Let’s start with the obvious: To practice photography, you need a camera. The type of camera you need to be a photographer is an ongoing debate. Honestly, it’s not a debate worth getting into. If you want to capture photos, you simply need any camera that works.
Okay, okay…I get it, you’re here for some advice. Unfortunately, there is no perfect solution for every person. Every photographer’s path is different, and the gear you use early on is just a starting point. So we’ll go over a few scenarios. Just a heads-up: I’ll be using some technical terms here, and I’ll try to quickly and simply explain some of them. But don’t worry too much about that just yet. I’ll get to those in future posts.
The Minimalist
Minimalism has its appeal, even in photography. If your goal is simply to capture moments, you may be looking to use a camera that you don’t need to tinker with. Most of you already have a pretty good mobile phone with a good camera built in. That’s a great starting point. I would encourage you to explore different photo apps for your phone, but even the default photo app that comes with your phone should give you enough control to grow as a photographer. Even with all my experience, I use my camera phone often with satisfying results. Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.
But the minimalist approach does still have its gear-nerd appeal. If you want a great camera with a fixed lens, a rangefinder-style camera like the Fujifilm X100V, or the Olympus OM Pen may be perfect for you. Granted, these come with a price tag, but the image quality is excellent. I use the old version of Fujifilm’s fixed lens, the X100S, and it is one of my most-used cameras. There’s something to be said about not worrying about your focal length and having complete control of the camera with mechanical dials and switches. Even professional photographers like to escape to such simplicity at times.
The Tinkerer
Many photographers like to have gadgets to play with. Sometimes a complete system from one of the big brands, like Nikon, Canon, or Sony, opens up doorways to complicated but rewarding setups. Now I wouldn’t recommend that a new photographer goes out and gets a top-of-the-line Nikon D (traditional SLR) or Z (mirrorless) camera with multiple lenses, some smart flashes, etc. But you can work your way into this type of system where you can easily dial in every possible detail to your liking. If you like to shoot sports or other fast-moving subjects, consider a digital Single-Lens Reflex camera, like the Nikon D series, or the Canon DSLR series. DSLR’s remain the king of sports photography because of the physical shutter that can freeze a subject, or allow motion blur to be silky smooth. A newer technology is the Mirrorless camera. These are typically smaller in size since they don’t have a reflex mirror or a viewfinder prism (the viewfinder is typically digital). They have significant advantages in low light and have quickly become a favorite of landscape and architectural photographers, but also favorites for portrait photographers. in low-light and you want an un-paralleled low light response, In the mirrorless category, Fujifilm and Sony have some of the most popular offerings. Both also have much higher-end lines for you to grow into as well. I don’t want to discount the recent strides by both Canon and Nikon in this category, but Fujifilm and Sony are really hard to top with mirrorless technology.
Whether you go DSLR or Mirrorless, you can start with a kit lens (a lens that comes packaged with the body, usually an 18-55mm or similar focal length). Don’t worry about those super-expensive lenses just yet, we’ll get there. Just know that the lenses are most often something you’ll keep for a very long time, even when you upgrade your camera body. Most lenses will be compatible with future generations of the camera system you’re using.
The Nostalgiac
Film won’t die. Film cameras are still popular, and some brands even still make film cameras. Physical media photography is common, in part because it changes the way you are forced to think about your shots. I believe there is a level of appreciation for setting up a photo that you won’t see until you develop it. And then, and only then, you will discover whether or not the shot was a good one. Film has a steep learning curve, so I don’t recommend using a film camera if you don’t know what to expect. The truth of the matter is that many of the cool things you can do with film is done in the dark room. So while you can send your film out to be developed by a lab, your best work would be done in a home dark room. Even with the many online resources, that’s a lot to learn just to hone your craft in this day and age.
Film photography has a high cost of entry. The camera itself will be fairly economical. It is possible to pick up a great used camera for less than $100 (USD). But film itself has gotten expensive, $15-30 (USD) per roll, more for slide film. Then you’re looking at $10-20 to develop a single roll, whether you send it out or do it in your home lab. From there, you can save money by using slide film and scanning directly into your computer, but that kinda defeats the purpose, doesn’t it? So you could build a nice home lab with enlargers, developing stations, lots of print paper…it all adds up. But if you’re up for it, and you have the expendable cash, it’s a very rewarding approach to photography.
The Best Camera…
…is the one you have with you. That’s a saying that wasn’t necessarily coined by photographer Chase Jarvis, but he has made it his brand. The best way to learn photography is really to make sure you always have a camera with you. And that brings me back to your phone’s camera: Even if you get a dedicated camera, I would encourage you to use your phone camera as much as possible. It’s a side-arm, the camera you will probably always have with you.
