My friend made fun of my Pentax equipment today...

Pentaxperson · 04-05-2009, 08:20 PM

Well here it is..

I have a good friend of mine who shoots Nikon. He uses a D300, and is dying for a D700 or D3.

He always calls my Pentax' equipment PenCraps, so today I had the need to have a sit down with him...kinda...heheh...

I had to explain to him that my equipment are my tools to convey an image or artistic rendering of what my mind or eyes see.

I said think of your camera as a musical instrument.....except you are not reading a sheet of music . You are improvising the entire time, unless you just like copying people's work. Some composers make music most people love and can easily listen too....and some make music that is thought to be poor or not that great as in the case with the composer "Sibelius" most thought he was a hack composer in his time, but his music is beautiful. EXAMPLE : YouTube - (1/2) David Oistrakh - Sibelius Violin Concerto (1st mvt.) I just am trying to make him have a better understanding of photography. Bascially...do it for yourself and not trying to compare your pics with other "pro" guys....just do it for the enjoyment and show em off...if people like it or don't, who cares.

I've seen people with P&S cameras do some amazing stuff and it doesn't matter what you use, just that you USE.

I've been using Pentax since I was 13 (ZX-M) and I am now 28. I tried to make him understand the quality in my M42 SMC Taky's, and he just saw old heavy glass. I tried to make him understand the simplicity and beauty of a spotmatic and it's meter...and he laughed... I tried to show him that taking pictures with a K10d, K20d, *ist DS2 is about PURE PHOTOGRAPHY, and about TAKING PICTURES. For some reason he is always messing with settings on his D300 to get a picture.. I just rotate dials. (I'm sure he can too, but he likes looking at his camera more than looking through it )

His reply was... PenCraps....

So I asked why do you want a D700 or D3? If you are not satisfied with your work from your D300, WHAT IN THE HELL MAKES YOU THINK A D700 / D3 IS GOING TO FIX THAT?

Then he asked why do I have so much Pentax, and not just the 6mp *istDS2...I said cause I love Pentax and I collect this stuff.....

But in the end...to each his own.

He is about to charge a D700.....great camera I'm sure.. but poor lost photog.

graphicgr8s · 04-05-2009, 08:40 PM

Some get it. Some just buy equipment. I want the K20D. I don't need it my K10 takes excellent pictures. Sometimes it takes excellent pictures of crap though. Actually that may be the eyeball looking throught the viewfinder. I hate my keyboard. It can't spell worth a lick.

**monochrome** · 04-05-2009, 08:41 PM

Originally posted by Pentaxperson

Then he asked why do I have so much Pentax, and not just the 6mp *istDS2...I said cause I love Pentax and I collect this stuff.....

But in the end...to each his own.

My friend who shoots Nikon is pleased that my photos are improving and NEVER criticizes my choice of gear.

Of course, I need to know a bit about Nikon so I can chimp a new lens or body he has every now and then, but that's what friends do, right?

larryinlc · 04-05-2009, 08:51 PM

I have a good friend from Germany who was very proud of his new Canon. He then held and played with my Samsung GX-10...His jaw dropped and I swear I could see a tear in his eye.

Larry

Peter Zack · 04-05-2009, 09:11 PM

I never respond or worry about that ever. It happens all the time to the users of the smaller brands (Sony/Minolta, Olympus, Sigma etc). I moved to a new city 2 years ago and joined the local photo club. Someone there commented on my (K110) A-Shitty-Pentax (AKA Asahi Pentax). Several thought it was funny. I said nothing being the only Pentax shooter there.

So 6 months later they have a 2 week, 8 category, juried exhibit at the Arts Guild with 400 shots displayed. The photos were hung anonymously so the judges wouldn't know who's shots they looked at. Couple hundred visitors per day and the 3 person jury (University profs from the Arts dept) award the, A-Shitty-Pentax shooter 2 first place, 2 seconds a 3rd and best in show.

Some shitty Pentax.

The ONLY thing that matters is you enjoy your work. It's been said a million times but the gear doesn't matter.

