Lately I have been hearing complaints about the rising cost of digital photography. Many users cite the cost of the new DSLR camera bodies that Nikon and Canon have recently brought to the market. For many photographers where it is their passion and hobby often overlook prices in their quest for the latest gear. Pros have other issues to contend with, but mainly they are driven by capital write-offs, depreciation and a fairly defined interval for equipment upgrade. 

What can the passionate amateur with limited funds do about acquiring equipment? My first suggestion is stop practicing gear envy. People have new or used gear for a variety of reasons. It is best not to dwell on why they can afford new camera equipment every year. The best thing to do is to sit down and budget for your hobby. Set yourself a realistic budget that fits your income and photographic lifestyle. So if you are a beginner or a student with a limited funds you should set your budget at a realistic figure. For example $500 per year. 

Now you are wondering, can you really pursue digital photography with $500 a year. The answer is definitely yes. The used camera market on Kijiji and Craigslist is alive and well. One can easily pickup a used camera body such as a Nikon D80 with a kit lens for under $500. The important thing about being used equipment is to check for the overall condition. You want a camera body that was well cared for. Look for scratches, dents and marks both on the camera body and the lens. Check to make sure all of the buttons and switches on the camera body are not loose and feel firm to your fingers. Check to make sure that the focus ring on the lens is smooth and is not sloppy or loose. The final thing to check is to see how many times the shutter has been pressed. To do that ask the buyer to send you a picture in a jpg format. (A picture of the current newspaper is a good idea in case of fraud.) Take the picture and load it in the Opanda exif viewer. (freeware available at http://opanda.com/en/iexif/ ) This software will tell you how many times the shutter has been pressed on the camera and it will give you a general idea how much usable life is left in the camera. Many consumer grade DSLR's have shutters that can last for 50 or 75,000 clicks. It is very easy to pick up a used camera body with less than 10,000 clicks on it. 

Next article we will talk about how to invest your second year budget in your new hobby.

Watsonphotography.ca creates unique images of fashion, models, people, travel, nature and racing sports by Toronto photographer Peter Watson.

The rapid increase in popularity of digital cameras has brought a resurgence into photography. Today we have digital cameras in many forms. Some new and some old. We still have medium format, 35 mm and small pocket cameras like we had over 30 years ago; except they shoot digital pictures which are stored on a memory card. One form factor that was not around 30 years ago was the cell phone camera. The increase in technology in digital imaging has been good for the most part. But with the good you have to take the bad.

The bad I am talking about is in the area of etiquette. Modern cameras can take several images per second. Back in the film era it was only professional level cameras that could accomplish this. Taking several images per second is a great thing if you are trying to capture action at a professional sporting event or your child's soccer game. Using the capability to shoot 5 frames per second at a family event or other public event is similar to a machine gun kelly approach. How many images do you need to capture. Or do these type of photographers not possess the skills to press the shutter button selectively to capture important family events. As photographers we must always remember that some people are camera shy or do not wish to have their picture taken. Using the machine gun kelly approach is simply bad etiquette. Good manners and etiquette are free in life so give your fellow photographers a friendly reminder.

For more info on photography etiquette here are some good reference sources:

Photographer Critiques and Etiquette

Working with your subjects

Photography Travel Etiquette

Meeting a new photographer

Watsonphotography.ca creates unique images of fashion, models, people, travel, nature and racing sports by Toronto photographer Peter Watson.

2012 saw many major camera announcements. There were major shifts in the camera landscape with the release of small sensor cameras like the Nikon J1 and V1. For more information see the Nikon website. There was also a startling development with the release of the Nikon D800/800E. The big surprise with the release of these cameras was the considerable increase in resolution to 36 megapixels. As with any technology one can expect improvements as time progresses and occasionally technology gets released that can leapfrog previous technology.

What is interesting about the D800 technology is the hysteria in the camera forums. There is a lot postulating about the sensor, camera performance and the the perceived need for the increased resolution. The camps are firmly divided between the two. Is the camera snobbery at its worst or a healthy discussion. Well let's roll the clock back a few years. 10 years ago the Nikon D1x with 5.2 megapixels was released and four years later the Nikon D2X with 12.4 megapixels was released. These cameras ushered in the transition to digital in the professional arena. These cameras were used to produce commercial advertising, fashion and sports photography images. If these cameras at the those resolutions (5.2 + 12.4) were good enough back then we must ask ourselves whether we need the big jump to 36 megapixels. 

The main thing to consider about these cameras is that they are just tools for a photographer and a business expense for many. There is no surprise that Nikon only releases pro camera bodies every four years. This is strongly related to the accounting write-off cycles by professional photographers. The decision to upgrade is a personal one or one that is dictated by business reasons. The decision to upgrade should be reviewed from a logical basis and not by the gee whiz kid in a candy store approach. 

In today's business climate it can often make sense to turn to the used camera market to obtain pro gear. These cameras are workhouses with an intended long life span. Sometimes we just don't need to put the old horse out to pasture. Maybe we just a return to common sense.

