Photographic equipment vs. Practical skill and my perspectives of an insider | MDS#2

My Daily story #2

The other day, I met a French man in his 25s who asked about my photography.  "Are you a photographer?" - his question opens the story that I'm telling you here. I replied yes, along with a short explanation about my personal story of starting shooting as a hobby, later on it became a passion and serious profession. He didn't seem to understand very well my response (or probably didn't want to listen to?!), he continued to ask: "So you are professional, right? You have a big camera..?".  I smiled a bit awkwardly because I didn't like to associate the image of a 'big, fancy camera' with 'professional' term or an instant definition of the profession deriving from the tool present in that profession. I briefly explained my point of view, that not everyone who holds a big camera can be called a photographer, and professionalism also depends on the level of commitment of the person to all related activities in the domain. My shooting started as a hobby, then grew into a passion. I was so fascinated because I felt like I always have the potential to do more than just taking random photos when I'm in the mood or do it just for myself and friends. I switched to professional mode, creating a website and accepting clients... to go further, learn more, and share the joy of making beautiful photos with many others, which I think is interesting and worth experiencing.

Fig 1: Despite my limited gear (Canon 700D + third party lens 70-300mm), I can still manage to get close to the bird and get a sufficiant sharpness either in flying or stationary shots. I even made use of crop sensor characteristics to extend the focal length to maximum 480mm (1.6x300mm). My output photos, below and right, compared to ones of a fellow photographer went with me that day, top and left (Canon 1D X Mark II, lens EF 600mm with 1.4x extender).

That was at least the goals I was aiming for, but the initial reason was still the thing that those who do photography seriously and who are passionate are often afraid of: equipment is expensive and costly to buy 😆. I've observed that only few people could be able to live off of photography as a main job and certainly not right from the first shot!! I however had the advantage that initially I had support from my family to buy my first camera and later it was my main research job to support my photography hobby while I was exploring and growing up with it. Besides, I knew very well my situattion as 'a poor family, have to do a lot of savings, and take small steps to reach any bigger goals' so I have never been in a hurry to buy the highest quality, most modern equipment. It turned out that's good for me. The difficult situation forced me to use my camera carefully, take full advantage of its capabilities and push it to the limit before switching to a new generation that is more suitable for skills I already have and new ones I wish to practice.  Such historical circumstances gave me the opportunity to practice not only skills but also good manners, knowing how to be flexible according to specific circumstances, being patient for the next sustainable change, and knowing how to appreciate what I currently have.  I'm grateful for the days I spent reading all and over and over again the camera's user manual when I needed to look up any info or answers to my problems. Those hundreds of pages helped me have a very solid technical foundation about my camera (together with scientific knowledge about electronics, information technology, light physics, human eye biology, etc. that I learn from university and throughout lifetime, I am very free on my path of photographic creation).  I may not know all the cutting-edge technology or techniques, but to produce the same stunningly good looking results as other people do, I know clearly how to do the same with my humble sweet camera.

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You use a camera long enough and its weaknesses will disappear.  Most camera limitations can be compensated for by user's skills.

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The popularization of photography thanks to smartphone cameras, of photographers and their work, and of professional cameras has made it easy for everyone to experience and create their own photography.  That ease is also often turned into the public's lossen interest and appreciation of the efforts of the person who created artwork.  Though this is also an inevitable consequence of the modernization process, it can be a challenge to the definition of photographers in modern life.  Here I'm only talking about the equipment-skills relationship, there is another important aspect of creativity and the ability to realize ideas that will be the deciding factor that makes the difference between 'hobbyists' and 'professionals'.  We'll have another time to discuss this topic.