Sean Nelson · 04-05-2009, 09:17 PM

Originally posted by Pentaxperson

His reply was... PenCraps....

Perhaps you should start calling his camera "Nice con", as in he was "nicely conned" to believe in the superiority of one brand over another.

octavmandru · 04-05-2009, 09:24 PM

Originally posted by Peter Zack

The ONLY thing that matters is you enjoy your work. It's been said a million times but the gear doesn't matter.

I'm with you, bro.
I'd like a K20, though.

(just 'cause I'm a gearhead)

legacyb4 · 04-05-2009, 09:25 PM

I was at the Woodland Zoo in Seattle yesterday and there were droves of Canikonites with their bags of gear. My pro buddy was packing his Canon 1DS and his 70-200mm + 300mm which drew jealous looks from a lot of the Canon folks with the Rebels and the lower end prosumer models. On their side of the fence, there's definitely a lot of lens/gear envy going on without a doubt.

I think it's just a natural tendency for folks who have put down big bucks on gear to want to justify their purchases. Luckily for my friend, he's an ex-auto sports photographer and can justify having spent the amount of money he did on his gear (if you've ever head the shutter on a 1DS-series camera, it's a mighty impressive sound!).

OregonJim · 04-05-2009, 09:54 PM

Originally posted by graphicgr8s

Some get it. Some just buy equipment..

Yup. It was the same in the "old days" - guys with too much money buying Nikon F3's with a dozen lenses. Then all they ever produce is blurry 4x6 snapshots.

Sad.

But hey, look at it this way - at least they're helping to fund product development for the rest of us...

SteveM · 04-05-2009, 10:12 PM

I like that I own something special. I also like that there is history behind Pentax.....and that some people get it. Not everyone started photography 4 years ago. Sorry to hear about your friend.....my friends are the "canikin" crowd, but they don't feel they have to pick sides....

Nesster · 04-06-2009, 06:30 AM

Originally posted by Pentaxperson

Some composers make music most people love and can easily listen too....and some make music that is thought to be poor or not that great as in the case with the composer "Sibelius" most thought he was a hack composer in his time, but his music is beautiful. EXAMPLE : YouTube - (1/2) David Oistrakh - Sibelius Violin Concerto (1st mvt.) I just am trying to make him have a better understanding of photography. Bascially...do it for yourself and not trying to compare your pics with other "pro" guys....just do it for the enjoyment and show em off...if people like it or don't, who cares.

Thank you for bringing up the Sibelius Violin Concerto. It is one of the most technically difficult concertos for violin; yet the best violinists (apart from Oistrakh try Heifetz... YouTube - Heifetz plays Sibelius violin concerto 1st movt part 1(1935) ) make it... pyrotechnical and communicative at the same time.

Now, they of course use the best violins available. That's a connection to cameras, yes? But using the best violin doesn't make the performance, rather, it permits the desired tone.

Heifetz plays like a guitar god. In old blues, Robert Johnson plays like that. Some pianists do too. Their technique and intent transcends and dwarfs the instrument; rather than playing the instrument, their music pulls the instrument along, resonating, singing, in service to something greater. The violin is still a violin, and a guitar still a guitar, but they are somehow transformed into energy vibrations and playthings of the maestro.

The best photographers get their gear to sing, sometimes, like that. The camera isn't just a means, a tool, any longer, it is a servant to the vision.

The best cameras have the technical creds, but they also know when to get out of the way, to submit to vision.

It is less about Nikon or Pentax, as both brands historically have aimed at the tech cred but also photography. It is more about marketing and the wish to have instant ability, the audience response baked into us by decades of advertising and mass entertainment.

So yeah, it ain't the meat, it's the motion...

Mike Cash · 04-06-2009, 06:30 AM

Originally posted by legacyb4

I was at the Woodland Zoo in Seattle yesterday and there were droves of Canikonites with their bags of gear. My pro buddy was packing his Canon 1DS and his 70-200mm + 300mm which drew jealous looks from a lot of the Canon folks with the Rebels and the lower end prosumer models. On their side of the fence, there's definitely a lot of lens/gear envy going on without a doubt.

