In 1969 I bought my first SLR, a Nikon FTn. I still have it and use it. Not as much as I used to, but, it is a great camera. Pro construction all the way or it wouldn't have lasted this long. If you can afford Pro equipment, buy it.
Most can't afford Pro equipment, or, if they can, they will never fully utilize its intricacies.
A few years ago I purchased a Nikon D70s. Its inner workings are absolutely fantastic and the photos it takes are professional grade; if set correctly the camera will do more than you can imagine.
What I am trying to say here is that is is not the camera, it is the lens and education, self-taught or formal, that makes the photograph. Important to remember is that the camera is only a light tight box; not the end all of great photography.
9 years ago I sold my old TLR and bought a Mamiya RB67 Pro SD. I mention this as the RB is fully mechanical with no meter and no electronics. Gears, levers and eccentrics. It is still the best camera, in my opinion, that has ever been made. It's a tank, very heavy. the lenses from the Seiko C lenses to the K/L lenses are wonderful. However, you have to know what you are doing with this camera or it may as well be a door stop. It is not a thinking camera. The photographer has to do the thinking.
My point is: it is the lens, not the camera. It is the photographer, not the camera or lens. It is the stuff learned and stored upstairs that will allow one to create a great photo. All the computer and camera technology in existence, now and in the future, will not make a great photo. Only the photographers mind, learning and experience will create a great photo.
So many times people think that a newer camera is going to make a great difference and they are forever disappointed. Digitals set on full auto give them their best chance. When the light changes to extreme values of shadow and highlights, the camera cannot follow. Understanding metering and light values is the only way to expose a properly rendered photo.
It is important to realize that one has to educate oneself before any camera or lens will do what they want it to do. Just buying the newest digital is confining oneself to old limitations.
Most can't afford Pro equipment, or, if they can, they will never fully utilize its intricacies.
A few years ago I purchased a Nikon D70s. Its inner workings are absolutely fantastic and the photos it takes are professional grade; if set correctly the camera will do more than you can imagine.
What I am trying to say here is that is is not the camera, it is the lens and education, self-taught or formal, that makes the photograph. Important to remember is that the camera is only a light tight box; not the end all of great photography.
9 years ago I sold my old TLR and bought a Mamiya RB67 Pro SD. I mention this as the RB is fully mechanical with no meter and no electronics. Gears, levers and eccentrics. It is still the best camera, in my opinion, that has ever been made. It's a tank, very heavy. the lenses from the Seiko C lenses to the K/L lenses are wonderful. However, you have to know what you are doing with this camera or it may as well be a door stop. It is not a thinking camera. The photographer has to do the thinking.
My point is: it is the lens, not the camera. It is the photographer, not the camera or lens. It is the stuff learned and stored upstairs that will allow one to create a great photo. All the computer and camera technology in existence, now and in the future, will not make a great photo. Only the photographers mind, learning and experience will create a great photo.
So many times people think that a newer camera is going to make a great difference and they are forever disappointed. Digitals set on full auto give them their best chance. When the light changes to extreme values of shadow and highlights, the camera cannot follow. Understanding metering and light values is the only way to expose a properly rendered photo.
It is important to realize that one has to educate oneself before any camera or lens will do what they want it to do. Just buying the newest digital is confining oneself to old limitations.
