The good old days?

Lenscap · 11-04-2015, 07:02 PM

My collection of bodies and lenses is VERY modest compared to a lot of folks here. But it's still...a collection. A dozen or so bodies, and maybe twice that many lenses occupy space in my home office.

Like a brazillion others, my first SLR was a K1000. It caused me to think about photography in terms other than just aiming the camera at something and pressing a button.

When I got that camera, I was in high school. It was the best I could afford. It was, simply, my camera. Not part of a collection, not one of many vying for space and use, just...my camera.

It wasn't long until I added a 135mm lens. So there I was: one camera, two lenses and a flash. If I took a picture, it was with some combination of those four things.

Now? I have "better" cameras (Lawd, I love my KX) and more lenses, and I'm probably a slightly better photographer than I was then. But somehow I miss those days when it was just me and "my camera".

Don't get me wrong: I'm not on the verge of dumping my K2 or MX in a fit of nostalgia. But something in me misses the simpler times when I didn't have a collection, I just had...my camera.

Thanks for tolerating my reminiscing, and...is it just me?

jkomp316 · 11-04-2015, 07:30 PM - **3 Likes**

back when we had the time to actually use the goods we purchased... now all we do is work and accumulate items with ideas of what could be.

redrockcoulee · 11-04-2015, 08:32 PM

Maybe you should either ignore many of your cameras as far as using and just call them a collection or thin out your collection. For me I do have the decision of which format to use but after that it is only one or two cameras to choose from.

elementdtlop · 11-04-2015, 09:37 PM

you can try having a shoot with one lens and make it happen. not a superzoom or something like that thats cheating. like a 28mm day or a 300mm day. if you have to frame the one length you'd at least be restricted into a creative mind frame. you can't just zoom in or out or change your lens.

jcdoss · 11-04-2015, 09:56 PM - **1 Like**

Perhaps you can join our Single-In group.

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/26-mini-challenges-games-photo-stories/30...er-2015-a.html

Lenscap · 11-04-2015, 10:35 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by jkomp316

back when we had the time to actually use the goods we purchased... now all we do is work and accumulate items with ideas of what could be.

Yep. This. When you have one, you use it and never look back. When you have a dozen or two...well, it's just not the same.

---------- Post added 11-05-15 at 12:40 AM ----------

I get the whole "use one, ignore the rest" and "single in" ideas. I'm not knocking them, for sure. My whole point is...well, I'm not sure. I think my point is that for all I've gained over the years -cameras and everything else- I'm not really better off than when I had less and it seemed like more.

Jeez, maybe I just need a bourbon and and a nap, then go out tomorrow with five cameras and revel in the bounty that I have.

**gofour3** · 11-04-2015, 11:10 PM

Originally posted by jkomp316

back when we had the time to actually use the goods we purchased... now all we do is work and accumulate items with ideas of what could be.

Good point!

As well for me was saving up for months and buying my first camera kit. It took a lot of effort and was a big deal for me as a teenager.

Now it's way too easy going on eBay and paying for something via PayPal at the spur of the moment. I like having all this new gear, but it's not the same as when I bought my original kit.

Phil.

officiousbystander · 11-05-2015, 03:21 AM

Originally posted by Lenscap

But somehow I miss those days when it was just me and "my camera".

My Ricoh GR is my 'just me and my camera' camera. I use my other gear and I have to admit I have too much of it. But my GR is special. It's taught me more about photography than anything else since dear old Dad's ME Super.

Nesster · 11-05-2015, 07:19 AM

I went about 10 years with just a Pen FT and one lens. Then I went another 10 with just an OM2s and a Tamron 35-70. I only added a second lens, a Zuiko 90/2 when our eldest was in high school plays. I added a Yashica T4 for the auto focus as our eyes aged... and bought a Pentax zx-10 sometime in 2006. Nice camera, terrible kit lens. So... I bought a 16-45 and used it with film till eventually I got a K100D. The OM2s had been my only SLR for over 20 years.

And yes, it was more enjoyable, more about the photography and solving problems with limited equipment and money... My particular downfall was I discovered medium format vintage cameras, and how cheap they were.

wkraus · 11-05-2015, 07:49 AM

Originally posted by redrockcoulee

Maybe you should...

Originally posted by elementdtlop

you can try...

Originally posted by jcdoss

Perhaps you can...

I'm not sure... Was the OP really looking for advice?

I think I am a better photographer now than I was back then, in that I know better how to get the shot that I want. The tools that I have these days also help me to achieve that. But I think I "saw" better in a less self-conscious way. I miss the time to just float around (if that's correct English) and find images where one wouldn't look for them.

