[DerAlte]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Adams was a darkroom master. And he knew his environment inside out, so could predict when he might get spectacular lighting situations - and where. ...

Q.E.D.: That is skill and knowledge, rather than expecting technology to substitute.

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

... He was also aware that in the future digital technology could print his original negatives in spectacular ways. Given his attention to detail towards all aspects of his work, I doubt he would not use the best and the greatest, ...

He was bed ridden since Sep 1983, and passed away in April 1984. He was no soothsayer, Arthur C Clarke or Issac Asimov to make such predictions. Digital imaging and printing technology was in it's foetal state in late 70's and early 80's (and I am not even talking of standards-based technology). Curved-bed scanners appeared in the market in 1985-86, and photo-quality digital printers came much later.

No, Ansel Adams was not aware of that in his last years - that was not the age of Internet and Google search. He used Hasselblad the most, but more than any camera or technology, he knew how to exploit the available tech rather than expecting tech to do it for him without his involvement.

[nilanjanray]

Originally Posted by DerAlte

Q.E.D.: That is skill and knowledge, rather than expecting technology to substitute.

Originally Posted by DerAlte

expecting tech to do it for him without his involvement

Why do you have an 'either or' approach?

'Talent/expertise + old gear'? vs 'little expertise + latest gear'? What happens when talent/expertise combines with modern gear?

As the saying goes in combat sports, a good heavyweight will almost always beat a good middleweight. Same with 2 folks - who have equivalent levels skills/expertise - but use gear that is a few generations apart. And especially for situations where better sensor capabilities, AF and FPS matter.

[DerAlte]

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Why do you have an 'either or' approach? ...

Sir, may I suggest you read properly what I wrote? I think I have consistently maintained one approach - that tech cannot substitute skill / talent / knowledge.

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

... 'Talent/expertise + old gear'? vs 'little expertise + latest gear'? What happens when talent/expertise combines with modern gear? ...

Hmmm... Well, this certainly comes with age and experience: Talent / expertise always exploits what is available to the max. Absence of talent / expertise makes one search for "latest gear"!

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

... As the saying goes in combat sports, a good heavyweight will almost always beat a good middleweight. Same with 2 folks - who have equivalent levels skills/expertise - but use gear that is a few generations apart. And especially for situations where better sensor capabilities, AF and FPS matter.

There are some pics in the "non-auto image" thread, taken with D800 and the best of lenses. I am sure you will spot them, and rethink your expression above.

[Aroy]

Tech can never replace talent, but tech can go a long way in nurturing and expanding talent faster.

You can always produce excellent results with small and/or low tech cameras if you know what you are doing. There are many instances where a high tech camera is not needed and at times cumbersome. For example, I have taken thousands of shots with Cell phone cameras, and they served the purpose - shots of road condition in broad day light. As they had to go in a report, even 5MP was an over kill. It did the job and discretely. A DSLR would have been an over kill.

Where tech scores is in better technical ability. With my 24MP sensor, and good low light capability, I can think of taking bird shots in low light with smaller and slower lenses - 50mm to 100mm F4 and above. Even if the bird takes up 1/5 the width of the sensor it will be 1200 pixels wide, a thing not really feasible with lower resolution lower ISO cameras.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by DerAlte

Absence of talent / expertise makes one search for "latest gear"!

So why did Ansel Adams upgraded to better technology as it became available.... was it due to lack of talent?

Or did newer technology enabled him to take pictures he could not take with previous generation...


In his words:

. I guess we all did the best as we could. If we had very heavy cameras we simply didn't go so far or take so many pictures.

[DerAlte]

Originally Posted by Aroy

Tech can never replace talent, but tech can go a long way in nurturing and expanding talent faster. ...

Very aptly put!

Originally Posted by Aroy

... Where tech scores is in better technical ability. ...

Do you mean by overriding / replacing the person? Or the combination of 'suggestion to the person' and 'person overriding the suggestion if required'? Or neither? Otherwise that would mean I can just get a D800 and become the next NG photographer, despite having no skill other than looking through the eyepiece and clicking the shutter button, no?

Originally Posted by NetfreakBombay

So why did Ansel Adams upgraded to better technology as it became available.... was it due to lack of talent? ...

Sarcasm doesn't prove a point! I simply read the quote from Ansel Adams - in simple English first. Maybe you should try the same?

It is very easy to, to show 'understanding', abstract words and expressions beyond recognition. He didn't 'upgrade technology' - he changed to lighter cameras using the same technology: films, lightproof bodies, fixed focus lenses. If changing to cameras with lighter bodies is changing 'technology' for you, I wonder at your understanding of the word 'technology'.

And with that understanding maybe I can win the National marathon (lower target than Olympics) just by wearing Nike or Adidas running shoes? They also come up with 'significantly improved technology' year after year!

[Dieseldunk]

Are you referring to d5300 by any chance? You will get a d5300 for that price from Nikon Showroom.

I purchased my d5200 with 18-55mm lens from Flipkart for 34,000/- INR. But there has been a lot of debate on the warranty part when purchased from these online sites.

My bad yes it is d5300. Only problem in online purchase is the lack to get the touch and feel of features. Also return and exchange of bad pieces is headache invited.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by DerAlte

He didn't 'upgrade technology' - he changed to lighter cameras using the same technology

Going from plate cameras to Hasselblad to Polaroid, is that an upgrade or not ?

Originally Posted by DerAlte

And with that understanding maybe I can win the National marathon (lower target than Olympics) just by wearing Nike or Adidas running shoes? They also come up with 'significantly improved technology' year after year!

