by



Aargh!

It is an indisputable fact that photographers are all obsessed with equipment to some degree. Though online forums are perhaps a poor barometer of public opinion because one only visits if you are looking for equipment reviews or spoiling for a fight with a troll, I’ve noticed the same thing here – after running this site for more than three years, the most popular posts are consistently the ones that are equipment reviews, to do with system choices, or hardware. Philosophy comes a very distant second – by a factor of three or more – and then only images, which are dead last. Surely I can’t be the only one thinking this ratio is a little odd, given that the whole purpose of the exercise is to produce images?



I was thinking as a collector when I bought this. I shoot with it sometimes, but I am under no illusion that it enables me to do anything the rest of my core kit can’t. Beautiful though, isn’t it?

The more I think about it, the more I think the majority of amateurs are really collectors rather than photographers: there’s nothing wrong with this, but the distinction needs to be made especially or the benefit of the majority of the public who still seem to think that large camera = professional and therefore whatever images come out must be good. Look at it them with fresh eyes! Do the images stand? If not, then the equipment is irrelevant. Or is it?

A photographer, in contrast, starts with the idea or intention, then chooses the right tool to aid in its production. This may or may not be a recursive process: you may well decide on a general subject (e.g. street photography) as an idea and then pursue it with the equipment you’ve got. But I bet you’ll eventually refine that selection to suit once you’ve had some experience. Photographers with a diverse range of subject matter and ideas will thus necessarily have a diverse range of equipment, too, especially if they want to go to the nth degree to ensure that they’ve done everything they can to make the best output or clearest translation of the idea possible.



Medium format and watches with artificial lighting on a single roll with no bracketing or second takes – it can be done – but perhaps is not the best idea. But on second thoughts, perhaps there is something here…the full set is here.

Photography is not about pressing the button: it is about seeing, and communicating that vision, story or idea to another person by means of visual tools. The tools are important and the process can change the output, but both should be subservient to the image. This is not to say that we must exclusively box ourselves in: you could shoot wildlife with a wide angle on large format film if you chose, or landscapes with long-zoom small sensor camera. And I actually think part of the satisfaction of photography is doing just that: there are no fixed rules. Ideas can be derived from a process and a process can be created to suit an idea.



Verticality XLI

I’ve got two very personal examples: Verticality and Forest. Verticality is entirely about the idea of towering monumentalism and the sheer scale of what man wrought over (individual) man himself – at the time of capture, the position and angle of view matters, but not the format. The output must be large and hung higher than eye level to produce the desired feeling of looking upwards and feeling small. Here, the process is entirely subservient to the image, and you’ll see that I’ve used everything from an iPhone to medium format to shoot these images – yet there’s still consistency of idea throughout. On the other hand, Forest only works as larger prints at very high resolution: the Ultraprint process was developed and evolved hand in hand as I was shooting Forests specifically to provide the right output medium for the idea, and vice versa. The more Ultraprinting I do, the more familiar I am with its strengths and limitations as as presentation medium, and I then gravitate towards suitable subjects; this way, the image and the medium work synergistically to provide a stronger idea. I think it’s quite obvious that any Forest doesn’t really work at web size, but I’ve never had that said after people have seen the large prints.



Forest VII. Native size, 34×30″ at 720PPI – or about 530MP. Does not work as a 0.5MP web jpeg; there’s a little bit of information loss…

It is therefore quite clear that the relationship between equipment, creativity and output isn’t quite so straightforward; there is something to be said for deploying the right tool in the right way. It is also not a stretch to say that new equipment forces us to experiment: not just because we must figure out what the optimum shooting envelope is, but also its strengths and weaknesses. Beyond that, there is of course the excitement around having a new toy to play with: this makes us want to go out and take photographs, hopefully experiment a little in the process, and thus incrementally improve our images. There is no substitute for practice in this game.

Of course there are two elements of human nature we cannot ignore: our curiosity/ natural desire for more, and the frequently mistaken belief that effort is fungible. We work at our day jobs and that effort is translated into money, which should in turn be able to buy our way up the ladder: yes and no. Whilst money enables you time and hardware for experimentation and buying education, it still isn’t a substitute for practice. In any other profession, nobody would dispute the fact that better tools are only better if the operator knows how to use them: the more specific the tool, the narrower the window of application. Nobody would dream of doing surgery with a Swiss Army Knife, yet you wouldn’t take an ophthalmological scalpel camping. The same is of course true with photography: don’t make the mistake of thinking that more expensive always equals better. Similarly, don’t assume that what works for one person will work for everybody: there are no ‘absolute bests’ since everybody’s skill levels and needs differ.

That said, there is also something very satisfying about having precisely the right tool for the job: it becomes a transparent part of the process and an enabler rather than something that requires conscious thought and attention to operate. This leaves you with more mental capacity to deploy on the creative aspects of photography, which should of course lead to better images – or at very least, a more enjoyable experience since you aren’t fighting your gear.



Stacking definitely required.

At this point I have to make a confession. Like every photographer, I am a gearhead, but not for the sake of gear: I have clearly defined photographic goals, and if a tool is going to enable me to reach them more easily or produce better results than the one I’ve currently got, I’ll jump. And I won’t jump until I’m sure that there really is a difference and I’ve squeezed every last drop out of my current setup. This should not be confused with jumping ship in the hope that the Next Best Thing is going to make a better image. It’s not; but it might enable me to make a better image, which is a subtle difference, but absolutely not the same thing. It’s also important not to be fixated on only one part of the imaging chain: there’s no point in having a medium format system and a bad tripod, or upgrading the body for more resolution then only using a superzoom. There is a reason, for instance, why I’m using a Novoflex Castel-Q rather than the Manfrotto 454; one has backlash and no anti-torque mounting for the camera, and the other does not. Both are of very critical importance when focus stacking, and I have a specific need to do that for my commercial work.



Occluded observation. This image is only possible with camera movements, a large dynamic range, and clean long exposure – these are pretty specific requirements, but it does represent my personal creative direction. Limited edition Ultraprint available here.

This doesn’t mean every photographer needs one, of course. Nor does it mean that everybody needs more resolution, or cleaner high ISO, or faster apertures, or a longer lens – regardless of what peers and forums and friends and manufacturers try to tell us. Evaluate your own needs objectively: they’re different to everybody else’s. If you don’t see any potential for improvement, or not enough improvement to justify the cost, then stop reading and go out and make photographs instead. Be independent and make up your own mind. Much of the confusion and angst over equipment that I get in email, messages and comments seems to derive from a lack of clarity over a person’s own personal objectives: think why you are photographing in the first place. But also beware that once you reach the bleeding edge, incremental improvements become increasingly costly; the laws of diminishing returns apply to photography, too. Be open to process and opportunity and improvement, but make sure there isn’t anything you’re leaving on the table with your current setup, and don’t lose sight of your own goals…MT

__________________

Ultraprints from this series are available on request here

__________________

Visit the Teaching Store to up your photographic game – including workshop and Photoshop Workflow videos and the customized Email School of Photography; or go mobile with the Photography Compendium for iPad. You can also get your gear from B&H and Amazon. Prices are the same as normal, however a small portion of your purchase value is referred back to me. Thanks!

Don’t forget to like us on Facebook and join the reader Flickr group!

Images and content copyright Ming Thein | mingthein.com 2012 onwards. All rights reserved