If I'm going to be some place where there's a lot of that going on, I typically will leave the K20D out of the mix and go in with something just as different from everyone else as I can....TLR, rangefinger, old folder, old film body Pentax, etc.

I'm not the least bit ashamed or embarrassed to be seen there with a K20D...but I just hate to be doing what everybody else is doing.

Nesster · 04-06-2009, 06:34 AM

LOL - Mike - this reminds me of when we bought the Bessa I - my daughter and I - and headed over to the Paterson Falls to try it out. A guy with truly impressive digital equipment was there, but had to do a double take on seeing my 15 year old with a 105mm bellows folder.

There is pleasure in contrarianism, no doubt about it.

Furtivito · 04-06-2009, 12:13 PM

Originally posted by Pentaxperson

Well here it is..

I have a good friend of mine who shoots Nikon. He uses a D300, and is dying for a D700 or D3.

He always calls my Pentax' equipment PenCraps, so today I had the need to have a sit down with him...kinda...heheh...

Why didn't you just show him a few of your images? As the old saying goes, that would have been worth 1,000 words.

mel · 04-06-2009, 12:52 PM

I have a very good friend who is a lifelong Canon shooter in NYC that I went shooting with while I was there week before last. Part of our adventures involved getting from one place to another in my car, with me driving. While I was driving he was shooting out the window with my K10D with my new DA* 50-130 attached. By the end of our adventures he was trying to hand off his camera to me and keep mine.

Ignore him. Or let him shoot the thing. And by the way, I also have my Canon friend shooting takumars on his Canon.

04-05-2009, 08:20 PM	#1
Pentaxperson Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Austin, Tejas Posts: 97	My friend made fun of my Pentax equipment today... Well here it is.. I have a good friend of mine who shoots Nikon. He uses a D300, and is dying for a D700 or D3. He always calls my Pentax' equipment PenCraps, so today I had the need to have a sit down with him...kinda...heheh... I had to explain to him that my equipment are my tools to convey an image or artistic rendering of what my mind or eyes see. I said think of your camera as a musical instrument.....except you are not reading a sheet of music . You are improvising the entire time, unless you just like copying people's work. Some composers make music most people love and can easily listen too....and some make music that is thought to be poor or not that great as in the case with the composer "Sibelius" most thought he was a hack composer in his time, but his music is beautiful. EXAMPLE : YouTube - (1/2) David Oistrakh - Sibelius Violin Concerto (1st mvt.) I just am trying to make him have a better understanding of photography. Bascially...do it for yourself and not trying to compare your pics with other "pro" guys....just do it for the enjoyment and show em off...if people like it or don't, who cares. I've seen people with P&S cameras do some amazing stuff and it doesn't matter what you use, just that you USE. I've been using Pentax since I was 13 (ZX-M) and I am now 28. I tried to make him understand the quality in my M42 SMC Taky's, and he just saw old heavy glass. I tried to make him understand the simplicity and beauty of a spotmatic and it's meter...and he laughed... I tried to show him that taking pictures with a K10d, K20d, ist DS2 is about PURE PHOTOGRAPHY, and about TAKING PICTURES. For some reason he is always messing with settings on his D300 to get a picture.. I just rotate dials. (I'm sure he can too, but he likes looking at his camera more than looking through it ) His reply was... PenCraps.... So I asked why do you want a D700 or D3? If you are not satisfied with your work from your D300, WHAT IN THE HELL MAKES YOU THINK A D700 / D3 IS GOING TO FIX THAT? Then he asked why do I have so much Pentax, and not just the 6mp istDS2...I said cause I love Pentax and I collect this stuff..... But in the end...to each his own. He is about to charge a D700.....great camera I'm sure.. but poor lost photog.