You certainly can, instead of shoes buy a exoskeleton...

http://www.engadget.com/2014/05/26/p...een-world-cup/

Originally Posted by DerAlte

I wonder at your understanding of the word 'technology'.

Thanks for the objective assessment

[Samurai]

Regarding importance of gear, let me quote something I wrote a while back:

Originally Posted by Samurai

I judge photographs based on 3 aspects.

1) Composition: How well have you composed the shot? I don't like to go into rules of composition, you can find them aplenty in the web. And you don't always have to follow it, if you know how to break it. This is not an exact science, but art. You start off with following the rules, apply it correctly, then dare to break it. That's the journey.

2) Technical Merit: This is about making the camera do exactly what you want. After you composed the shot, did you focus correctly on the intended object, was there a shake, did you get the right DOF for your shot, did you get the intended exposure for your shot, did you use the right type of lens, etc.

3) Oomph Factor: This is something hard to explain and hard to understand. This goes beyond composition and technical merit, often not in your control. If you are shooting a landscape, you can expect the scene to provide it. If you are shooting a portrait, the expression of the person can provide it. If you are shooting an object, a quirk in the object can provide it. For example, the tilt and cobwebs on the lamp gave the ooomph factor in nilanjanray's pic. Think about a child's pic, if the kid was giving a blank look, there is no oomph, but if the kid was showing an emotion, it has oomph. If the pic gets a reaction out of you, it has oomph. If you just gloss over it without a feeling, it doesn't.

I usually don't bother uploading a pic on this thread unless it has all three.

Having the right gear is extremely important for the technical merit and somewhat important for composition. It has no effect on oomph factor.

[Karthik1100]

Finally got my Nikon 3300D with Kit lens from Foto Circle @ Rs.33395.

Thanks to Aroy's posts for this decision.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by Dieseldunk

My bad yes it is d5300. Only problem in online purchase is the lack to get the touch and feel of features. Also return and exchange of bad pieces is headache invited.

I would recommend that you either buy it from local shop or wait for Flipkart's own seller (WS Retail) to list it. I purchased it from WS Retail for 45k.

52k seems to be on a higher side, you can negotiate it down to 45 - 48k.

[JASMEET MATTOO]

Hi friends..i have been planning to buy a DSLR for quite some time now. I was planning to go for a NIKON D5200 and the budget is about 40k. But looking at the earlier threads I understand that NIKON D5300 might be available around 45 - 48k.

Just wanted to understand that whether it is worth the stretch cos i am really not able to make a lot of difference from the comparison in the specifications like GPS, WIFI.
I am not a very experienced person in this. Have been using a Nikon L320 for the past 4 years and it is giving me decent outputs. Am buying DSLR for the first time.

Wanted suggestions from you all on this. Please excuse my ignorance on the topic.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by JASMEET MATTOO

I was planning to go for a NIKON D5200 and the budget is about 40k. But looking at the earlier threads I understand that NIKON D5300 might be available around 45 - 48k.

Just wanted to understand that whether it is worth the stretch..

Noticed that 5200 is now available for 37k on Flipkat by "WS Retail".

I would recommend 5200, but this is subjective.

I have 5300, these are the benefits of 5300 over 5200

1. Higher ISO + better image quality since it removed one filter from sensor.
2. WiFi (you can take pictures from cell phone, it acts as a viewfinder for DSLR)
3. GPS

I do not find WiFi that useful and GPS is mostly used for travel/vacation photos (E.g. you can quickly sort all photos taken in Coorg / Delhi) .

[JASMEET MATTOO]

Originally Posted by NetfreakBombay

Noticed that 5200 is now available for 37k on Flipkat by "WS Retail".

I would recommend 5200, but this is subjective.

I have 5300, these are the benefits of 5300 over 5200

1. Higher ISO + better image quality since it removed one filter from sensor.
2. WiFi (you can take pictures from cell phone, it acts as a viewfinder for DSLR)
3. GPS

I do not find WiFi that useful and GPS is mostly used for travel/vacation photos (E.g. you can quickly sort all photos taken in Coorg / Delhi) .

Thanks so much for your inputs. Really appreciate it

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by JASMEET MATTOO

Hi friends..i have been planning to buy a DSLR for quite some time now. I was planning to go for a NIKON D5200 and the budget is about 40k. But looking at the earlier threads I understand that NIKON D5300 might be available around 45 - 48k.

Just wanted to understand that whether it is worth the stretch cos i am really not able to make a lot of difference from the comparison in the specifications like GPS, WIFI.
I am not a very experienced person in this. Have been using a Nikon L320 for the past 4 years and it is giving me decent outputs. Am buying DSLR for the first time.

Wanted suggestions from you all on this. Please excuse my ignorance on the topic.

Just type D3300 vs D5300 in Google and you will get links to comparisons. Go through the comparisons in a few sites. If you feel that you must have the features the D5300 offers over D3300 then get D5300.

If the differences really do not matter to you, get the D3300 as your first DSLR. Once you get familiar with the DSLR and feel that you want some of the features offered by more expensive models, you can sell off your D3300 and upgrade. The reason I am suggesting the D3300 is that for those who are starting with DSLR, D3300 offers the same image quality as the more expensive bodies, it only lacks a lot of frills. I just checked and D3300 with 18-55 kit lense is going for less than 32K, a real steal.
http://www.snapdeal.com/product/niko...with/452492044