why so picky?

[back alley]

i went for a walk this morning and took the xe1 with the 16-50 lens…such a nice quiet, sharp lens…i took a few shots and used the rear command dial to change the aperture a few times…it was so easy to do and actually quicker than having to look at an aperture ring to do it. i don't mind doing it either way btw…
then i remembered so many comments basically saying that the lack of an aperture ring was a deal breaker for some folks and that they would never buy a fuji lens that didn't have one…
this is one example of people on the net complaining about something they hate on a camera or lens. there are so many…
it got me to thinking…why are we so picky about some of these small things?

 

[cmc850]

Aperture rings, to me, are a connection to a time when nearly all cameras had them on each lens - few Canon or Nikon autofocus lenses have them anymore and manual selection is done on the camera.

As you pointed out, it's generally no harder to select on the camera than the lens, but some prefer that original style of control. For auto-everything camera, one reason for their removal was that often the user would fail to select either the minimum aperture or an "A" setting and the camera would be unable to use the full range for exposure where the aperture was dictated by the camera. On some modern lenses, the selection is done by "wire" regardless where the control is mounted.

Ergonomics are a preference - I know that with some mf slrs of the bygone era, like Oly or Nikkormat with the CS shutters, all camera controls are essentially on the lens barrel - focus, zoom, shutter, and f-stop. You may like or dislike that arrangement.

Why are we so picky about small things? Because we can be, I guess. But a point I take from your post is it may be better to try something before we relegate to the list of things we won't use.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Dear Joe,

Because to some people they are not small things?

Cheers,

R.

 

[f16sunshine]

May get lynched for this.

I think Photography Gadgeteeers can be very picky.
Photographers much less so.


Cheers!

 

[back alley]

May get lynched for this.

I think Photography Gadgeteeers can be very picky.
Photographers much less so.


Cheers!

it could easily seem so…to some the gear is more important than the images produced from that gear...

 

[Sejanus.Aelianus]

Because being picky is fun, perhaps?

Most forum postings seem to me like conversations in a pub: a mixture of showing off, attempted humour and venting the steam built up between the ears.

I don't see that as a bad thing, by the way.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

Gadgetoholics never have time to adapt to the gear. They blame the gear for crappy pictures of theirs to have reason to get new gear without learning of photography basics, which aren't gear related at all.

And why some are so picky about camera bags? 🙂

 

[jsrockit]

People are just different.

 

[back alley]

and i'm not saying that being picky is bad either…just very curious as to why we can be so picky.

 

[back alley]

Gadgetoholics never have time to adapt to the gear. They blame the gear for crappy pictures of theirs to have reason to get new gear without learning of photography basics, which aren't gear related at all.

And why some are so picky about camera bags? 🙂

i am way more picky about bags than cameras...

 

[Takkun]

I thin price comes into it too--its hard to justify sometimes thousands on something that has a tiny, always-in-your-way flaw that just makes the process a little more difficult.

But then again we also buy wacky vintage folding cameras and adapt Pentax lenses to our M6s and other equally absurd things.

 

[cmc850]

Sometimes being picky about gear is in pursuit of the ultimate image - other times, in pursuit of the ultimate photography experience - both valid. I've learned over the years to give new ways of doing things a chance.

 

[Dan Daniel]

If the camera gives me what I want- in image quality, in handling for the type of shooting being done, etc.- then I will learn or work with quirks.

If I was a high-end professional being paid to perform in specific ways, it makes sense to have standardized equipment. You don't want to be fumbling around and trying to remember the quirk of this or that camera while in the field shooting an event or in the studio with art directors looking over your shoulder.

I doubt many people who *are* high-end pros are spending much time commenting on Fuji's newest zoom.

 

[f16sunshine]

As someone who considers himself to sit firmly in both camps.
Being a photographer I have, and, am willing again to adapt to any bit of gear in order to get the shot.
As a Gear head... I certainly have my list of qualifications when it comes to kit!
Aperture rings like some other "classic" controls used to be one of those qualifications but that is no longer so.

Maybe I'm just less picky now. 😛

 

[burancap]

Hmmm... I think I am more picky today than ever.

I have been photographically "aware" for say ~40 of my 49 years.

For the first 35 years, I had maybe 3 cameras and a lens each. The last 5 -I have lost count.

Times change, interests change, photography has changed with increasing availability and reducing costs. Most importantly, I think that accessibility has changed. Immediate searches, purchases, and shipping overnight -all from the couch.

To the topic: it is too easy to be picky. Before, you lived with kit and knew it like riding a bike. Today, the trivial can be perceived as irritating and the irritation can be supported by countless comments stating it is an irritant. Being picky almost seems a natural progression of the easy accessibility. Immediate satisfaction and immediate dissatisfaction are more equal today than ever.

 

[pete hogan]

I'm picky about not being picky. Anyone who looks at my 60 years of pictures can tell that!

 

[f16sunshine]

I'm picky about not being picky. Anyone who looks at my 60 years of pictures can tell that!

Wonderful !!

Cheers!

 

[Rodchenko]

Perhaps because I am left handed, I strongly prefer all controls to be on the barrel of the lens - hence my love of the OM SLRs and the 35SP. I also shoot a lot in aperture priority, which isn't especially easy on my EPL1. Ironically, it is easier on my XZ-1 compact, as I programme the lens ring to the aperture settings.

 

[Tijmendal]

May get lynched for this.

I think Photography Gadgeteeers can be very picky.
Photographers much less so.


Cheers!

Kaboom!

Just get a decent camera and shoot it. You can get used to whatever camera in a week.

 

[BillBingham2]

Some people prefer to complain about the "If Only" aspects of their lives. Perhaps looking for ITHO (In Their Humble Opinion) what is perfection, perhaps never being satisfied.

Other folks accept that there is no one perfect thing, trying different tools, sometimes they fit who they are at the time, but they change and then their tool choice does.

At one point in time my Nikon SLRs were perfect, then my Leica Ms, then my Nikon Ss. It comes down to choices. Size, operation, quality, preferred uses, funding availability, space (where you live) and lots of other variables.

I look at it as a journey and remember the cameras that I have owned fondly and as partners that have helped me get to the point in my skills (or lack there of) where I am today.

While I HATE the lack of control I have over my iPhone 5 camera it's availability is most excellent. Heck yes I am picky (don't get me going down the camera bag hole......) but not snobbish.

Perhaps being picky is a way of helping each person to distill down their needs from their desires. I enjoy listening to different perspectives as for me, it's the best way to learn.