Fantastic Images No Matter the Gear

[@nvrumi]

It's always fun to see what other photographers choose for their kit. It's also refreshing to find a channel that is not pushing the latest, greatest new piece of kit. ;) It made me smile to see the F2 in hand. I finally bought one early this year and sent it to my favorite technician for a check up. Everything is in spec except for the 1/2000th shutter speed. It a fine mechanical camera. You might keep you eyes open for a FM2 or FM2n as a possible replacement for the FE2. The former are mechanical cameras and not subject to loss of operation if the battery fails (or the main circuit board). I bought a X100V a year ago and I have shot it more than anything else in my inventory. However, a recent Sony upgrade (sold off the A7Sii) to the A7iii is getting a lot of action with vintage glass. Fun stuff!

[@PhotoCaptured]

@nvrumi kind words, and enjoy the agreement - thank you. Nothing against new, I just tend to like things that are readily accessible and already tested by others. Regarding the FM2 series, I have considered acquiring one or two if I stumble across them. Really my only hesitation is being able to put hands on it when I have the means to actually get it, or find an excellent deal online from a reputable source. Currently my top 3 well used and with me cameras are the phone (S24 Ultra), my X100F and the F2 with either the 28mm or 50mm mounted 👌 They are each very reasonable to keep close at hand, and I know that I can get the shot I want to keep every time! The gear and tools I use tend to have memories attached to them; so for me it's more than just a piece of kit to use for a time and then move on from. Even once I've burned a camera into the ground using it for years, I tend to hang onto them and have them on the shelf. Picking up the thing is like touching a portal into memories I recorded while using that particular camera.

[@nvrumi]

@@PhotoCaptured You're welcome, my friend. You earned the compliment. I also have nothing against new. Last year I finally upgraded my core camera, from a Fuji X-T1 to the X-T5. That was a huge change. But another content creator recently posted an observation that caught my attention -- that manufacturers use YT content creators as unofficial marketing agents. They provide samples to said CCs before release date and a bunch of reviews hit YT on release date. While there is nothing inherently wrong with this, I find it a subtle social engineering experiment and being aware has made me think a lot more about the kit I use and what I want from my kit. As a result, I've begun the process of reducing my kit and replacing certain elements with upgrades that contribute toward my photographic goal, which is simply telling a story. But, I digress... I love that your kit is sentimental as well as effective. That is something I had not really thought much about. I kinda wish I had dad's old Argus C3 brick. I could probably make it work now, after all these years of practice. I also sometimes make images with my iPhone 13. If it is the camera at hand... An app call MPro makes very nice black and white images stored as TIFs. The included "filters" actually contribute to contrast control. The Sony A7iii is getting carried a lot at the moment. I'm testing a lot of my vintage glass as I aim to reduce my material load. Yesterday I had a Nikkor 85mm f/1.8 affixed to the camera for some initial test shots. Once I get a sense for how that lens handles, I plan to compare to the other 85's in my collection and then will sell all but the best. I also somehow wound up with a battery of 70/80-200/210mm zooms in my collection with a variety of f/numbers. (I traded for a number of them some years ago.) That is a very useful zoom range but vintage zooms can be less than stellar performers. I ran an informal carry test with three of them a couple of weeks ago and decided that at least two of them would benefit from a hood. We'll see how the next round of tests turn out. These aren't scientific tests. Those can be looked up on the DXOmark site or from the old magazine tests. But my approach is to figure out what works for my use case and write about that. (On my website...) Anyway, I can go on. I would comment that your mention of the physical connection leading to an emotional connection is poignant. Again, well done and I appreciate your thoughts and comments. You've earned my subscription.

[@the_hopper]

Not the shooting discipline I expected to find on your channel-but successfully pressing the shutter demands breath control akin to squeezing a trigger. There’s a much lower recoil impulse so don’t blame your blurry shots on flinching! Continued success in your creative journey.

[@PhotoCaptured]

@the_hopper I like to think I'm relatively well rounded, and enjoy a wide variety of skills, but I have my favorites for sure! Really enjoyed your word-play, and contrast comparison 👌

[@nvrumi]

I learned long ago (decades) to either use a tripod of really dig in my elbows into my core when shooting a camera in challenging conditions. Modern technology offers optical or in-body stabilization that can get three or more stops of usable shutter speed that I cannot achieve with non-stabilized systems. But I learned I could get reliable shots at least half the time with a standard 50mm lens at a shutter speed of 1/30 or 1/15 second if I was careful with elbow bracing and breath control. ;) Of course, wide angle lenses are more forgiving and telephotos more challenging. ;) Well said!