There has been some chatter on the PhotoClub mail list about Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS). My comments have been that you should be out taking pictures instead of lusting over the latest hardware. (TMP as an antidote for GAS). This blog entry is a defense of hardware acquisition. There is a concurrent thread on the Leica Users Group (LUG) titled "What do you do with last year's camera?". Posters have weighed in with their plans for keeping or disposing of older model cameras. Even Leica owners upgrade from time to time.
All of the above got me thinking about why someone holds onto old cameras while buying new ones. I think there are more reasons to have and enjoy a camera than just using it to make images. There is the same sort of pleasure one gets from having a nice car, or golf clubs or firearms or woodworking tools. I call it "tool pleasure". It is the satisfaction of holding and operating a precision instrument. Noticing the craftsmanship, fit and finish. Dryfiring a handgun is only a step down from actually firing the weapon.
If you have a camera that is well-designed, that feels comfortable in the hand and in which the controls operate smoothly and positively, you get pleasure from owning it and handling it. Even looking at it. You may want to put it on a shelf where you can see it often even if you never take pictures with it. And the only acceptable excuse for selling it is to get funds to acquire a newer model.
Saturday, May 5, 2018
Photographic Stories
There are two types of photographic stories. First is the photographer's story about the photo image. How and why was it made? What gear and what settings? Where was it made and when? Then there is the story the photograph tells to the viewer. If you listen with your eyes and your imagination, the photograph will tell you a story. What questions does it invoke? What emotions does it arouse in you? I will illustrate these stories with two examples from my own experience.
Unaware
Photographer's Story:
I was killing time at North Star Mall. In a concourse between Victoria's Secret Store and other stores there was a coffee kiosk. I got a cup of coffee and settled at a small table. On an extra chair, I positioned my camera so it was pointed at a Victoria's Secret advertising window. My Lumix cameras have fully articulated LCD's so I as able to aim the camera and watch the LCD without anyone noticing. I had a shutter release in my hand, so I could sip my coffee and snap shots whenever I wanted. I took a few dozen exposures of which I later decided I had maybe three or four keepers. This is one of them.
The Photograph's Story:
I imagine the lady shown in silhouette to be middle aged, maybe 25 years older than the model in the advert. She is going about her business, doing some mall shopping. Maybe 25 years ago she was a hot party girl. Now she has other priorities of career and family. When she passes the window, she may notice the advertisement in her peripheral vision, but does not slow down or turn to look. She realizes that was then and this is now. Hence, "Been there, done that".
Unaware
Photographer's Story: A few years ago I took my wife downtown to get excused from jury duty. She had compelling medical reasons why she couldn't endure sitting on a jury, but had to go to the assembly to get excused. It was a chilly day and I chose to wander around the Main Plaza area with my camera to see if there were any good photo subjects. I saw this young man against the San Fernando Cathedral wall shielding himself from the wind and decided to photograph him when someone walked by. These two walkers were on their way to the courthouse and I snapped them as they walked by. Neither the walkers nor the young guy paid any attention to the other, so I titled this "Unaware".
The Photograph's Story: We do not know the story of either the young man or the walkers, but can imagine that even though they do not acknowledge each other's existence, their paths may cross some day in the future. Imagine that the young man may someday be falsely accused of a crime. Maybe he will commit a crime. The walkers, who may be lawyers, may try his case. Maybe one of them will be the prosecutor and the other hired to defend him. They will have no idea that their paths crossed years earlier and this image captured that passing.
Been there, Done that
Photographer's Story:
I was killing time at North Star Mall. In a concourse between Victoria's Secret Store and other stores there was a coffee kiosk. I got a cup of coffee and settled at a small table. On an extra chair, I positioned my camera so it was pointed at a Victoria's Secret advertising window. My Lumix cameras have fully articulated LCD's so I as able to aim the camera and watch the LCD without anyone noticing. I had a shutter release in my hand, so I could sip my coffee and snap shots whenever I wanted. I took a few dozen exposures of which I later decided I had maybe three or four keepers. This is one of them.
The Photograph's Story:
I imagine the lady shown in silhouette to be middle aged, maybe 25 years older than the model in the advert. She is going about her business, doing some mall shopping. Maybe 25 years ago she was a hot party girl. Now she has other priorities of career and family. When she passes the window, she may notice the advertisement in her peripheral vision, but does not slow down or turn to look. She realizes that was then and this is now. Hence, "Been there, done that".
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