What purchase changed your life?

[thirtyfivefifty]

I often glance at what people just sold, bought, regretted purchasing, love, but I was was wondering what purchase changed your photographic philosophy, or photography in general.

Can be a class, seminar, lens, camera, book, etc.
There's nothing too big or too small to mention. Can be anything.

 

[Murchu]

Actually, and in the vein of of this being the rangefinderforum, it was a rangefinder, my first M, that had a big impact on my shooting. I guess it was the combination of the small form, bare bones controls, and ability to see outside the frame, that put the emphasis back on seeing and looking, when I was out shooting.

 

[yossarian123]

I'd say it was a Nikon FM with 50mm Series E lens. My first real camera, to this day I still have no idea why I bought it - before that time I was quite happy with using point and shoot (or even **gasp** disposable) cameras.

 

[NicoM]

My Nikon D80. It was my first DSLR, and it was my introduction to photography. I feel like it was the camera which allowed me to produce some of my best photographs to this very day. Back then, I didn't continually look at forums to check out the latest and greatest gear. It was all about photography. *Sigh* those were good days.

 

[LKeithR]

If I am to be honest the real "game changer" was when I bought my first DSLR; a Pentax K10D. I had been a Pentax shooter for years and had shot a lot of film but from that moment on I realized what a pain it was compared to digital. A second momentous event--I don't think buying "any" camera could be considered "life changing"--was when I bought my Digilux 2. It is not my most used camera but it's certainly my favourite...

 

[sevo]

Sex, drugs and rock'n'roll. It is the input that formed me, photography is output.

 

[jsrockit]

Changed my life? Nothing that I bought. Changed my philosophy on photography? William Eggleston's Guide back when I first encountered it in the early 90s. Leica M6 / Leica Minilux also during that same time frame.

 

[Pickett Wilson]

Kodak Instamatic 100. Got me hooked on photography. My obsession with it caught the attention of a family friend who was a pro photographer, who took serious interest in giving me a "real" camera, teaching me the darkroom, and led to a so far 40 plus year career as a news shooter. It literally did change my life!

 

[sepiareverb]

A bottle of liquid acid in 1982.

 

[f16sunshine]

A bottle of liquid acid in 1982.

Oh, yes of course that too.

I was to say an engagement ring but really it was probably the liquid courage that got me to do that. All lost now...

 

[Stuart John]

APX100 with Paterson acutol. That was the first B&W film developer combo that I found I really liked. I tried quite a few before but that combo was just about perfect. Of course later much later I discovered that I could make pretty much any B&W film look how I wanted it but I used that combo for years.

 

[felix5616]

a german shepard dog

 

[Spanik]

Second hand Mamiya 645 ProTL with 45/80/150, a couple of backs and a compendium. Until then I never tought about photography, just pushed the shutter button. But after a year struggling with the 300D I tossed it out and got into MF. Learned to care about exposure and found that taking a photo can be fun.

 

[lam]

A tiny Konica C35A rangefinder. Film rebirth!

 

[Calzone]

A black Nikon F2. This was my first camera back in the mid seventies when I was in art school. At that time I use to be very shy around women, but that camera, along with being a standout in the art department, lead to me meeting more women than I could handle. It was a lucky camera.

I gained a lot of sexual experience directly due to that particular camera. Somehow I became the Photo Editor and Darkroom manager for my school's newspaper, and somehow the darkroom also became a sex parlor...

Cal

 

[daveleo]

Can't narrow it down to one . . .

Can't narrow it down to one . . .

These two changed my photographic life . . .

 

[iuseruby]

broken fuji x100 (sab problem). I just decided that a crappy digital is enough for me and came back to the film.

 

[Lauffray]

Wasn't my first camera or my first M, but the first rangefinder I bought was definitely a game changer for me, a Bessa R3M

 

[thegman]

The only physical purchase that maybe has changed my life, is a Sun Ultra 1 workstation. It was a computer I saved up for, imported from the USA, and loved it. Compared to the stuff I had before, Amigas, Acorns etc. it was a different class and changed how I thought about computers and computer programming.

Purchases of holidays (vacations) have had a far greater effect though, Hawai'i, Australia, Japan, all changed the way I thought about how and where to live.

 

[burancap]

As always ... the NEXT one.