Watsonphotography.ca creates unique images of fashion, models, people, travel, nature and racing sports by Toronto photographer Peter Watson.

An in-depth interview with the photograph:

Why would a photographer and photographs want to upset the arts community?

Photograph:  I only want to upset those in the arts community that instruct in the field of art and those who criticize it. Let’s look at the root of the issue. Where does the slogan Art for Art’s Sake come from. From our ever popular internet resource Wikipedia:

“Art for art’s sake” is the usual English rendition of a French slogan, “l’art pour l’art’,” which was coined early in the nineteenth century by the French philosopher Victor Cousin and became a bohemian slogan during the nineteenth century. Although Théophile Gautier (1811 – 1872) did not use the actual words, the preface to his novel Mademoiselle de Maupin (1835) was the earliest manifesto of the idea that art was valuable as art, that artistic pursuits were their own justification, and that art did not need moral justification and was even allowed to be morally subversive.

Define the meaning of  “What does Art not For Art’s Sake ?”

Photograph: The new standard in the art’s community that a follows the mantra that created piece of work is simply a piece of work. It is what it is and nothing more. It is not Art, it just simply is. There are no trappings of grandeur and pontification by an art critic. It is “Hi! I am simply a photograph for you to enjoy or dislike at your pleasure. You may pontificate and search for the reasons for the photograph but you must do so with your inside voice.”

Why the slamming of art critics?

Photograph: There are too many critics and instructors in the art world that only talk in words, but have no substance. There is no background behind their words. For the layman, the equivalent is a unlicensed car driver working for an automotive magazine. Simply put, put up or shut up. If you do have something to back you up, then you have at least the basic requirement for being an art critic.

What about constructive criticism?

Photograph: The best kind of criticism. If you are a working professional photographer and you can offer constructive criticism in a sincere effort to help somebody progress in the field you are positioning yourself on your first step to sainthood. There are too few people who can offer good constructive criticism. Too often, people deviate from this path and end up providing sarcastic criticism.

Before we go, any funny anecdotes about the art world?

Photograph:

A well-known instructor in the image arts field was giving a gallery tour to group of photography students. In the middle of the tour of a well-known twentieth century portrait photographer, a student asked the instructor a question. Can you comment on the lighting style used in the portraits. Most of them appear to be simple two and three light setups. The instructor replied that she knew nothing about lighting as she did not shoot. (take pictures)

The photograph rests its case and the jury is out for deliberations.

Watsonphotography.ca creates unique images of fashion, models, people, travel, nature and racing sports by Toronto photographer Peter Watson.

Photographers who specialize in fashion, glamor and portraiture photography often showcase their work through various social media avenues, web sites and self-promotion. This can often lead to unsolicited requests from models who would like images for their portfolio for trade. In short this is called TF or Time/Trade For work. There is nothing wrong with this concept as it can often lead to further portfolio development for the model, photographer and other participants such as stylists and makeup artists. This can be a win/win situation for everybody involved in a perfect world. Alas, not everything is perfect in this world. Things can get derailed when a model makes a request with language like "Looking for a photographer to do a TF shoot with a studio". On the surface this appears to be genuine request, so where is the misunderstanding.

In the past five years the transition to digital technologies has been rapid. The influx of digital technology has also heightened the competitive pressure within the creative community. Business clients have also changed their business operations and processes which has led to the abandonment of in-house photography departments and the explosive rise of stock agencies. Photographers have also had to change their methods of operations. One of the big casualties was the studio. Many photographers have now closed their studios and instead they have moved to studio rentals when the work is available. Why have they done this? The major reason is that all costs of running a studio are considered to be overhead from an accounting perspective. These costs usually never vary and can present a serious cash flow challenge when client work slows to a crawl in uncertain economic times. A studio rental is considered to be an expense from an accounting perspective and the cost can be charged back to the client or worked into the quotation for the project. The overhead vs. expense issue was brought to the forefront many years ago when corporations decided to outsource work to other countries or sub-contracting companies. These business driven economic factors have now invaded the creative community and led to the considerable decrease in the number of private photographic studios.

Now back to our model TF photo shoot. From the model's perspective he/she just wants to show up at a studio for a couple of hours for a photo shoot. But if a TF shoot is supposed to be about fair trade then he is contributing most to an artistic shoot and portfolio development. The model is giving up a couple of hours. The makeup artist is giving up his/her time along with the costs of providing the makeup. The stylist is providing the clothes at his/her expense along with their time. The photographer is giving up his time to do the shoot, time doing the post-processing of the images and in today's business climate expenses for a studio rental. We all want fairness, but the photographer is quite often getting the short end of the stick. So for the models, wake up to the new business reality you have to give to get. Time is just one part of the equation.

Watsonphotography.ca creates unique images of fashion, models, people, travel, nature and racing sports by Toronto photographer Peter Watson.