“So which camera should I get?” the usual question asked by newer photographers who are trying to improve the level of their work by improving their tools. People who have been taking pictures for a while always know exactly when they need to upgrade and to what. Does the camera make the photograph or is it skill alone? Does the brand matter? Not so long ago I was teetering on the fence regarding these questions. I think that in the last month or so I have finally came to a conclusive decision.
Does the camera make the photograph? The answer to that question is “Heck no!” But doesn’t super amazing camera with super amazing lens make super amazing quality pictures? The answer to that question is absolutely yes. While a great camera can surely boost the detail, color depth and the amount of pixels, but it will not help you with perspective, composition or subject matter. Also think about this: technology is evolving at lightning speed. And less than 10 years ago DSLRs were only coming out and yet breathtaking photographs were taken long before that.
Taking pictures for Instagram with my phone really helped me understand that a tool is only as good as the person who wields it. Sure, I can run around with a Nikon D800S snapping every little thing I see, but if I don’t understand what makes a good image, the camera itself won’t help me. Okay, I may get lucky… but that’s not the point. The point is that I normally shoot with a Nikon D600. And Vogue Italia only published photos that were taken with my Samsung Galaxy S2 Phone and my very old Pentax film camera.
In conclusion, to answer the question is you really have to take a look at your work. See if you have reached the pinnacle of your creativity that only new hardware can improve. Speaking from personal experience, if you get a fantastic hardware in attempts to increase your performance, you will rely so heavily on that hardware that your output may actually suffer. Once you learn to create breathtaking imagery on worse hardware then and only then will be the time to upgrade.
As always please feel free to tell me your experiences and thoughts on the subject.
