Some people just can’t get past the whole gear thing. For a long time, I was tempted to do as a friend of mine does – cover up all the identifying marks on my camera with black electrical tape. You’d know I shot a Nikon, but that’s about it. For the past few years I’ve side-stepped questions about what camera body I shoot with. Well, the cat is about to be let out of the bag. The cameras I’ve been shooting with for the past 5 years have been Nikon D80s. <— plural of D80, and don’t try to put an apostrophe after the zero to make it plural, it doesn’t work that way.
Go ahead, I’ll pause while you laugh. And then I’ll laugh when you get all bug-eyed when I tell you I just earned a Master’s Degree from the PPA with every single image being made with a D80. The D80 was not manufactured after 2008. But, when I purchased them, they were $1000+ each and that’s not a small amount of money. I wrestled with upgrading, I wrestled with the price. And I wrestled with whether I really NEEDED a new camera. Or two. Because I constantly shoot with more than one camera at a time, I like my main bodies to match, so I upgrade both at once. Backups, not so much. They’re a backup for a reason.
It’s really easy to get all caught up in the hype over the new models and think you need the latest and greatest. If you really do need it, then that’s great, obviously you’ve reviewed your needs and compared it against the equipment you already have and the equipment available at the trade show you just attended. Oops, I mean, the equipment your favorite supplier carries.
For example – The D700 has been on my wish list for awhile. Mainly because it has better high ISO / low light handling capabilities. But, there’s been a couple of newer models hat have come out since I placed the D700 on the list, and honestly, my low light work has decreased significantly, so the need is not as great right now as it was before.
Maybe I’m more cautious because I’m older. Maybe I’m just more greedy with my money. Whatever the reason, I find the constant search for the holy grail of gear to be disconcerting. Your clients don’t care what gear you use. Your clients care that you deliver a quality product and the driving force behind that is your knowledge and skill level. Of course, if you’re shooting with a pinhole camera made out of a milk carton and duct tape, we’ll need to chat, but for the most part, I think everyone is operating with a decent camera body capable of capturing excellent images when used correctly. Even if it’s a Canon. 😉
For further reading, please review these past Wootness articles:
I feel the same way…if it works for you, why spend more money? Some people would be shocked if I told them I'm shooting all my portrait sessions with a <gasp> Nikon kit lens 55-200mm! Even more shocked that I sold my 70-200mm f/2.8 because the kit lens is working for me and I just didn't need to lug that big thing around!
Thank you so much for this! I wish more people took the stance that GAS (gear aquisition syndrome) is not what improves your photography. Only been at this a few years and I see brand newbies shooting with full frames….and I do not care! LOL!
so real and simples…
Could not agree more. I shoot with D200 bodies, have three of them. They met my need when I bough the first one, still fit my need when I bought the third one.
Right with ya there photo bud… You know what I shoot with, have a few in the camera box myself. Going on my 6th year, no repairs.. Made some good money with those cameras !
so true…