As photographers, we are constantly told that our gear or camera does not matter. As someone who has pushed this narrative, it is finally time to admit I’ve been wrong this entire time.
As a full-time landscape photographer with a small platform to voice my opinions to more than just my pets or friends, words carry meaning. Phrases like “gear doesn’t matter,” which I’ve said for years. The intention behind those words is to express that gear shouldn’t hinder you from pursuing photography, or finding ways to improve your work simply because you don’t have a certain lens or camera. While the intent of the phrase remains true, interpreting the words more literally could very easily be misleading to those that are newer to photography.
Gear does matter! Every person touting that it doesn’t (me included) is simultaneously taking photos with multi-thousand dollar equipment. Recently I’ve realized that gear even makes us better photographers, and if you don’t agree, then I’ve got a plethora of reasons to change your mind.
Excitement is one of the most important aspects of photography. It motivates us to get outside and experience nature, or into the studio to learn how light changes the mood of a portrait, or to invite friends around to practice on. This is how many of us fall in love with photography. If you’ve ever been excited to capture photos on a new piece of gear, then it has made you a better photographer!
When I first dived into the hobby of photography back in 2009, I purchased a camera and was genuinely excited to learn everything about how it worked while learning many of the technical aspects of photography in the process. I spent weeks or even months researching a particular lens I wanted to the point where, when it finally came in, it single-handedly reinvigorated my excitement to go out and take more photos. This continually made me a better photographer, even if I didn’t realize it at the time.
This is a great time to vocalize that it’s okay to enjoy gear! While I personally don’t get nearly as excited as I once did, it is totally okay if you do.
I’ve spent the majority of my landscape photography career without the ability to photograph anything cohesive past a 200 mm focal length. Once I finally took the plunge and bought the Canon RF 100-500mm so I could photograph wildlife in Alaska, it opened a new door for what I could capture during my travels. Did such a lens suddenly make me a master wildlife photographer? Of course not. However, by giving me access to a genre I once avoided, I had to learn (and continue to learn) a myriad of new photography techniques.
Landscape photographers typically are not worried about autofocus, shutter speed, or burst modes. Wildlife photography is the exact opposite, and I had to teach myself the ideal shutter speed for a flying bird or just how far I can push my ISO for noise reduction software later. Without the lens, I simply would have just enjoyed the moment in front of me and moved on.
Imagine the widest focal length lens you own is 35mm and you recently got a super-wide angle lens such as the Canon RF 15-35mm to capture astrophotography. That is an entirely new genre of photography with a lifetime worth of knowledge to learn by simply opening the door with a new lens, thus resulting in you becoming a better photographer in the process.
While I personally don’t get too excited about new gear anymore, I do find myself continually on the hunt for a camera that just gets out of my way so I can focus on creating. I gravitate towards cameras that are ergonomically better for my hands, have simple menu systems, or reliable autofocus. A few years ago, I even “downgraded” the image quality of my videos on YouTube by trading in my Fuji X-T4 for a Canon R7. The biggest reason is I couldn’t rely on the autofocus when recording myself. This fault, along with a poorly organized menu system, meant I got frustrated enough times to get rid of it.
You never want to be frustrated with the camera you’re using. As photographers, if we spend more time focused on getting the camera to do what we want rather than the story or art we want to represent, we won’t capture the moments that matter. This is incredibly important in the moments where I’m not only trying to capture the photo as it happens, but also record me capturing the photo. So how does a camera that gets out of my way make me a better photographer?
Simple, I can focus on the photography! A camera that gets out of your way so much that it becomes second nature to you and you can focus all your energy on the composition, the lighting, or the moment. This will slowly improve your skills as a photographer. Not only that, but you’ll be more excited to go out and shoot when you’ve got such a positive relationship with your gear.
Like an old car that only you can start the engine on, developing a relationship with your camera is far more important than you might imagine. If your camera hinders you from capturing the images you want, you are likely going to be unmotivated to go out and shoot. If you love the camera you have, you’ll find yourself enjoying the experience much more, which results in your becoming a better photographer in the process.
While a camera that doesn’t get in your way is great for someone like me, what about cameras that do get in your way? That might sound ridiculous, but think about it. The most popular camera in the last 5 years is very likely to be the Fuji X100 line. A fixed lens, crop sensor, “slower” camera.
Combined with the significant resurgence of film, it’s pretty clear that many people out there are looking to slow down and take a less-is-more approach. Just like having access to any focal length you could possibly want, restricting yourself to a fixed focal length provides unique challenges within itself. You have to find images that fit into that frame, and many photographers out there find these challenges refreshing or fun.
