Why are photographers obsessed with other photographers gear changes

[DonS]

This article makes a point. Often Youtube videos where a photographer switches systems gets way more views than many others.

I know many people are defensive of their gear choice. Some are that way because they feel the need to do this so that they are reassured that they made the right choice. No one wants to hear they made the wrong choice, and some people just get wildly defensive to the point of being offensive.

Why Are Photographers Obsessed With Other Photographers' Gear Changes?

It seems like there is always a video from a major YouTuber about selling his or her gear, and these videos can rack up hundreds of thousands of views. I’m not sure why that is. Sometimes, a provocative headline can draw someone in. When I worked at Canon, the entire company was abuzz over Scott...

fstoppers.com

 

[Taboo]

If you think that your gear is whats holding you back and you spend enough money, you finally come to the
old conclusion that its the 6 inches behind the viewfinder that needs change and not whats in front.

 

[Piquet]

The only good camera is the one you have with you when opportunity provides the inspiration

 

[Phill104]

Kit affirmation as well as copying what your peers do seems to be a big thing. Seems very odd to me.
Still, it keeps the second hand market alive.

 

[SFTphotography]

I think people get defensive as it is quite a personal choice - chosen often for reasons such as layout and form factor - rather than being the latest and greatest. In a lot of cases people's gear is a very expensive choice. I cannot be alone in having camera gear that is worth more than my car for instance. I reckon selling up my gear I'd get more for all of it than I would my Volvo S80 - and it's only 5yo with 35k on the clock.

At the end of the day, camera's are as only as good as the person using it. But a good photographer with a good camera set up will always be better than a good photographer with a camera phone.

 

[Pteranadon]

I'm not big on the latest and greatest.
I am however, on the tried and true.
Or, atleast the coming out of fellow photographers speaking their minds.
Other Togs inspire me.
Especially those who are humble yet can speak their mind.
Wrong or right- their opinions carry with me. They usually have truth in their beliefs.
Other's equipment?
Especially when they flaunt it- big turn off. I don't want to join the "crowd".
I want to stay humble, different and get better.
YES better equipment can get you a better shot. If you feel you are outgrowing it.
...when the mind behind the shot is also evolving.
I'm on my way to the 5d miv. (Tried and true) Yes, expensive. And i am considering myself a novice- (in my eyes) no plans to try to make money. I feel i have much to learn each step i take.
And mostly, it's for myself and my takes to share. As, for all my takes.

Now, if i could only find any time to get out and shoot.

 

[Phill104]

I do find it interesting when people look down on users of crop cameras. I see it a lot amongst bird togs for instance. It is almost as if you cannot joint their club unless you carry a monster lens and pro body on an RRS tripod. There is a lot of peacocking going on in that group, even worse with the full on birding lister community. Now there is a clique with very strong views.

 

[Petrochemist]

I can see a benefit from hearing from people who have switched.
They have true experience of both camera systems & can give a more reliable comparison of how the hardware differs in use.

I doubt if this benefit is sufficient to cater for the extra views noted, but at least when you compare shots with A against shots with B the skill of the photographer will be much the same.

 

[Mj224]

That is what is so nice about this forum. We hardly hear anything about gear, we just see the results. Which is what its all about........

 

[JonathanJones]

When someone switches gear, there is a good chance that a pile of quality used stuff will go up for sale. So of us can't just drop $2k on a new lens every couple months.

 

[Keitht]

I changed from full frame to crop purely for the reduction in weight and convenience. I can live with any perceived drop in quality as I can't see it myself in the work I do. I couldn't care less about the "mine's bigger than yours" mentality.

 

[SeanNeedham]

Empty vessels make the most noise.

 

[SFTphotography]

When someone switches gear, there is a good chance that a pile of quality used stuff will go up for sale. So of us can't just drop $2k on a new lens every couple months.

True - you always get these head bangers who say "never buy a new car, only buy a used one as it saves money and only fools buy brand new"

Err without these "fools" there would be no second hand cars to enjoy and the manufactuers would go bust and with that all the spare parts supplies for these "savy" peoples old bangers.

That said - I've never bought a new car but I'd love to. It comes down to money. Having more means you can buy newer and/or nicer/better stuff.

I've switched gear and I've gone brand new for everything to get the warranty (help and support if it goes wrong) and peace of mind of being the first owner of something. I couldn't afford to previously and had a mix of new and used bodies and lenses. All the new stuff was perfect and gave no trouble, some of the used stuff had minor issues that needed fixed at a camera engineers in Glasgow. All hassle.

Chances are if you like driving you are interested in cars. The engine configuration (straight six, V8 etc), rear drive, suspension set up etc and how that relates to how the car drives and feels on the road and/or track. That stuff interests folks who like driving.

Same with photography - if you like taking pictures you are interested in cameras, how they work, the features they have, and getting better ones as tech improves. Ultimately it is the pictures you take that count, but you use the camera to take them. Focus peaking, live view histogram, dynamic range, resolution, all that stuff interests most photographers as it helps them take pictures.

 

[Minor Problem]

I like to feel that the limitation in getting the quality of images that I want is me. A couple of times I have felt that I was approaching the point where my gear was starting to limit what I could achieve so I have changed system or upgraded. The last upgrade was only because my camera body was old and worn enough to start misbehaving. It's been a very long slow process building up gear to the point where there isn't anything I really want to add.

Before I went to Iceland in 2018 I sorted out my long overlooked gear insurance and when I listed everything and it's replacement cost the total scared the life out of me but it's been 12 years in the acquisition.

 

[SeanNeedham]

The last upgrade was only because my camera body was old and worn enough to start misbehaving.