Lenscap · 11-05-2015, 08:07 AM

Not really looking for advice, just musing. I appreciate all the input, though.

mohb · 11-05-2015, 08:33 AM

You are a photographer when you get your fist camera - you become a photography enthusiast when you get your tenth. The excitement at becoming the fist mellows into the 'obsession' which is the second.

Niner Alpha · 11-05-2015, 09:34 AM

When I got my K1000 back about 35 years ago it was a photographic learning experience with the F stops and shutter speeds. I read books and learned to develop film and make pints. It was a new hobby. I even sold a few prints and got paid for a few shots in a magazine. Then time moved on. Got some better SLR's. The dilettante stage had come and gone and the careful image hunt became less often and the memory snap shot became more prominent as the digital age came along. I don't have photographs any more.. I have great numbers of "images" that are mostly on various storage devices...some of those storage devices are no longer made nor supported.

Lately I've rediscovered old film cameras. They are cheap and there are thousands of models from various times in history. A $20 camera can supply an adventure in photography now days. I just bought six old point and shoots for $19. Each one can be an adventure yet to discover.

Here is one report I did about a Brownie Hawkeye.

Brownie Hawkeye - Milsurp After Hours

**gofour3** · 11-05-2015, 10:50 AM

Originally posted by Niner Alpha

Here is one report I did about a Brownie Hawkeye.

Brownie Hawkeye - Milsurp After Hours

Good stuff! That was the first camera I ever used, as my mom had one back in the late 50's to early 70's. We eventually upgraded to my own Kodak Instamatic in the early 70's!

The Instamatic was also the first camera I used to shoot Kodachrome 64.

Phil.

**Nakedgun** · 11-05-2015, 11:29 AM

Originally posted by wkraus

I'm not sure... Was the OP really looking for advice?

I miss the time to just float around (if that's correct English) and find images where one wouldn't look for them.

Agreed.

11-04-2015, 07:02 PM	#1
Lenscap Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2013 Posts: 145	The good old days? My collection of bodies and lenses is VERY modest compared to a lot of folks here. But it's still...a collection. A dozen or so bodies, and maybe twice that many lenses occupy space in my home office. Like a brazillion others, my first SLR was a K1000. It caused me to think about photography in terms other than just aiming the camera at something and pressing a button. When I got that camera, I was in high school. It was the best I could afford. It was, simply, my camera. Not part of a collection, not one of many vying for space and use, just...my camera. It wasn't long until I added a 135mm lens. So there I was: one camera, two lenses and a flash. If I took a picture, it was with some combination of those four things. Now? I have "better" cameras (Lawd, I love my KX) and more lenses, and I'm probably a slightly better photographer than I was then. But somehow I miss those days when it was just me and "my camera". Don't get me wrong: I'm not on the verge of dumping my K2 or MX in a fit of nostalgia. But something in me misses the simpler times when I didn't have a collection, I just had...my camera. Thanks for tolerating my reminiscing, and...is it just me?

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11-04-2015, 07:30 PM - 3 Likes	#2
jkomp316 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 227	back when we had the time to actually use the goods we purchased... now all we do is work and accumulate items with ideas of what could be.

11-04-2015, 08:32 PM	#3
redrockcoulee Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Medicine Hat Posts: 2,306	Maybe you should either ignore many of your cameras as far as using and just call them a collection or thin out your collection. For me I do have the decision of which format to use but after that it is only one or two cameras to choose from.

11-04-2015, 09:37 PM	#4
elementdtlop Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Posts: 97	you can try having a shoot with one lens and make it happen. not a superzoom or something like that thats cheating. like a 28mm day or a 300mm day. if you have to frame the one length you'd at least be restricted into a creative mind frame. you can't just zoom in or out or change your lens.

11-04-2015, 09:56 PM - 1 Like	#5
jcdoss Pentaxian Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Ingelheim am Rhein, Germany Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,768	Perhaps you can join our Single-In group. https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/26-mini-challenges-games-photo-stories/30...er-2015-a.html

11-04-2015, 10:35 PM - 1 Like	#6
Lenscap Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2013 Posts: 145 Original Poster	Originally posted by jkomp316 back when we had the time to actually use the goods we purchased... now all we do is work and accumulate items with ideas of what could be. Yep. This. When you have one, you use it and never look back. When you have a dozen or two...well, it's just not the same. ---------- Post added 11-05-15 at 12:40 AM ---------- I get the whole "use one, ignore the rest" and "single in" ideas. I'm not knocking them, for sure. My whole point is...well, I'm not sure. I think my point is that for all I've gained over the years -cameras and everything else- I'm not really better off than when I had less and it seemed like more. Jeez, maybe I just need a bourbon and and a nap, then go out tomorrow with five cameras and revel in the bounty that I have.