04-05-2009, 08:41 PM	#3
monochrome Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Working From Home Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 26,276	Originally posted by Pentaxperson Then he asked why do I have so much Pentax, and not just the 6mp istDS2...I said cause I love Pentax and I collect this stuff..... But in the end...to each his own. My friend who shoots Nikon is pleased that my photos are improving and NEVER criticizes my choice of gear. Of course, I need to know a bit about Nikon so I can chimp a new lens or body he has every now and then, but that's what friends do, right? Last edited by monochrome; 04-07-2009 at 06:18 PM.*

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04-05-2009, 08:40 PM	#2
graphicgr8s Guest	Some get it. Some just buy equipment. I want the K20D. I don't need it my K10 takes excellent pictures. Sometimes it takes excellent pictures of crap though. Actually that may be the eyeball looking throught the viewfinder. I hate my keyboard. It can't spell worth a lick.

04-05-2009, 08:51 PM	#4
larryinlc Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Wisconsin USA Posts: 993	I have a good friend from Germany who was very proud of his new Canon. He then held and played with my Samsung GX-10...His jaw dropped and I swear I could see a tear in his eye. Larry

04-05-2009, 09:11 PM	#5
Peter Zack Pentaxian Moderator Emeritus Join Date: May 2007 Location: Edmonton Alberta, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 10,643	I never respond or worry about that ever. It happens all the time to the users of the smaller brands (Sony/Minolta, Olympus, Sigma etc). I moved to a new city 2 years ago and joined the local photo club. Someone there commented on my (K110) A-Shitty-Pentax (AKA Asahi Pentax). Several thought it was funny. I said nothing being the only Pentax shooter there. So 6 months later they have a 2 week, 8 category, juried exhibit at the Arts Guild with 400 shots displayed. The photos were hung anonymously so the judges wouldn't know who's shots they looked at. Couple hundred visitors per day and the 3 person jury (University profs from the Arts dept) award the, A-Shitty-Pentax shooter 2 first place, 2 seconds a 3rd and best in show. Some shitty Pentax. The ONLY thing that matters is you enjoy your work. It's been said a million times but the gear doesn't matter.

04-05-2009, 09:17 PM	#6
Sean Nelson Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Vancouver BC Canada Posts: 353	Originally posted by Pentaxperson His reply was... PenCraps.... Perhaps you should start calling his camera "Nice con", as in he was "nicely conned" to believe in the superiority of one brand over another.

04-05-2009, 09:24 PM	#7
octavmandru Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: somewhere around Posts: 615	Originally posted by Peter Zack The ONLY thing that matters is you enjoy your work. It's been said a million times but the gear doesn't matter. I'm with you, bro. I'd like a K20, though. (just 'cause I'm a gearhead)

04-05-2009, 09:25 PM	#8
legacyb4 Inactive Account Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Tri-Cities, British Columbia Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,784	I was at the Woodland Zoo in Seattle yesterday and there were droves of Canikonites with their bags of gear. My pro buddy was packing his Canon 1DS and his 70-200mm + 300mm which drew jealous looks from a lot of the Canon folks with the Rebels and the lower end prosumer models. On their side of the fence, there's definitely a lot of lens/gear envy going on without a doubt. I think it's just a natural tendency for folks who have put down big bucks on gear to want to justify their purchases. Luckily for my friend, he's an ex-auto sports photographer and can justify having spent the amount of money he did on his gear (if you've ever head the shutter on a 1DS-series camera, it's a mighty impressive sound!).

04-05-2009, 09:54 PM	#9
OregonJim Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Willamette Valley, Oregon Posts: 1,327	Originally posted by graphicgr8s Some get it. Some just buy equipment.. Yup. It was the same in the "old days" - guys with too much money buying Nikon F3's with a dozen lenses. Then all they ever produce is blurry 4x6 snapshots. Sad. But hey, look at it this way - at least they're helping to fund product development for the rest of us...

04-05-2009, 10:12 PM	#10
SteveM Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Vancouver Island, BC, Canada Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,294	I like that I own something special. I also like that there is history behind Pentax.....and that some people get it. Not everyone started photography 4 years ago. Sorry to hear about your friend.....my friends are the "canikin" crowd, but they don't feel they have to pick sides....

