So a friend's wife sends me a note...

on facebork... She says:
"What kind of camera do you use? It takes wonderful pictures"

See? It *is* all about the camera!

:p

Im so glad i dont have faceache.

But yes we all know its about the camera

Of course it's not solely the camera, but if substantial credit cannot be given to the camera gear, why do we spend or desire thousands of dollars in cameras and lenses? I mean, we all talk the game of achieving better sharpness and bokeh through better equipment, right? Then we must admit that equipment DOES indeed take great pictures... once we've done OUR part behind the camera.

It's about time we face it - Race car drivers, machinists, chefs, etc. excel at what they do given the proper gear... as do we.

Then there's the human element. There are many of us who are not comfortable with dishing out compliments directly (could be construed as flirting) and so they compliment the equipment instead.

When affronted with this type of comment, my response is simply, "Well, it's not an automatic, but yes, once I have all the proper settings and I've done my part, it works very well. Thank you."

I'm afraid I still do not understand why this comment is taken as an affront and frankly, I hope I never do.

Am I alone in NOT feeling slighted with this comment?

Icopus,
I understand your point. But my camera (despite the thousands I lavish on it in the form of lenses and flashes) has yet to jump out of my bag and take a single notable frame by itself. I've looked through the manual several times for the composition improvement button, its not there. Despite all of the automated features it never stops me and says "wow this light is going to make crappy photos". Sure we buy the best gear we can get, but thats only a small part of the equation.

gonzogolf wrote in post #13812320
... the best gear ... only a small part of the equation.

I agree with you until this as I maintain we should give the gear more credit than a small part. Sure we have to set the lights, set the 'dials', compose, point, steady the camera, (and apparently other stuff I'M not doing yet) and push the button, but after all that, the gear will greatly influence the shot we get.

And point of fact, if you cannot achieve the desired shot you're after, you'll consider the equipment as a possible fault. That's when many of us then purchase a replacement for the kit lens, or the crop body, or the...

All I'm saying is that I'm a better driver through Houston in a 2012 V6 Honda Accord automatic than I am in a 1996 1.4L Jeep standard, and the car, in this case, makes me so... unless it's rush hour when a bicycle might be the better choice of vehicle.

When I was a grad assistant I would help teach the photography survey course. The first thing I would do is have the students bring out their best gear, back in the film days. We would do a photo walk around a wooded part of the campus. I would shoot with a plastic lens freebie camera that I got free with a magazine subscription while the students use their canon, nikon, and minolta slrs. I had everyone submit their best shots and then slipped some of mine in for a blind class review. The shots from the plastic camera always got better ratings than the others. Showing them that its not only about the gear you use was an important first step.

gonzogolf wrote in post #13812428
When I was a grad assistant I would help teach the photography survey course. The first thing I would do is have the students bring out their best gear, back in the film days. We would do a photo walk around a wooded part of the campus. I would shoot with a plastic lens freebie camera that I got free with a magazine subscription while the students use their canon, nikon, and minolta slrs. I had everyone submit their best shots and then slipped some of mine in for a blind class review. The shots from the plastic camera always got better ratings than the others. Showing them that it only about the gear you use was an important first step.

This...is my point exactly. I have friends that shoot with stuff that most people on here would throw in the trash...and their images are nearly always superior to anything I can produce regardless of what I spend on equipment.

Some people have it...some people don't!

gonzogolf wrote in post #13812428
... that it (is not) only about the gear you use was an important first step.

Knowledge of the craft and knowing how to use your equipment is essential to getting accolades,... in and out of the home.

she's got a point, it would be difficult to take great photos if you didn't have a camera.

The camera is extremely important. Like has been said, without it, of course we can't take a photo. Sure, the photographer has all the technical and artistic skill etc etc ad nauseum, but come on, give the little guy some credit. Sure you can shoot all manual etc, but at the end of the day, the camera is doing a lot of work

icopus wrote in post #13812389
I agree with you until this as I maintain we should give the gear more credit than a small part. Sure we have to set the lights, set the 'dials', compose, point, steady the camera, (and apparently other stuff I'M not doing yet) and push the button, but after all that, the gear will greatly influence the shot we get.

And point of fact, if you cannot achieve the desired shot you're after, you'll consider the equipment as a possible fault. That's when many of us then purchase a replacement for the kit lens, or the crop body, or the...

All I'm saying is that I'm a better driver through Houston in a 2012 V6 Honda Accord automatic than I am in a 1996 1.4L Jeep standard, and the car, in this case, makes me so... unless it's rush hour when a bicycle might be the better choice of vehicle.

When was the last time someone said that DaVinci must have had great paper, pencils and brushes?

rick_reno wrote in post #13812728
she's got a point, it would be difficult to take great photos if you didn't have a camera.

But could she take great photos with your camera?

gonzogolf wrote in post #13812810
But could she take great photos with your camera?

hehe...I didn't want to get into that whole discussion with her as there is no way I couldn't come off as sounding like a snob!

av8r wrote in post #13812890
hehe...I didn't want to get into that whole discussion with her as there is no way I couldn't come off as sounding like a snob!

No, and of course the bottom line is they dont mean it as an insult. The question is an implied complement, they admire your work enough to want to know more about it.

gonzogolf wrote in post #13812914
No, and of course the bottom line is they dont mean it as an insult. The question is an implied complement, they admire your work enough to want to know more about it.

Exactly. My point in posting this was simply for us to have a chuckle to start the day.