Same here, Barry, most of mine only gets changed when it isn't cost effective to get it refurbished or repaired. I think if I sat down and worked it out properly I'd have spent more on consumables (like batteries, memory cards, long term storage, filters) or things like mounting hardware than I've spent on buying actual imaging equipment (including the XE2s I bought for fun) in the last 10 years.

Same with adding stuff to the kit, there's a couple of things I want to buy this year as they've been noodling round in the back of the head for a decade or more and now I've a bit more disposable time on my hands I can justify the buying or building of things.

 

[Phill104]

Currently there is nothing that floats my boat, so no upgrades in the pipeline for me. That will change if my 7D2 curls up it’s toes, and at nearly 500k actuations that may be soon, or may not be. The top dial is getting a bit intermittent, nothing bad but it skips the odd count when rapidly changing shutter speed. Just not worth the cost of repairing given the age of the shutter. I might be tempted if an R7 pops up next year though.

 

[DonS]

To bring focus back a bit (yes, intended), this was really about switching brands. They did use the example of Scott Kelby going from Nikon to Canon. That was with DSLRS, he has stayed with Canon and switched to mirrorless now.

 

[Minor Problem]

To bring focus back a bit (yes, intended), this was really about switching brands. They did use the example of Scott Kelby going from Nikon to Canon. That was with DSLRS, he has stayed with Canon and switched to mirrorless now.

I think iirc Scott Kelby was given a ton of gear to make his switch very proffitable so it may not have had anything to do with any gear limitations or desires and more about the money.

I've switched twice but only because there wasn't an upgrade path within the system I was invested in at the time. D2x to 5DII to D800.

 

[Phill104]

Thing is, a lot of youtubers know that “why I’m leaving .....,” is click bait hits guaranteed stuff. They know it will bring them some green stuff. I don’t think there are too many normal people who switch like that.

 

[DonS]

Thing is, a lot of youtubers know that “why I’m leaving .....,” is click bait hits guaranteed stuff. They know it will bring them some green stuff. I don’t think there are too many normal people who switch like that.

That is the whole point, why are people so interested in hearing why someone switched?

 

[DonS]

I think iirc Scott Kelby was given a ton of gear to make his switch very proffitable so it may not have had anything to do with any gear limitations or desires and more about the money.

I've switched twice but only because there wasn't an upgrade path within the system I was invested in at the time. D2x to 5DII to D800.

He claims he did not. He says he paid for everything himself. He has said this several times.

 

[Phill104]

That is the whole point, why are people so interested in hearing why someone switched?

‘Cos people are sheep.

 

[Minor Problem]

He claims he did not. He says he paid for everything himself. He has said this several times.

Interesting, I wonder what his reasoning was if that is the case.

 

[SFTphotography]

I've switched twice but only because there wasn't an upgrade path within the system I was invested in at the time. D2x to 5DII to D800.

I think that the camera makers want you to have a path to upgrade to - to a point.

You're seeing this with Nikon F mount, there was a path that I went from D5000 to D610 (briefly) to D800 (then D810's as I accidentally drowned a D800). Now though F mount is dead - they're no longer investing in the system and it's all the Z stuff that's being designed and marketed. Whilst you can use the F to Z adapter the Z lenses are simply better and optimized for the larger mount so in turn F mount users will upgrade to Z.

That was my main reason for leaving the system - I sold the practically all my F mount glass whilst it would still be worth a good chunk of money as I was faced with having to buy into a new system. Whilst the D810 is amazing I'd rather sell it whilst it's still relatively new, desirable and sellable than hold onto it for 5 years then get no money back for the system. I was going to skip D850 and buy the next SLR they'd make...but that looks very very unlikely.

I was faced a decision - the logical choice was a Z7ii but the cost for a 35mm system is insane - as are the lenses and you're looking at the really high end ones to get the most out of the very fine pixel pitch of that sensor.

I also really didn't want a a mirrorless small form factor camera, so I went with a very left field choice but one that's probably right for me. The 645z SLR and a choice of just two zooms, keeping the scope of gear much more modest than I had before. In 7 years I'll probably sell it for not a lot and revisit the situation again...depends how much the game moves on.

 

[Minor Problem]

I think that the camera makers want you to have a path to upgrade to - to a point.

You're seeing this with Nikon F mount, there was a path that I went from D5000 to D610 (briefly) to D800 (then D810's as I accidentally drowned a D800). Now though F mount is dead - they're no longer investing in the system and it's all the Z stuff that's being designed and marketed. Whilst you can use the F to Z adapter the Z lenses are simply better and optimized for the larger mount so in turn F mount users will upgrade to Z.

That was my main reason for leaving the system - I sold the practically all my F mount glass whilst it would still be worth a good chunk of money as I was faced with having to buy into a new system. Whilst the D810 is amazing I'd rather sell it whilst it's still relatively new, desirable and sellable than hold onto it for 5 years then get no money back for the system. I was going to skip D850 and buy the next SLR they'd make...but that looks very very unlikely.

I was faced a decision - the logical choice was a Z7ii but the cost for a 35mm system is insane - as are the lenses and you're looking at the really high end ones to get the most out of the very fine pixel pitch of that sensor.

I also really didn't want a a mirrorless small form factor camera, so I went with a very left field choice but one that's probably right for me. The 645z SLR and a choice of just two zooms, keeping the scope of gear much more modest than I had before. In 7 years I'll probably sell it for not a lot and revisit the situation again...depends how much the game moves on.

Good points, I'm sure my 850's and glass will depreciate like a stone over the next few years. I just can't imagine that I will ever need more image quality than I already have so will probably stick with it.