Where Are We Headed?
When I began to be serious about my photography hobby I jump feet first by reviewing all the You Tube videos on photography that I could find. There was one common theme for all those who had an audience of novices and hobbyists – “Get out of manual!”
The reasons were just as consistent as the advise, don’t let the camera decide your settings for the shot!
Using Program Mode gives the camera the total freedom to determine the shutter speed, aperture and ISO of every click.
It doesn’t matter what is in your viewfinder. It could be high speed sports or action shots, it could be a graduation class of students 20 students wide and 6 rows deep, or it could be a dimly lit club scene. The camera will make the decision and it will not know that there is fast action, many individuals that should all be in focus, or that the focus is on an extremely dark subject.
All I heard is take control, you should be making these decisions not the camera. So I worked hard to understand the exposure triangle, learned how to pick a shutter speed, learned about depth of field and when it was needed and when it was not, and how to determine ISO or how to set the parameters for auto ISO. Now all I shoot is manual. I don’t even use shutter or aperture priority, its manual or bust!
Now I’m concerned that we are regressing as the most important part of photography and that the camera is once again moving to the forefront.
What has caused my concern? Quite simply it is the technological advances that camera manufacturers have incorporated into new lines of mirrorless cameras.
Face detect, eye detect, animal detect, automobile detect, bird detect, etc. have reduced or eliminated the need to focus before pressing the shutter. Now the only job for a photographer is to make sure that the subject is in your viewfinder and that the focus is following the right subject.
On top of my concern with the camera setting the focus is the out of this world number of shots per second. The reality of these shots per second is that you can’t miss the perfect shot with 20 or 30 exposures per second (even 120 shots per second in jpeg format). What is really happening right now is that your shooting a video clip and cherry picking the perfect frame.
You no longer need to know baseball to take great baseball photos, you no longer need perfect timing to get the perfect basketball shot. All you need to do now is keep the shutter pressed down and the only way you miss the perfect shot is if your buffer fills before the shot is taken. Great photograph, yes; great shot by the photographer, no!
What do I shoot with? I have 3 cameras that cost in the $2,000 - $3,000 range when new. My first prosumer camera was the Nikon D500, a really great crop sensor camera and was really good for sports. Next I was looking for a full frame to partner with the D500 and went for the first generation of Nikon mirrorless and picked the Z6. It was a little disappointing, but is more than adequate when shooting almost anything by sports. It does have eye and animal detect but I only use it when taking photos at events when the subjects are usually people. Next I bought the Nikon Z FC, which was mostly on a whim. I like the camera and I will take it on shoots where I bring the Z6. I like the full frame / crop sensor option on shoots. Finally I was looking for another full frame but with larger file sizes. My choices were Z 7ii or D850. I ended up with the D850 and it is the perfect partner for the D500, especially for sports or action assignments.
Would I invest $5,500 for a Nikon D9? No never. While it has the auto focus system to die for and it has the rapid shutter that allows incredible shots per second, I couldn’t professionally allow myself to buy it. It’s like cheating! While it would be great to show a perfectly timed photo, the reality would be that the camera made the shot, not me!
Don’t let all the hoopla about the new generation of cameras affect your next camera decision. Pick the camera that you will be proud to own and even prouder to show off the photo YOU took!