04-06-2009, 06:30 AM	#11
Nesster Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: NJ USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 13,072	Originally posted by Pentaxperson Some composers make music most people love and can easily listen too....and some make music that is thought to be poor or not that great as in the case with the composer "Sibelius" most thought he was a hack composer in his time, but his music is beautiful. EXAMPLE : YouTube - (1/2) David Oistrakh - Sibelius Violin Concerto (1st mvt.) I just am trying to make him have a better understanding of photography. Bascially...do it for yourself and not trying to compare your pics with other "pro" guys....just do it for the enjoyment and show em off...if people like it or don't, who cares. Thank you for bringing up the Sibelius Violin Concerto. It is one of the most technically difficult concertos for violin; yet the best violinists (apart from Oistrakh try Heifetz... YouTube - Heifetz plays Sibelius violin concerto 1st movt part 1(1935) ) make it... pyrotechnical and communicative at the same time. Now, they of course use the best violins available. That's a connection to cameras, yes? But using the best violin doesn't make the performance, rather, it permits the desired tone. Heifetz plays like a guitar god. In old blues, Robert Johnson plays like that. Some pianists do too. Their technique and intent transcends and dwarfs the instrument; rather than playing the instrument, their music pulls the instrument along, resonating, singing, in service to something greater. The violin is still a violin, and a guitar still a guitar, but they are somehow transformed into energy vibrations and playthings of the maestro. The best photographers get their gear to sing, sometimes, like that. The camera isn't just a means, a tool, any longer, it is a servant to the vision. The best cameras have the technical creds, but they also know when to get out of the way, to submit to vision. It is less about Nikon or Pentax, as both brands historically have aimed at the tech cred but also photography. It is more about marketing and the wish to have instant ability, the audience response baked into us by decades of advertising and mass entertainment. So yeah, it ain't the meat, it's the motion...

04-06-2009, 06:30 AM	#12
Mike Cash Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Japan Photos: Gallery Posts: 6,950	Originally posted by legacyb4 I was at the Woodland Zoo in Seattle yesterday and there were droves of Canikonites with their bags of gear. My pro buddy was packing his Canon 1DS and his 70-200mm + 300mm which drew jealous looks from a lot of the Canon folks with the Rebels and the lower end prosumer models. On their side of the fence, there's definitely a lot of lens/gear envy going on without a doubt. If I'm going to be some place where there's a lot of that going on, I typically will leave the K20D out of the mix and go in with something just as different from everyone else as I can....TLR, rangefinger, old folder, old film body Pentax, etc. I'm not the least bit ashamed or embarrassed to be seen there with a K20D...but I just hate to be doing what everybody else is doing.

04-06-2009, 06:34 AM	#13
Nesster Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: NJ USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 13,072	LOL - Mike - this reminds me of when we bought the Bessa I - my daughter and I - and headed over to the Paterson Falls to try it out. A guy with truly impressive digital equipment was there, but had to do a double take on seeing my 15 year old with a 105mm bellows folder. There is pleasure in contrarianism, no doubt about it.

04-06-2009, 12:13 PM	#14
Furtivito Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: SW Ohio Photos: Gallery Posts: 66	Originally posted by Pentaxperson Well here it is.. I have a good friend of mine who shoots Nikon. He uses a D300, and is dying for a D700 or D3. He always calls my Pentax' equipment PenCraps, so today I had the need to have a sit down with him...kinda...heheh... Why didn't you just show him a few of your images? As the old saying goes, that would have been worth 1,000 words.

04-06-2009, 12:52 PM	#15
mel Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Virginia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,531	I have a very good friend who is a lifelong Canon shooter in NYC that I went shooting with while I was there week before last. Part of our adventures involved getting from one place to another in my car, with me driving. While I was driving he was shooting out the window with my K10D with my new DA* 50-130 attached. By the end of our adventures he was trying to hand off his camera to me and keep mine. Ignore him. Or let him shoot the thing. And by the way, I also have my Canon friend shooting takumars on his Canon.