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I’m sure Lindsay Buckingham had some very personal sentiments when he wrote the lyric for one of Fleetwood Mac’s biggest hits, most likely the very emotional breakup with band mate Stevie Nicks. My little essay here has nothing to do with such emotions and certainly nothing to do with 1970s rock music I just merely “borrowed” the title as a reflection of my subject of discussion today.
When I read equipment reviews or listen to other photographers wax poetically about a given lens, camera, technique, or style of photography, my mind runs rampant with thoughts of how I would do with said equipment or technique. I wonder what kind of photos I could take if only I had the same lens or camera. I get caught up with the excitement and passion that others bring to a discussion or equipment review and then I try to figure out how in the world am I going to afford that spankin’ new VR lens or that finely made Teutonic rangefinder kit. Let’s take street photography as one recent example of a trip down envy road that I have now strayed off of. Through the influence of seeing other photographers’ work and reading the reviews about street photography equipment, I experienced their thrill vicariously. Through them I became Cartier-Bresson or Capa though the reality is at best a mediocrity and usually even worse, a detached and painfully shy approach to a style that requires stout courage, charisma, and an intimacy usually reserved for one’s spouse.
Through my brief attempts I have come to understand the value of certain pieces of equipment though. My Konica S2 Auto is no Leica, but it might fool someone at a distance. It has enough of the rangefinder quality to provide a measure of why Leicas are so highly regarded for this style of photography. The S2 Auto is Leica compact and is quiet but not Leica quiet. The rangefinder is dim and hazy blue compared to a Leica; however, I found that in low light, indeed, the S2 offers an ability to focus more accurately than an SLR on manual focus. The lens is a fixed 45mm normal focal length; however, it is moderately fast at f1.8 and it shares the virtue coveted by many Leicaphiles, fully mechanical operation. On one feature, it even betters the Leica with the ability to flash sync at all speeds thanks to its leaf shutter. However, this is not an S2 review since I have already done this some time ago. Rather this is to admit my inadequacies with this particular type of camera for the kind of photography that I generally do not find personally meaningful. I have full appreciation for the sometimes dramatic and the often subtle qualities of street photography. It can certainly be art and I would purchase a book or two of such images, but hang on the wall, no. Street photography is not what I want to see on my wall. Hell, given my photographer pretensions, I have decidedly few photos hanging on my wall, something I promise to remedy in the future. I should be happy I have a lack of passion for street photography because it means I don’t have to put myself into debt buying a Leica kit. Could I even consider anything else if I did have the passion for it? Well maybe a medium format rangefinder actually and for less money than a Leica. Spending $4000 for a new M7 and between $2500 to $3500 per lens for maybe three or four would not provide me with long term satisfaction; however, it might make for an interesting long term investment from a collector’s perspective. However, the thought of having such fine equipment sitting on a display shelf or worse yet, in an hermetically sealed packages is repugnant, equipment is meant to be used for the purpose it was designed and built for.
So, my painfully shy personality fits in beautifully with a general or landscape photographer’s style; a lone wolf on the prowl for personally meaningful images. Curiously though I am less shy when it comes to doing photography for others, usually social photography in the form of a wedding. I don’t know if it is because I am empowered with a sense of purpose or because I am motivated to get the goods and be paid for my time, but I do what I have to get the job done. Even as a guest I get up and take shots and I have been described as a person unafraid to get in there and take the photo by those who have watched me at such events. (What? Who little old shy me? Ah now I’m blushing.) Okay, I do have a sense of purpose and as a hired photographer I have a job to do. I’m being paid to get in the way of the guests witnessing the event behind me and yes, when they do silly and fun things at the wedding I’ll be there to take pictures of those moments too. My power is derived from the couple who want the day to be captured to the best of my abilities. When hired to do a job, it is not about me and my neurosis’ but about the bride’s and to do what she wants. So, while other photographers excel at street photography (or whatever style one does not have familiarity with) and revel in the “moment” that it provides to them, I seek a different style and result and go my own way. It is very difficult not to have equipment envy and think that you too could be just as good with the same equipment when reading other photographer’s comments. Just remember though that their passion may not be the same as yours and what works for them may be the most useless tool in your hands. Now, I do happen to have some decent equipment in my kit and it certainly has the ability to produce some fine landscape photos, but you know when I look at landscape images from excellent photographers, I get a whole different kind of envy. However, that is something to be discussed another day… |
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Correspondence & About this website Copyright © 1998-2008 Edwin Leong |
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Edwin's
Vignettes - You
Can Go Your Own Way 
After
some attempts at street photography, I can say that I am a distinct
failure because it is not true to me and my own personal style. When
I do photography for myself, I prefer solitude and the further away
from people I am, the happier. Trying to do photography amongst a
throng of strangers on the street is completely not me.
