johnvanr
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 p.8 #3 · Getting the photo vs the experience of getting the photo | |
DWOfPaul wrote:
I want to thank everyone who has shared insightful comments in this discussion. When I posted this, I figured it would only get a few replies. When I saw the discussion take off, I decided to stay out of it and let it naturally flow.
Persoanlly, in the last few years, especially since getting my Z8 and 24-120mm f4, I have found myself drifting more and more towards getting the photo. Being able to work so quickly and smoothly, while maintaining a high level of IQ has definitely gained me a larger variety of photos and less time, and opened up the opportunities to get photos I would not have gotten years ago. I even added the 28-400mm, which has served a nice role in my kit, a lens I would have never thought of getting 10 years ago.
The shift really hit me when contemplating the Zeiss 35mm f1.4 and Voigtlander 28mm f2 APO. Both of these lenses fill gaps I have wanted to fill for years. I wanted a Voigtlander 28mm f2 APO since I got the 35mm f2 APO in 2021. I have wanted to see Zeiss get fully into mirrorless for years. After years of no new photo lenses, I even wondered if they had abandoned the photography market. Now we have the Zeiss ML that hits basically all the marks. Zeiss rendering, all metal build like the ZF2 lenses, and Otus level IQ in a smaller and lighter package. There is nothing wrong with either lens. They both hit the marks I was looking for. But now I am wondering if I would use either lens enough to justify adding them to my kit, given how much my approach has changed.
Part of me definitely misses using my MF prime lenses more often. There is something about that slower and more mechanical version of photography that I do still enjoy. I know spending years using MF primes helped me to get better at photography. With how good modern optics and modern AF accuracy have gotten though, I feel like some of the advantages of using MF primes have started to fade away. I lose a lot fewer photos today due to AF misses than I did 10+ years ago. The IQ between primes and zooms also closes by the year. We now have f2 zooms that probably have better IQ than any prime from 20 years ago. One of the last main technical advantages I see left to MF lenses is compact size, but even that is starting to slip.
Then, while reading people's opinions on a few newish lenses, I felt like I was seeing the same divide in comments I was feeling in myself. For example, in how many people were complaining that Zeiss did not add AF to the ML series, given how good mirrorless AF has gotten.
So I decided to "generlize" this feeling and posted this topic to see if others felt similar. I think it's safe to say from the replies that many of us have a pull between technically better gear and gear / experinces that inspires us to go out and take photos. Like many things in life, there is no clear answer to which gear is which. Person A may consider 30fps only technical perfection, while person B might find it an inspiration to get action photos never dreamed possible before. My gut is that this type of question is only going to get more prevalent as our gear gets better. Thanks again for your opinions!...Show more →
Well, that wasn’t initially what I took from your question, but I’m there with you.
When I was still writing my blog, Zeiss let me use their then-new Otus lenses to review them. I liked their output, but they were so large, I never felt inclined to buy any of them. Then years later, frustrated with ever-larger mirrorless glass, I got into Leica M and thus MF. But I found that I prefer accurate focus over the manual experience and higher chance of missing focus. So, I mostly used and still use zone focusing with my manual lenses, unless I really have the time and patience.
Lured by the mechanics of older cameras, I also got some older film cameras. But I’m not actually using them much.
Still, if all lines up right, shooting MF or with older cameras can be fun for me. I think that choice really comes down to your own preferences and comfort with having some gear you don’t use much, but still like once in a while.
I’m in Valencia at the moment and the city’s Fallas festival is ramping up. At its height next week, I know I’ll shoot with my fastest gear because that will allow me to get the best images I can get. And I also know I really like shooting like that,
But a few days after, I will drive to the empty parts of Spain and I’m pretty sure my old Bronica will make that trip, while the faster cameras stay home.
That’s about gear, though. Not looking at gear and answering the question I thought you asked, I still focus more on the experience of shooting (with whatever gear) more than on the end result, though I wish I liked the editing and post-processing more so I’d do more with my initial catch.
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