Cadiz City, Negros Occidental

Story Over Gear

I’ve been to threads and forums recently and all I read are just about latest gear, which is better, which is faster, which is prettier, which is more expensive, coolest photoshop actions and so on and on and on and on… no more photography talk. Errr…

So, it’s no surprise that it saddens me when somebody looks at an image that I took and ask me, “What lens did you use? What was your setting? What camera are you using? Why not Nikon? Why not Canon? Why not Pentax? (hey! I’m a Pentaxian!) Don’t get me wrong, but most of the time I’d rather wish someone would ask “what happened to him/her?” or “who the hell is this person, why is he like that and that and that…”.   Then I start telling the story of my photograph.

Perhaps it’s because I still consider that photography isn’t really just about images, about aperture and shutter speed, ISO, noise reduction, about which brand and what model is better to name a few.  But rather it is all about story telling, about emotions, about your personal struggle to capture that lasting moment which will keep viewers glued to the image with thoughts running in their heads asking questions, getting answers and understanding the story of a photograph. 

In this rapid development of photography and technology, I assume every photographer already understand that technicalities should come naturally; it should react the very moment you react to a certain scene.  Getting yourself locked down to technicalities such as you cannot shoot because you only have your 21mm prime or because your lens aperture is not F1.2, loses your chance of nailing down that magical moment taking place right in front of your eyes.  So I’d rather get myself familiar with my old gear and how it performs and for the moment, set aside latest techs and concentrate on improving my story telling.  Of course, I’d be lying if I say I don’t need a new gear! Oh well, you get what I mean.