Photography or Cameras? What would you give up?

Photography or Cameras? What would you give up?

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raid

raid

Dad Photographer
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Many RFF members do photography and also collect cameras and lenses. If you have to give up one of these two activities, which one would it be [honestly]?

If you choose photography over collecting, this implies that you don't mind selling off most of you already have collected.

Raid
 
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Raid,

To me that's such a no-brainer that it makes me curious why you would even bring the topic up. Fortunately I know you aren't a troll... ;)

I could, if I needed to, ditch everything I had but one. Choosing which one to keep would be more difficult - probably end up being the 4x5 Anniversary Speed Graphic - but there is the very real issue that somethings are better done by one type of camera than others.

I'm not a collector. My wife was looking through my cameras the other day and asked where my Kiev 4a was. I said I'd sold it nearly a year ago after not using it for a couple of months. She was surprised as I'd put a fair amount of time, money & work into that camera. But it was collecting dust & the funds it brought in made another step towards what I currently own and, much more importantly, use.

Hope this makes some sense,

William
 
raid said:
If you choose photography over collecting, this implies that you don't mind selling off most of you already have collected.
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That strikes me as a very false dichotomy. I have different cameras for different tasks - I'd no more want to use my RF cameras for bird photography than I'd try to take my dSLR with me everywhere as I do my pocket digicam. Cutting back on my cameras would mean cutting back on my photography in a very practical sense.

Sure, I have some cameras I could do without. Some of them are backups bought with the intention of not doing without. Some are inexpensive so bought and used as a bit of cheap-ish fun - usually to try something different. I could go all hair-shirted and get rid of them. That would return me little money - less than $300, and less than the fun is worth to me. So why would I want to?

I have only one camera that may go. I've only just bought it, to see what it's like. Once I know that, I'll keep it if I'll use it and pass it on if I don't or won't. That's my only truly GASsy purchase. All my other big(-ish) ticket items are there for a purpose, and are used.

That seems sensible to me. If it doesn't to you, well, sorry I guess.

...Mike
 
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I really couldn't give up photography, and at a real push could cut down to one camera, which would probably be my Leica MP and 50 'lux. And the 35 'cron. And the 75 'cron...

But it would have to be a real push. I'd sooner sell one of the cars and buy an old banger to drive to work in.

Photography has been a lifelong passion for me, and started when I was about 8 years old, so I think that as long as my eyes work I'll always be taking pictures in some way or another.

Collecting cameras came a lot later, and I'll often buy cameras to see what they are like, use them for a while and then sell them on to fund the next purchase; a handful become real keepers. It's a different sort of hobby to actual photography, but it is fun, and I've never found the two pastimes to be mutually exclusive.

Happy Easter!

Regards, Dan
 
I'm not a collector at all. I'm much more into photos than cameras, and not at all into bags and neck straps.

But I do have four very different cameras for very different photos, and could not produce the range of photos that I do if I did not have all four of them.

I buy to keep forever, and not to sell on.

The only fifth camera I can imagine at this time is one optimized for very wide angle, and I suppose that means the Voigtlander R4 or the Zeiss Ikon SW. But there's no rush to buy.
 
wlewisiii said:
Raid,

To me that's such a no-brainer that it makes me curious why you would even bring the topic up. Fortunately I know you aren't a troll... ;)

I could, if I needed to, ditch everything I had but one. Choosing which one to keep would be more difficult - probably end up being the 4x5 Anniversary Speed Graphic - but there is the very real issue that somethings are better done by one type of camera than others.

I'm not a collector. My wife was looking through my cameras the other day and asked where my Kiev 4a was. I said I'd sold it nearly a year ago after not using it for a couple of months. She was surprised as I'd put a fair amount of time, money & work into that camera. But it was collecting dust & the funds it brought in made another step towards what I currently own and, much more importantly, use.

Hope this makes some sense,

William
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William,

Most people here who write about their photography and the lenses used will obviously state what you have stated, but I am interested to find out what proportion of collectors we have on board.

Raid
 
it's a fun poll

it's a fun poll

Guys,
Note that we already have two votes for giving up photography. This is a fun poll after all. No harm was intended. :D

Raid
 
raid said:
William,

Most people here who write about their photography and the lenses used will obviously state what you have stated, but I am interested to find out what proportion of collectors we have on board.

Raid
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then why not just ask the question directly?
 
ChrisN said:
"I'd give my right arm to be able to play the violin!"
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Chris: We may have discovered something here:

"I'd give up all my cameras (except one) to do photography."

Must be the same poet!


Raid
 
oh, i gave up on photography already.:)
I only shoot once in a while to make sure my cameras don't get rusty.
 
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I would give up all cameras except one, Roland. If I were then asked which camera and which lens to keep, I need to think more about this. Most likely, I would keep the M3 but really miss the Canon T90. The T90 with the 300TL flash form a great combo for flash photography. Maybe this means that I change my photography style totally to RF photography. On the other hand, if I kept the Canon T90, then I would have to give up RF photography.

What a difficult choice to make! Who in the world thought up such a poll!!!

Raid
 
Pherdinand said:
oh, i gave up on photography already.:)
I only shoot once in a while to make sure my cameras don't get rusty.
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Now this is a "true"collector. :bang:

Raid
 
raid said:
I am interested to find out what proportion of collectors we have on board.

Raid
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Then why not ask just that? I am not a collector but as a photographer I need more than one camera. The poll is absurd.
 
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