11-04-2015, 11:10 PM	#7
gofour3 Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 8,090	Originally posted by jkomp316 back when we had the time to actually use the goods we purchased... now all we do is work and accumulate items with ideas of what could be. Good point! As well for me was saving up for months and buying my first camera kit. It took a lot of effort and was a big deal for me as a teenager. Now it's way too easy going on eBay and paying for something via PayPal at the spur of the moment. I like having all this new gear, but it's not the same as when I bought my original kit. Phil.

11-05-2015, 03:21 AM	#8
officiousbystander Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Sydney Photos: Gallery Posts: 912	Originally posted by Lenscap But somehow I miss those days when it was just me and "my camera". My Ricoh GR is my 'just me and my camera' camera. I use my other gear and I have to admit I have too much of it. But my GR is special. It's taught me more about photography than anything else since dear old Dad's ME Super.

11-05-2015, 07:19 AM	#9
Nesster Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: NJ USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 13,072	I went about 10 years with just a Pen FT and one lens. Then I went another 10 with just an OM2s and a Tamron 35-70. I only added a second lens, a Zuiko 90/2 when our eldest was in high school plays. I added a Yashica T4 for the auto focus as our eyes aged... and bought a Pentax zx-10 sometime in 2006. Nice camera, terrible kit lens. So... I bought a 16-45 and used it with film till eventually I got a K100D. The OM2s had been my only SLR for over 20 years. And yes, it was more enjoyable, more about the photography and solving problems with limited equipment and money... My particular downfall was I discovered medium format vintage cameras, and how cheap they were.

11-05-2015, 07:49 AM	#10
wkraus Pentaxian Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Near Vienna, Austria Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,059	Originally posted by redrockcoulee Maybe you should... Originally posted by elementdtlop you can try... Originally posted by jcdoss Perhaps you can... I'm not sure... Was the OP really looking for advice? I think I am a better photographer now than I was back then, in that I know better how to get the shot that I want. The tools that I have these days also help me to achieve that. But I think I "saw" better in a less self-conscious way. I miss the time to just float around (if that's correct English) and find images where one wouldn't look for them.

11-05-2015, 08:07 AM	#11
Lenscap Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2013 Posts: 145 Original Poster	Not really looking for advice, just musing. I appreciate all the input, though.

11-05-2015, 08:33 AM	#12
mohb Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Photos: Albums Posts: 1,912	You are a photographer when you get your fist camera - you become a photography enthusiast when you get your tenth. The excitement at becoming the fist mellows into the 'obsession' which is the second.

11-05-2015, 09:34 AM	#13
Niner Alpha Forum Member Join Date: Oct 2015 Posts: 73	When I got my K1000 back about 35 years ago it was a photographic learning experience with the F stops and shutter speeds. I read books and learned to develop film and make pints. It was a new hobby. I even sold a few prints and got paid for a few shots in a magazine. Then time moved on. Got some better SLR's. The dilettante stage had come and gone and the careful image hunt became less often and the memory snap shot became more prominent as the digital age came along. I don't have photographs any more.. I have great numbers of "images" that are mostly on various storage devices...some of those storage devices are no longer made nor supported. Lately I've rediscovered old film cameras. They are cheap and there are thousands of models from various times in history. A $20 camera can supply an adventure in photography now days. I just bought six old point and shoots for $19. Each one can be an adventure yet to discover. Here is one report I did about a Brownie Hawkeye. Brownie Hawkeye - Milsurp After Hours

11-05-2015, 10:50 AM	#14
gofour3 Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 8,090	Originally posted by Niner Alpha Here is one report I did about a Brownie Hawkeye. Brownie Hawkeye - Milsurp After Hours Good stuff! That was the first camera I ever used, as my mom had one back in the late 50's to early 70's. We eventually upgraded to my own Kodak Instamatic in the early 70's! The Instamatic was also the first camera I used to shoot Kodachrome 64. Phil.

11-05-2015, 11:29 AM	#15
Nakedgun Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Southwest Posts: 1,365	Originally posted by wkraus I'm not sure... Was the OP really looking for advice? I miss the time to just float around (if that's correct English) and find images where one wouldn't look for them. Agreed.