Hobby - Photography: Only for those with $$$?

[reuters]

of course it will be an advantage if you have $$ to spend on better equipment, but this does not mean that using a cheap camera or lenses will not be able to take good pictures.. so i guess photography fundamentals and creativity still plays a part..

photography is about consistent learning and practising.. study how other people take photos and practise on your own.. i think that's the most important..

of course it's based on your own budget, if you can afford the expensive equipment, then you can go for it.. if not, just make do with what you have..

 

[agentxq49]

Ya ur going beyond cure, can see that you are quite heavily poisoned.

:bsmilie::bsmilie::bsmilie:
Well, at least i'm not gonna be spending anymore on my set for quite sometime......

i hope.

 

[lenrek]

So after a long time what happens next? He upgraded right. The problem with photography as a hobby is like car lovers. It might seems cheap at start for a kit and a body with a dry cabinet. But after long usage, you find limitation, you find the feel to get better equipment, longer reach or a external flash or a prime low-stop lens and most of the time you are so poison and GAS that you can even dream of how it is like to have that equipment in your hand. Someday you have the spare cash to get the equipment, then the next thing you realised is that equipment is on your hand heading home. Face the fact pls, why is canon marketing on the lens more expensive and body cheaper so sucessful. Cause if you are a human, you will commit the sin call GREED!!!

What makes you think they really upgrade? You can read people minds? Or, you simply think everyone has same mindset like you?

I have friends who only take normal landscape, that is their hobby. They have no interest for other crazy stuff like we have. An Olympus E450 comes 2 lenses and is cost 800+- SGD!

Edit: I even have friend who use higher end compact camera (something like Sony H series), and she being doing for many years.

 

[wootsk]

What makes you think they really upgrade? You can read people minds? Or, you simply think everyone has same mindset like you?

I have friends who only take normal landscape, that is their hobby. They have no interest for other crazy stuff like we have. An Olympus E450 comes 2 lenses and is cost 800+- SGD!

Edit: I even have friend who use higher end compact camera (something like Sony H series), and she being doing for many years.

Don't say about your friends, what about you? How much percentage of your friends actually is in the list of spending lesser than 1k for a photography hobby? Are you really sure that those friends you mentioned are taking photography as a hobby or just want to take better photos with a better equipment. Certain people do not consider photography as a hobby even though they like to shoot photos of what happens around them like when they goes travel or just a special event of their friend. Imagine you have a stamp hobby which you only collect one type of stamp, how does that feels like? :think:

 

[smile_gerard]

Its a hobby that don't need much $$$ to begin with. We then slowly build from there over the years. I for example, started off photography using school equipment. Then to slowly getting a 2nd hand D70 years back. With a borrowed 35 - 80 kit lens from my cousin. After that slowly i get my parts one by one. Its not that expensive if you really research for the equipment, getting 2nd hand stuff. You can really save a lot. Just because a new model comes out, doesn't mean we have to upgrade. If someone were to want to try out photography as a hobby, i would tell him/her to look for a 2nd hand D70 with its kit lens. Its a really good camera for the price. Might only come up to $500 - 600. Then get a nissin flash or something. You'll be able to take decent photos for under $900. Photography can be expensive, it can also be of a reasonable price. It all depends on the user.

 

[wootsk]

You may start off cheap.
I started off with a nikon F4 second hand, but slowly, stuff like flims, cleaner, maintainance, tripod kick in. It might still see resonable and I thought I can just live with a normal walkabout lens with a camera and tripod. But when I realised there are stuff like flash which helps in low light shooting, I just scape and dig (I ate my homemade butter bread for every canteen break for 2 mths and work part time for school holiday) for days for 1. Now when I count how much I spent on photography till now, I just cannot continue counting halfway through... It feels so painful (For your info, I am using digital now and it's only been 7 year I am into photography)

 

[smile_gerard]

Its really the same for every other hobby
Lets say if someone's hobby was cycling, he could spend easily 1k on a bike. Not to mention all the other stuff that comes with it.
Or someone who loves doing up his computer, A high end graphic card is already $300+ easily with cpu's going at like $500. They would just keep upgrading and changing. Every 2 years a new set of parts.
Collecting toys like gundams, they will never settle for a low grade model. A master grade model is about $80 the last i remembered. So if the person has 10 models that's $800. Then add the airbrush kit, paint, etc.
The list will go on and on. We're bound to spend no matter what hobby we have. And in time, it just adds on and on.
Well look on the bright side, we're not women who collect LV bags, shoes and stuff haha....

 

[wootsk]

Ya, that is precisely what I mean. But alot of people who say no just do not understand this concept.

 

[erickho1979]

$$$ is not really a big issue, time is what i think is the issue. Seem that there aren't enough time to shoot. My 5 cent worth of comment.

 

[Simon_84]

i need to sell off one of my compacts before i can afford a LX3...this is definitely not a cheap hobby...

 

[La Fontaine]

Well, for those who drive, just maintaining the car cost you readily 1.5k a month. So, photo is relatively cheap.

And then, if you go for lenses, they have resale value. Just dun change camera that often la.

And we know that many newbies still do not understand that it is your skills that counts more than your gear. Just a basic kit lens and an entry level cam could give you stunning results. I am continuously amazing with the kind of results I get with my 18-70 kit lens on my D40.

 

[Simon_84]

i'll used the 18-70mm on my d40 before...kinda find that at 18mm wide, results is a bit soft compared to the 18-55mm ED-II.
since then i have switch to 18-55m vr and have not look back since.
the d60 kit lens really is a gem!

 

[smile_gerard]

I loved that 18 - 70 but i sold it and got a tamron 17 - 50. Never looked back ever since haha... If you have a d40, why do you want an lx3?

 

[Simon_84]

I loved that 18 - 70 but i sold it and got a tamron 17 - 50. Never looked back ever since haha... If you have a d40, why do you want an lx3?

my fz5 is a bit big in size as a compact...something smaller would be better.

 

[lightning]

How to differentiate casual shooter and hobbyist? To me a casual shooter is someone who shoot when the chance comes their way. While a hobbyist will wake up 4am in the morning travel 20km to a remote location to shoot sun rise and skip meals just to get the shots that you want in your mind.

So how many people here are casual shooter and how many are hobbyist?

 

[shadowpartner]

I beg to differ.

Anybody can venture into photography.Even with just a cellphone camera,it's still photography.

 

[lightning]

I beg to differ.

Anybody can venture into photography.Even with just a cellphone camera,it's still photography.

:think: so everyone can be a movie director as long as he/she has a cell phone with video function?

 

[jaRv1s]

I beg to differ.

Anybody can venture into photography.Even with just a cellphone camera,it's still photography.

i agree on this... as a hobbyist... even handphone cam can take good pictures in the right hand... e.g. Chase Jarvis did showed his work with his iphone camera... it's good though IQ not comparable to those he did with his DSLR...

lightning: we're talking about hobbyist... not professional photographer that earn and live with photographs... so definitely, a handphone with video function would not make you a director... but i would like to see any director creative enough to use a camera phone to make a whole movie... ;p

 

[wootsk]

Ya I agree too, anyone can join photography even if he starts with a normal handphone camera. But once he is interested in it and continues as a hobby, how long can a handphone camera satisfy him?

 

[smile_gerard]

my fz5 is a bit big in size as a compact...something smaller would be better.

How about the F200EXR? Smaller and cheaper then an LX3