These restrictions test your capabilities, challenge you in new ways, and ultimately push you to become a better photographer simply because of the camera you picked up that day. This goes even further when trying to learn film. As someone who hasn’t taken the plunge yet, I know for certain that I will become a better photographer with an arguably much worse, slower, and older camera when I snap my first 35mm roll of film. These cameras are more about the experience and relationship you have when capturing photographs than they are about the end result.
Before you get your pitchfork out in the comments, please note that I’ve never said any of these things suddenly make you a good photographer. A new expensive or old expensive camera won’t suddenly turn you from amateur to master. They will all continually motivate you in different ways to improve as a photographer though. Even if you don’t care about the gear aspect at all, I’m sure there’s something you love about the tool you use that makes you a better photographer.
Still disagree? I’d love to know why in the comments and welcome any opposing views!
“The winning photograph captures the human side, how the community became close together, and how people showed support for each other during a difficult time,” says in the jury’s review of the press photograph of the year.
mbl.is/Kristinn Magnússon
Yesterday, Kristinn Magnússon, photographer for the newspaper Morgunblaðið and mbl.is, received the prize for news photo of the year 2023. The photo was taken at Hallgrímskirkja church where the residents of Grindavík came together in November.
At 15 am yesterday, at the Reykjavík Museum of Photography photographers were awarded awarded the prize for the for the news photo of the year and the photo of the year. The Icelandic Journalists’ Association announced this yesterday.
“This year’s news picture shows the other side of one of the biggest news stories of the year, the Reykjanes earthquake. The picture is from a time when the Grindvíkingar were together at Hallgrímskirkja. We saw many great pictures of the actual fires and the destruction caused by the earthquake, but the winning photograph captures the human side, how the community became close together, and how people showed support for each other during a difficult time,” the jury’s review of the picture says.
Kjartan Þorbjörnsson, or Golli, a photographer at Heimur and a former photographer for mbl.is, was awarded the prize for the photo of the year in 2023.
“The photo of the year 2023 is at first sight simple and quiet. It is highly symbolic and full of emotion. The film depicts Yazan, a young refugee from Gaza, temporarily decorating his home in Iceland with Christmas lights and the flag of his home country. The film evokes feelings such as sadness and empathy and is a good way to express his pride in his origin and home, a home that is now lost,” the jury’s review reads.
At the Museum of Photography, an independent jury selected 102 photographs from 17 press photographs from several submitted photographs. The six categories of photographs were news, daily life, sports, portraits, environment, and series. This year the jury awarded a prize for news photograph of the year and one picture from the former categories was chosen as the picture of the year.
The jury was composed of Árni Torfason, Hrund Þórsdóttir, Snorri Gunnarsson, and Andrea Bruce, who chaired the jury. Andrea is a war photographer from the United States who has worked in Iraq and Palestine for magazines like The New York Times and National Geographic.
Pablita Velarde launched a female dynasty in the art world with her own “studio style” paintings and subsequent works by her daughter, Helen Hardin, and her granddaughter, Margarete Bagshaw.
All three women broke boundaries — Velarde by taking brush to canvas, something Santa Clara Pueblo women were forbidden to do; Hardin with her forays combining traditional cultural imagery with geometry; and Bagshaw with her large-scale works reflecting both pueblo motifs and the modern artists of her time.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Gerald Herbert insists on making sure he provides the best coverage possible when photographing New Orleans’ NBA team. That means laboriously hanging remote cameras in the Pelicans’ arena hours before every home game. For their game against the Lakers on April 17, Herbert got a sweet spot right behind the backboard glass. It allowed him to capture Pelicans star Zion Williamson as he goes to the basket against Anthony Davis while LeBron James watches the action. Here’s what Herbert had to say about making this extraordinary image.
WHY THIS PHOTO
Landscape photographs aren’t just about the beautiful surroundings of our environment, they are a document of time. Natural phenomena, the elements and how the landscape changes around us is a fascinating topic. Due to the availability and aesthetics, plenty of creatives choose this as a subject.
“I entered the image ‘After the fire’ into the UK Landscape Photographer of the Year competition because of the way the heath fire had destroyed the character of this local heathland. It went from life to death and then the regeneration could begin,” Mik says. He passes this spot every time he travels through the New Forest National Park and when a local heath fire destroyed the landscape, he saw the photographic potential of the scene. “It needed to be a panorama to give a perspective of the size of the area affected,” he explains.
Shoot long-term projects
The landscape is constantly changing due to the time of year, weather and natural phenomena. It’s worth visiting the same location throughout the year to capture how these elements affect the scene. This will provide you with valuable experience and new challenges to overcome in terms of lighting and weather conditions, as well as help you develop your photographic style.
