Originally posted by Transit Professionals do not engage in debates while on the job.
Right, especially not with one of the guests!
As a Pentax-using wedding pro myself, I get the "Why Pentax?" question occasionally, from guests. Generally speaking I do not have time to jawbone with the guests about camera equipment, but if there's a lull in the action I may exchange a few words on the subject. First thing I try to do is guess the motives of the person asking the question.
Normally the questioner is a normal, sensible amateur who knows they don't know a lot about photography and who asks their question out of sincere curiosity. They have a Canon XSi or a Nikon D5000 or something like that because that's what the person at the camera store told them to buy, and now they see the pro using Pentax and they wonder. I deal very gently with this sort of question, reassuring the asker that there are NO bad bodies on the market these days and they have a fine camera. This makes them happy. If they continue to ask why I use Pentax, I'll point out that I am personally very fond of shooting with primes and that Pentax has a unique line-up of superior-quality prime lenses. I may have to explain what a prime lens is. If I happen to have the 21 or 40 or 70mm lens on one of my cameras at the moment—which I probably do—this helps me make the case, because these lens do NOT look like the lenses that amateurs have for their cameras. I might also mention weather-sealing, etc.
On the other hand, occasionally the question is asked by Uncle Bob, the stock broker who brought his D3s with the 70-200 f/2.8 lens and who KNOWS he has the best camera in the world, because he knows that he paid a fortune for it. The only way to deal with Uncle Bob is to compliment him on his camera and possibly express a little envy, both of which I can do sincerely. This makes him happy. If I can't get away at this point, I may go on to explain that his camera's low-light, high-ISO advantage matters to me only 10% of the time in my work, but that even then, my fast primes partially give me a one-stop advantage that at least partially compensates for the smaller sensor, and that I can do pretty well at least up to ISO 2000, especially with the fantastic advances in noise reduction in Lightroom 3, blah blah blah. Uncle Bob at this point is probably trying to get away from ME.
If not, I might add that processing 1000 images that are 20+ MB in size is a huge and unnecessary hassle that would add hours and hours to my work load after the wedding. (I really try NOT to take 1000 images at a wedding, but Uncle Bob doesn't know this and is almost certainly the kind of person who would be impressed by a larger number. Uncle Bob likes large.) I may also defend my choice by pointing out that, in my line of work, it's imperative for me to have multiple bodies and a large arsenal of lenses, not to mention flashes, etc., so I am unable to sink my budget into a single camera; and I would add that Pentax has the lowest-priced weather-sealed bodies, etc. Uncle Bob can appreciate thrift, even if he doesn't practice it himself.
I probably do NOT throw in the bit about the prime lenses because Uncle Bob is almost certainly not going to understand this. For him, the sheer size of his camera and its lens are symbols of his own virility, so showing him my own little wee-wee may simply invite his ridicule. I have to assess this carefully.
I keep thinking that I need to answer this question on my blog. Then I can give the questioner a business card and invite them to check out the post, and excuse myself.
It's an occupational hazard. Generally speaking, I try to avoid getting into conversations with the guests. No good can come of it.
Will
Last edited by WMBP; 08-03-2010 at 08:41 AM.