MF color was better, but that margin narrowed significantly with the D810. It's only gotten better with the 45MP sensors. But to be 100% objective, the real impetus behind my decision back then was I was simply getting priced out of the MF market; I didn't have the financial ability to keep upgrading so got off that train...
That said, I still miss the 'gestalt' unique to using a tech cam to create.
Full course, I've recently sold off all of my DSLR bodies and most of my DSLR glass, and gone mirrorless with the Z7 and mostly dedicated Z lenses, though the line is a little thin right now -- but you can adapt darn near any lens from any manufacturer to it.
So, do I miss MF? Yes, I still do on occasion. But I do not miss what was for me an out of hand expenditure for owning the gear, especially when compared to modern FF solutions...
Always copied but never duplicated.Neil,
I have a simple experiment for you to play around with and it doesn't cost a thing: shoot your D850 in 4:5 aspect ratio mode for a day or three and see if you don't get a little of the MF mojo feeling out the "small" camera I know it sounds a small thing, but it has altered the way I make images with my FF cam...
I would say that there are bad cameras.Reading the original and subsequent posts, here are the key takeaways for me personally.
1. There are no bad cameras, just bad purchase decisions.
2. The amount of money you have is in no way related to your ability to understand what you need and buy accordingly.
3. High end or expensive cameras do not correlate with better images unless they fit specifically within your requirements.
4. Your most valuable asset is your ability to critically analyse what it is you are missing from your current system and research and identify a more suitable system. If you buy what is right for you, then how can you be wrong?
Every single genre of photography has a different set of parameters for what makes a good camera, every individual also has their own, the reason there are so many choices are because there are so many requirements. An Instagram influence carrying an IQ4150 and a tech cam makes as much sense as a corporate photographer delivering 10m wide landscapes for offices and boardrooms carrying an iphone. Making the wrong choice then realising it and going back to something that fits with your style, location, budget and wants, is in no way a step backwards equipment wise, if it allows you to work more efficiently and get more enjoyment, as these are the things that are much more likely to allow you to take better pictures .
The other things I have taken from this are, it's great if you find what works for you, but anyone who writes that they can see no reason why anyone would need or want x or y, is a fool, you not understanding it is of no consequence to those who do, let them get on with it.
Just my opinions obviously.
Mat