I have a 645D also and I will never part with it. Same for much older cameras, digital and film, that I have.
We all take different paths in photography. Some with more or less gear. I will be the last to say that one path is better than another, whether it a path with more or less gear, film or digital, darkroom or digital prints, etc.
To this day, I feel that that best photograph I have ever taken was made 30+ years ago. Shot with a 1950s vintage Graphic 4x5 and a 1940s vintage Zeiss Tessar lens. It was a special image that in many technical respects could have been improved upon with better film, developing, camera, lenses or digital capture methods.
All that doesn’t really matter...it is still one of my favorite images. That said...I still enjoy collecting and using the gear too (including fat pixel Nikon DSLRs), regardless of whether I ever produce another photograph to equal the shot I took 30+ years ago.
A final thought, I have to justify my appreciation for and purchases of camera gear (old or new) here on GetDPI, then perhaps it is time for me to leave.
Gary
Hi, Gary,
It is always good to see and read your posts! Thank you for posting the images above. Each time I dive into my archived prints boxes, I get the feeling that those moments captured so long on film or obsolete digital cameras are special.
For me, IQ (image quality) is only one consideration for my enjoyment of photos. There is indeed a story behind each image and there is also a certain quality of older images. Kodachrome certainly had a certain character as did images from a D2H or a Polaroid.
It is all good! Interestingly, as I think back on all the images I have ever made, bleeding edge sharpness is not even a consideration, only the story and the emotions connected with the image resonate with me.
And, of course, there is the amazing work by photographers like those of National Geographic. Since I was a child, I marveled at those amazing images. I still can't remember if they were film, digital, Kodachrome or color film, fat pixel or chubby pixel images...
They were so good. I think it is cool that I can use the equipment today that produced all of those images we remember.
Ah, well, time to get back to work for me... I have some old Ektachrome to send off for processing, and a whole freezer full of it and yet, I am ordering a few more rolls of the new E100. I don't think those images will be obsolete after I am gone, just ignored and forgotten. Such is the lack of appreciation of our own kids for more permanence and less disposability.
PS: I am very interested in re-acquiring a very nice D2Hs or D2x. Maybe I still have something of value left for a trade...