A friend of mine did a website and a book around this theme called Dear Photograph.

I’ve found Lightmate to work great.

I’m so tired of hearing the word “recipes.”

“This meal is fantastic; you must have a great stove.”

50/1.2GM.

It’s not condescension—it’s perspective. Which level of technology is the correct level? How much camera technology do you think we can justifiably use and still have skill? What level of skill is that? Why did you choose the acceptable level of technology you chose instead of something more or less recent?

Any technological improvements only help photographers with talent and vision achieve the images they want to achieve. All the Sony camera tech in the world won’t fix a bad photographer.

When it comes to creating images, I don’t like photography.

To me it seems like every feature manufacturers bring forth in their cameras seems to be replacing the skill or dedication that used to be needed to make a good painting.

Can’t be arsed to paint your landscapes? Don’t worry, cameras will basically let you make a picture of them exactly as they look in real life.

Don’t want to bother getting your colour palettes right? No worries, cameras will reproduce the pigmentation of a peregrine falcon mid-flight.

I can’t help but think certain things are intrinsic to actually being an image-maker and the over production of these cameras features takes away from the skills required to be a good painter.

My 2 cents.

Everyone’s engagement/couples/wedding/portrait images getting that under-saturated, underexposed, almost-sepia preset/recipe. We get it, you’re rustic. Start exposing and composing in an interesting fashion and quit running everything through the dirt.

Nikon D50

Nikon D300 x 2

Nikon D800 x 2

Nikon D750 x 2

Sony a7III

Fujifilm X-T30

Fujifilm X-T3

Fujifilm X-T5

Sony a7IV x 2

These are all instances of trading one body/pair of bodies for the next. I did also get a Ricoh GR IIIx in 2021 that I’ve kept since. I also don’t know how many film cameras I’ve had along the way, but it was a bunch (Nikkormat, Nikon F4, Nikon F5, Olympus XA, Leica M2, Nikon 28Ti, Olympus PEN EE half-frame, a bunch of lesser-known 35mm SLRs, Rolleiflex 3.5 and Yashica 120/medium-format, etc.) I’ve since sold them all.