Since landscapes cover a large area, it is difficult to decide what to include and exclude in the frame. There may also be distractions that cannot be easily removed from the scene. Therefore, it is important to take time to observe and appreciate the natural environment before deciding on how to frame the shot. Alternatively, you could consider returning at different times of the year or in different weather conditions to capture the scene.
“I wanted to hide the view of the large Fawley oil refinery complex in the background, with its towers and chimney stacks. I had to consider that I would need to wait for a foggy or misty morning before I could get the shot I’d seen,” Mik says. This decision not only eliminated distractions but also added a layer of atmosphere to the photograph. Considering the atmosphere the natural environment gains through the weather is crucial to enhance the image’s mood, and distinguishes this image as a professional shot.
The most important ingredient of a pro landscape shot is the light. However, natural light is also the most challenging source to work with. “When that morning came with the great sunrise there was a low, thick mist. Shooting towards the sun could have been an issue, but the mist helped diffuse its brightness, allowing me to increase the exposure slightly to give more detail in the foreground,” Mik says. Waiting for the ideal weather and sun can be limiting, but it’s advisable not to wait too long. “Now, months later, the lone tree has fallen and most of the burnt skeletal remnants of gorse bushes have gone, mostly devoured by the grazing ponies. This picture no longer exists and the gorse is already growing back”.
Mik Dogherty is an outdoor photographer, based in the New Forest National Park in southern England. Mik is self-taught and had been a keen film photographer in his younger years, although a career in the Royal Navy and then the petrochemical industry had put his hobby on hold. In 2010, the advent of digital cameras helped Mik to revisit his passion. After suffering from mental health issues, Mik took early retirement, giving him the time and mindfulness to follow his photography hobby with dedication. His recent win in the LPOTY competition for the image above is a new highlight of his career.
1. Think about weather
“Once you have found a great shot, it’s always worth considering not just the composition, but the ‘atmospherics’. Try to think about what the best weather conditions could be for that photograph – whether that’s fog, a moody sky, sunset, rain, snow, diffused light, strong, direct light or flat light – and then maybe come back at another time to shoot when the conditions are perfect.”
2. Take care
“Bear in mind the old phrase ‘Failure to prepare is preparing to fail’ so, once you get home, take care of your kit straight away by charging batteries and cleaning lenses and filters so it is ready to go for the next outing.”
3. Protect your gear
“If you have been using a tripod, when folding it away, don’t push the bottom legs all the way up but, instead, leave the width of a hand between the foot or spike and the bottom of the next leg section. That stops forcing mud, sand and moisture up into the tripod workings and causing the legs to jam.”
The medium format camera is the fifth model in the GFX series, with a 51.4MP sensor and X Processor 4 image processor.
This lightweight lens (875g), provides effortless switching between wide-angle and standard angles of view, all while maintaining a constant f/4 aperture rating.
This lens is highly versatile and perfect for all types of photography, thanks to its optical image stabilization technology that provides up to five stops of stability.
The lens features two Super ED elements and an aspherical element that minimise chromatic and spherical aberrations while improving clarity as well as sharpness.
ND filters control the light in bright scenes or when using long exposure times, while polarizers enhance colors and reduce glare, reflections and haze.
A stable carbon fiber tripod with a maximum load capacity of 16kg. The tripod features detachable rubber feet and metal spikes, ensuring stability for use both indoors and outdoors.
When composing, this geared tripod head allows for precise positioning thanks to three independent movement options and accurate leveling with three bubble levels.
Artist Alleys are a popular part of any established anime convention and provide a venue for amateur and professional artisans alike to sell their anime or manga-themed works. Alleys are usually held approximately every three to six months and usually occur in honor of Valentine’s Day, spring, summer, Halloween and Christmas.
The free Dallas-Fort Worth-based Minna Art Market allows others to attend an Artist Alley-type event without paying the hefty price of tickets that anime conventions usually have.
“We pick various art forms from digital art, traditional art, printmaking, nail art, jewelry, accessories, plushies, crochet, apparel, candles and soaps, ceramics, etc.,” said Stephanie Son, Carrollton resident and founder of Minna Art Market, in an email to the North Texas Daily. “Most of our artists have an anime influence to their works, and attendees are drawn to everyone’s unique creative input.”
The next Minna Art Market event is on May 11 at the Denton Civic Center.
