Civil War Bugle. Photographed in 1975 with a Nikkormat and Kodachrome film.
Twenty years ago I got my first digital camera. Before that, I was a film photographer for 35 years. At least half the photographs I show on this blog were originally shot on film, then scanned on a Minolta-DiMage 5400 scanner, making files 13 x 19 inches (5704 x 3885 pixels) in size. A scan from a sharp 35mm slide will make a very satisfying 24 x 36 inch print.
A digital file from even a six-megapixel camera will make a 24 x 36 inch print that is even sharper. But you would have to look very hard to see the difference. Some of my best photos of the last 20 years were made with the 12-megapixel Canon 5D Classic. The architects who commissioned me to make large prints of their buildings had no complaints about the 5D's sharpness.
But different photographers have different needs. Some of my photographer-friends, including my brother Phil, are investing in cameras with very high pixel counts because of the type of photography they do, especially wildlife and birds. I wish them all the best, but the kind of photography I do does not require that much firepower. I have two Fujifilm cameras, each with a 24-megapixel sensor. They do everything I want and need to do. In fact, I could probably dig out my old Olympus OM2n and lenses, load it with Fuji slide film, and make photographs that would satisfy me and my clients just as well. How good does it have to be, anyway?
If there's a moral to this rambling, it's this: learn who you are as a photographer. Learn what you want to say with your pictures. Then choose the equipment that will help you express your vision. The newest, shiniest toys are not necessarily the best -- for you.
If you like my photographs, you can see more of them in my online gallery at https://davejenkins.pixels.com/ Looking is free, and, who knows? You might find something you want to keep.
The second edition of my book, Backroads and Byways of Georgia will be released in June, 2023.
Photograph and text copyright 2022 David B.Jenkins.
I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.
Dave, this is good advice. I'm glad you finally thawed out!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Greg. We kept warm, but were without running water for nearly a week..Fortunately, our campground has bathhouses!
ReplyDeleteI’m sitting on the decision as to whether to upgrade my Fuji X gear. Because…birds.
ReplyDeleteDennis Mook, who blogs at https://www.thewanderinglensman.com/, has recently acquired both an X-H2s and an X-T5 and writes comprehensively about both. Scroll back through his posts and you will find some helpful information.
ReplyDeleteI once had an image that was used on a billboard at roughly 6 feet by 12 feet. The original image was taken with a Nikon D2H which has only a 4.1MP sensor and a Tokina 80-200mm f2.8 Pro lens. I was amazed at how will the image translated when viewed from the ground. The latest and greatest will not make your images any better if you haven't figured out what you really want your photography to say. I have spent my photo life (since 1970) shooting mainly documentary/street images. Today in retirement I shoot with a Fuji X-Pro2 and XF 35mm f2 WR lens. My goal is to try and "see" photographically like my idol Cartier-Bresson did.
ReplyDeleteYour advice here to focus on what you want/enjoy photographing, whether professionally or pleasure, is what many new to photography don't think about.
Many (maybe most) people who first become interested in photography are fascinated with the toys. Some move on, some never do. It's always a temptation to think a better camera will make one a better photographer, but that's seldom true.
ReplyDelete