The first Minna Art Market event was in August 2021. Son said the inspiration behind starting the market laid in the desire to generate a space to allow artists to make ends meet amidst the COVID-19 pandemic while adhering to the COVID-mandated requirements. Minna events were outside of Denton in the past. However, they continued to thrive and expand, and the Civic Center accommodated their size, leading to the utilization of the current space.
“Individual vendors will bring their own merch and stuff like that [at conventions], and that’s always been my favorite part because I always love seeing how different artists interpret certain media [and how they] show off their own original art,” said Steph Williams, a Dallas resident and customer of Minna Art Market. “You don’t even have to buy a badge like you would at a convention. It’s just a chance to connect with other artists too.”
Williams began attending Minna Art Market events in 2022, the first one being in May of that year in Lewisville. They have been in the DFW anime and convention scene for ten years and value how smaller artists can participate in the market since it is a small event. They said because Minna is on a smaller scale, it fosters a more cozy and intimate community atmosphere.
“I feel like Denton is an area that really values art, like the arts in general, and I’m thinking about UNT and how I know that their music program is really good and that’s something they’re known for,” Williams said. “You can definitely tell the people in the area are very appreciative of art in all its forms, and Minna is a great showcase for that.”
Minna means “all of you” or “everyone” in Japanese. Son chose the name desiring cooperation and customer and vendor assistance. The intentions behind Minna are to help foster support for the artists and expose people who attend the events to new artists. Son is impacted by how she gets to connect to artists she had not known of, and in addition, there is an impact by artists telling her about their experiences with selling at the market.
“I wanted to participate in the market because I have always heard about it, and I think it’s a really good community,” MOLDYWORLD owner Josey Contreras said. “I’m very excited to participate.”
Contreras will sell their creations through the market for the first time in May. They make crocheted items through their small business, MOLDYWORLD. They said they heard a great deal about the market previously, but will be experiencing it in full for the first time in May.
“The best thing about Minna is when the artists and attendees leave happy! I’m overjoyed to hear people express their gratitude towards me about their positive experience at Minna.” Son said in the email. “I love being able to help facilitate an artist community for the DFW area.”
Son said she is shocked to witness just how much Minna has grown, and that word of the marketing spreads even outside the local DFW areas. Artists and attendees travel from out of the state to attend the market.
“I think it’s really impressive what she’s done with this event. I know it’s not easy to start stuff like this, especially on the scale that it’s grown to, because I know that they’ve had to outgrow two different spaces before the current one that they’re in,” Williams said. “Steph herself is really sweet. She’s one of the kindest artists I’ve ever met at conventions and stuff like that.”
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CHÉTICAMP, N.S. — He turned in the bottle for a camera.
Michel Soucy’s been sober for 40 years. Photography is his addiction now.
“I often tell folks I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, I don’t gamble, I don’t hang out in taverns; so this is my vice,” said Soucy in a phone conversation on Saturday.
Like sobriety, photography keeps him more attune with the world around him and offers a new, more interesting perspective on life.
“Long story short, it allows me to see and feel the world around me in ways I never took notice of before,” said Soucy. “It’s more about a human experience than making a buck or selling a canvas.”
Living in Cheticamp, he’s got a lot to work with, including a nature sanctuary in his backyard. The Cape Breton Highlands National Park is one such jewel. You’ll often find him and his wife there capturing moose, coyotes and foxes in their element.
He was blessed with a special visit in mid April. Soucy crossed paths with a brown pelican. The comically elegant bird that’s usually found off the coast of Florida landed right in the town’s harbour. It stuck around for nearly two weeks.
Soucy was there almost daily documenting its short but welcomed visit. Judging by his photos, the pelican had a pleasant stay enjoying handouts from fishermen, perching on the shore rocks and fishing boats. Soucy figured the tropical bird was likely blown from the coast of the southern U.S.
“They’re remarkable — just their long bill, the colour of the feathering on their heads. They’re quite striking,” he said.
It’d been 13 years since he’d last laid eyes on a pelican. While honeymooning in Costa Rica he spotted the creatures perched on the water off in the distance. He never got a close look until now.
But the real charge came in sharing his shots. The ones he posted on a Facebook page for birding enthusiasts got hundreds of likes.
“I was happy that I could take good quality photos and really have something to enjoy and, of course, to share with the community. That’s the biggest thrill that I tend to get.
“I get to share with people who don’t always get to see a pelican in their own backyard.”
But, alas, the brown pelican appears to have moved on. Soucy took his final shot of the bird last Sunday. He said he’ not sad over its likely departure, just thankful he got to enjoy the spectacle while it lasted.
“It was exciting, but when something like this happens you know that this is going to be short lived,” said Soucy.
“You enjoy it while you can.”
